Hi friends,
August was a busy month for us. Chloe started a new class at
school, and we had another family trip to the mountain house in Florissant. I also
got in a few good reads both nonfiction and fiction.
As always, let me know if you have any suggestions for
further reading or thoughts about these books.
Cheers,
Tonya
An Elegant Defense: The Extraordinary New Science of the
Immune System: A Tale in Four Lives by Matt Richtel
Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Recommendation: yes, for anyone interested in learning
about how our immune systems work
Review: You can tell that this is a serious
nonfiction book because the title has not one, but two colons. I guess he couldn’t
decide which subtitle sounded the best? This book was written pre-COVID-19
pandemic, but the insights are helpful in understanding the current pandemic,
especially the discussions of medical advancement that have given us monoclonal
antibody treatments for cancer and COVID. Richtel opens by saying that if you
ask any immunologist just about any question about the immune system, they’ll
start by saying, “It’s complicated.” Richtel does a good job breaking down the
complicatedness of our immune system, and I was mostly able to follow his
technical explanations of the mechanisms that make up our immune system. One of
the big take-aways for me was that there’s a lot we still don’t know about the immune
system, but it’s an exciting time to be an immunologist as we’re learning new
things all the time. The book uses the stories of four people as case studies
to explain the immune system through the lens of a cancer, HIV/AIDS, rheumatoid
arthritis, and lupus patient. Each of these patients with their disorders humanize
what could otherwise be a very technical and dense book. Another big take-away
for me is that you should always be skeptical about any product that claims to
boost or strengthen your immune system, as many health problems are exacerbated
or caused by an overly sensitive, or too strong immune system, that attacks parts
of the body that it shouldn’t. Also, America’s favorite infectious disease
expert makes several appearances here as well in his pre-pandemic fame days,
which was fun to read.
High Drama: The Rise, Fall, and Rebirth of American
Competition Climbing by John Burgmann, Kynan Waggoner
Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Recommendation: only if you’re interested in climbing
Review: This seemed an appropriate book to read as climbing
made its Olympic debut, which was awesome and so much fun to watch! Turns out
that competitive climbing has had a dramatic history in America complete with bankruptcies,
associations mergers, and large grassroot movements. I’ve been a hobbyist
climber for years, and although I’ve never competed, it was fun to learn about all the effort and time that go into competitions. Burgmann did a good job telling the
story, but in my opinion, the pace of the book was hindered by paragraphs with
long lists of names chronicling all the people responsible for organizing a competition
and all the winners. I tended to skim these paragraphs. Still, a good read for
anyone interested in competition climbing.
The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo
Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Recommendation: Meh
Review: I really liked Vo’s fantasy
novellas The Empress of Salt and Fortune and When the Tiger Came Down
the Mountain, so I decided to pick up her first full-length novel, a
somewhat fantastical adaptation of The Great Gatsby even though I’d
never read Gatsby. I’m glad I went back and read it before picking this up though, otherwise it wouldn’t have made much sense. This rendition focuses on Jordan
Baker, a side-character in the original story who is best friends with Daisy
and has a fleeting relationship with the narrator, Nick. Vo has reimagined
Jordan as a queer Vietnamese adoptee and transformed 1920s New York with flairs
of magic and mysticism. It’s a fun read, and I liked how the changes allowed Vo
to explore other issues of the day beyond the original story including racism
and sexism. I enjoyed how the magic allowed us to learn more about the characters
and accentuated their character arcs and dramas. I felt like some of the party
scenes were overly gratuitous, but I think that was kind of the point? I’ll be
interested to see what Vo does next.
Lord of Chaos (Wheel of Time #6) by Robert Jordan
Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Recommendation:
Review: I feel like people who read Wheel of Time
all have opinions about Jordan’s pacing and writing style. These books are
super slow burns that culminate in fantastical action sequences, and Jordan’s
writing is extremely – possibly sometimes excessively – detailed and
descriptive. This book was even slower than the previous ones, and featured almost
no action sequences until the very end, which was a departure from the previous
ones that usually used some sort of trolloc attack to instigate the characters
to get off their butts and go on a journey at the beginning of the book.
Instead, this one focused a lot more on political maneuverings, as the tension
between the Dragon Reborn and the powerful and manipulative Aes Sedai came to a head. It all builds to a fairly amazing action sequence that made the whole
700-page build-up worth it. I liked to see our characters grow as well. Egwene’s
arc was amazing! I love what Jordan’s done with her, but I feel like Nynaeve, Elayne,
and Mat are off on another wild goose chase of a subplot that is probably unnecessary.
Still, they’re always fun to hang out with even when they’re doing nothing but
snipe at each other and spin their wheels. Pun intended.
Wings of Shadow (Crown of Feathers #3) by Nicki Pau
Preto
Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Recommendation: yes, but must read the first two
first
Review: I read the first two books in this series
earlier this year and really enjoyed the world building and the tensions
between the characters. Preto definitely delivered a thrilling and fast-paced
finale to this trilogy. After reading Wheel of Time, this book really
seemed to move with action sequences placed well throughout the book. I really
enjoyed seeing the antagonism between the two rival sisters play out throughout
the book, and I loved the new revelations about shadow magic. To be honest, the
ending felt a little too contrived and convenient with few lasting consequences
for our heroes after a lot of build-up. There was definitely a good amount of Deus ex
Machina to make sure that someone killed the bad guy who wasn’t our hero
and everyone ended up happy. Still, it was highly entertaining and enjoyable.
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
Rating: 5 of 5
stars
Recommendation: yes, if you like The Martian,
you’ll like this
Review: I really enjoyed Weir’s The Martian,
and this book basically rehashed that plot but with more sci-fi elements, higher
stakes, and better character development. Weir starts the book with the “white
room” trope where our main character, again in the first person point-of-view
format, wakes up and has no idea where he is or even who he is. Part of the fun
is watching him use science to figure all of that out as his memories gradually
return. The main narrative is interspersed with flashbacks that gradually
explain more and more about our protagonist. Sometimes that format can impede
the flow of the story, but Weir did it really well, and I didn’t feel like I was
being jerked around between the past and the present. There are a lot of experiments
and many problems and catastrophes that our hero has to science his way out of.
A lot of the technical explanations were a bit over my head, but those more
scientifically inclined would probably enjoy them more. I really liked this
book and felt like it was better executed than The Martian, and had
better character development.
Mommy Corner
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| We got to the Butterfly Pavilion after school sometimes when the air quality or weather is bad. |
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| Chloe's been having lots of fun at school. They had a week where they learned about Hawaii. |
