Reviews by Tag: memoir

The storytelling in this book about Mrs. Zauner’s life is breathtakingly moving and engrossing. You meet Michelle Zauner who is a Korean American. She talks about the hardships she faced as an Asian American and about the struggles she went through with her relationship with her mother. You also read about the challenges she goes through while finding out what truly makes her happy and the challenges she has throughout her life. This book was very well written as you can feel Zauner’s emotions throughout the book and also through the food she writes about.

The Glass Castle is a memoir by journalist Jeannette Walls about her family and childhood. Her parents rejected societal norms, which was often detrimental to the Walls children but also beneficial in its own ways. Jeannett’s father was a genius who helped accelerate the education of his children, but also an alcoholic without any money management skills and constantly on the run from the bill collectors.

Tara Westover’s autobiography, Educated, details her life growing up with survivalists in rural Idaho. Westover received no formal education until she went to college and was barred from modern society, yet she managed to earn her Ph.D. in History from Cambridge. I found this novel intriguing for the most part, but some moments felt repetitive. However, I thoroughly enjoyed Westover’s display of courage, strength, and individuality; she represents how hard work and a little bit of luck can overcome all odds.

A Honeybee Heart Has Five Openings: A Year of Keeping Bees by Helen Jukes Genres: Nonfiction – Memoir, Environment, Nature, Science

Helen Jukes, unsatisfied with her work and home life, receives a colony of bees as a gift from a friend. Recalling how she enjoyed her previous beekeeping experiences, she decides to keep and care for the colony in her backyard. She describes her year of beekeeping, all the while learning more about honey bees and rediscovering passion.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou is a memoir. Maya talks about her experiences growing up as an African American. She has to face discrimination and family problems, and tries to find her place in society. Finally, she is able to break certain barriers that society has created. Is she truly able to find her place?

How About Never--is Never Good for You? ​is Bob Mankoff’s engrossing memoir that focuses primarily on his experiences as a cartoonist and editor of The​ New Yorker​ magazine. Wryly funny and a little tongue-in-cheek, this book is a quick and enjoyable tidbit. The story initially focuses on Bob Mankoff’s life, but gradually shifts to his professional experiences and the cartoons of The ​New Yorker​.

This book serves as both a moving memoir about the author’s relationship with her pet rat and a brilliant nonfiction book about domesticated rats in general. This book blends history and science with stories of  interesting people while at the same time sets the record straight on this amazing animal. Readers will come away with a deep appreciation and a better understanding of rats. You might even be convinced to adopt a rat after reading this wonderful book. Highly recommended for people afraid of rats!

This book tells the story of a Jewish survivor of Hitler’s Europe, and his son, a cartoonist trying to come to terms with his father’s story and the death of his mother. This book follows the story of his father’s experiences in Poland and Auschwitz, as well as that of his entire family. It tells of the romance between his father and mother during this time and their struggles to stay together despite the circumstances. This book shows the relationship between the author and his father throughout. This graphic novel portrays the Jews as mice and the Nazis as cats during the Holocaust.