My Reads: Tara Westover, Trevor Noah, William Kent Krueger, Kay Hooper
I read all these books in December!
Educated, by Tara Westover
I had heard a lot about this book, from famous people such as Bill Gates and Obama, and from friends. I was quite hooked from the very beginning. Tara's life is very different from mine. My eyes were opened, literally and metaphorically, to the drastic way of life lived by the Westovers. It boggled my mind to read about how much they shunned modern medicine and traditional schooling.
The passages on the different accidents and injuries faced by Tara and her siblings were horrifying to me. I was even more aghast and angry when Tara described the abuse she faced at the hands of her father and brother. The way she overcame her lack of a proper education and managed to graduate from Cambridge despite all the obstacles really made me cheer for her.
All this is not to say that there was no issue with her book. Generally, I thought that she was fair and showed a degree of humility in her memoir, but I felt like she glossed over some parts of her life, like when she mentioned going to the Middle East. I would like to have read more about her experience there.
Adelynne's Rating: 8/10
Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood, by Trevor Noah
I picked this book up also after recommendations from famous people and friends, and I understand the reason for it. (I think I should really listen to recommendations from famous people and friends!)
Trevor is known for his sense of humour, which is palpable from the get-go. His writing flows easily, making it an easy book to read, even with the excerpts of South African history interspersed among the chapters.
My favourite of his stories is the one about the toilet in his home being an outhouse, and how he was wanting to poop but did not want to go to the outhouse while it was raining heavily. That scene evolved into him doing his naughty business on the floor at home, and then into a huge prayer session organised by his mom with the other mothers in the neighbourhood.
I guffawed when I finished reading that part, and I had to share it with H, who also burst out laughing. That is how hilarious Trevor is.
But besides all the humour, there is a lot of sadness, too. Reading about the apartheid from a citizen’s point of view made me realise how terrible that policy is, in nearly all aspects. And when Trevor described the abuse faced by him and his mother at the hands of his stepfather, I could not put the book down. Nobody should go through what they went through.
All in all, Trevor's autobiography was enlightening and entertaining. I recommend it, for sure!
Adelynne's Rating: 8/10
Ordinary Grace, by William Kent Krueger
I saw this book on Scribd, and when I checked it out on Goodreads, the first review by a reader named Christine sold it to me.
This book is a coming-of-age mystery, written from the point of view of Frank, a teenager in the 60s in rural Minnesota. It's a story about family and community. There are a few deaths, but there is one particular death that hits everybody hard. I only came to the realisation of the killer nearly at the end of the story, and I remember gasping. (For me, that's always a sign that the plot is a good one.)
I generally liked this book, but I do have a bone of contention: Krueger's run-on sentences was not a particular favourite of mine. That said, I could describe his writing as quite poetic, and I did feel some peace and calm while reading his descriptions.
Adelynne's Rating: 7.5/10
Chill of Fear, by Kay Hooper
This was the first time I ever read a book by Kay Hooper. I only got to read it because it was one of the books that my SO had on his bookshelf (and I was helping him to declutter).
I generally like the mystery genre, hence I was curious to see what this was about. It has a bit of a paranormal theme, which is not my usual cup of tea. Surprisingly though, I did enjoy this book, because the paranormality was not too "in your face", so to speak. Also, I appreciated that Hooper did not inject excessive romance in this novel. The protagonists, Quentin Hayes and Diana Brisco, were obviously attracted to each other, but this was expressed subtly.
As for the plot itself, I did not expect the ending, which is always a good thing when it comes to mysteries. Hooper's writing flowed easily; I did not have problems gliding through the novel, and I finished this book in about 12 hours.
Adelynne's Rating: 8/10