Educated by Tara Westover

I’m still trying to finish up my book reviews from 2019 before I do an end of the year review.

My mother-in-law read this for book club and shared the book with me after she finished with it. It’s certainly a book that’s been on my radar to read since everyone seems to be talking about it.

Published: 2018

Genre: nonfiction memoir

Length: 334 pages

Setting: a small town in rural Idaho, plus a bit at Harvard and Oxford

Summary: Short version: Westover escapes life with a fundamentalist, prepper Mormon family through education

The Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease

I think I saw this book in the library catalog when I was looking for something else. I’m always on the lookout for a good read-aloud, so I had to check out the book.

Published: originally in 1979, but I read the seventh edition, published in 2013. There is now an eighth edition, published in 2019

Genre: nonfiction

Length: 172 pages of text, 351 pages when you include the treasury of read-alouds, notes, and indices

Summary: Short version: Why reading aloud is great for everyone and some suggested books

Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake by Anna Quindlan

I hope all my American readers had a lovely Thanksgiving. It was a long day here with the in-laws, which means I’m ready to curl up with a book. I already finished this book, but perhaps you might like it. While I tell myself saw Anna Quindlan discussed somewhere and thought she sounded like an interesting author, really I just picked up one of her books because she’s a Q author.

Subtitle: A Memoir of a Woman’s Life

Published: 2012

Genre: nonfiction memoir

Length: 182 pages

Font: Granjon

Summary: Short version: A collection of essays focused on families, friendships, and growing older

Marco Polo: Dangers and Visions by Marco Tabilio

Miss Adventure wants to learn about Marco Polo this month. When I searched the library catalog for books on Marco Polo she might enjoy, this one came up. We’re always up for a graphic novelization of a subject.

Published: originally in 2015, in English in 2017

Genre: nonfiction graphic novel biography

Length: 207 pages

Setting: from Venice to China, mid 1200s-1300s

Summary: Short version: A reflection on Marco Polo’s journeys while he’s in a Genoese jail

Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance

This was our September book club choice.

Subtitle: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis

Published: 2016

Genre: nonfiction memoir

Length: 261 pages

Setting: mostly around Middleton, Ohio, 1980s-present

Summary: Short version: Vance’s hillbilly life and how he got out

The Teenage Brain by Frances E. Jensen and Amy Ellis Nutt

I went to a neuroscience talk and the speaker recommended this book. Since I have two teenagers in my house, I figured it would be appropriate to read.

Subtitle: A Neuroscientist’s Survival Guide to Raising Adolescents and Young Adults

Published: 2015

Genre: nonfiction science

Length: 296 pages of text. 358 pages with glossary, bibliography, and index

Summary: Short version: A discussion of how teenage brains differ from adult brains

Great Garden Companions by Sally Jones

I had seen the book on my mother-in-law’s shelf. When I glanced through it, the information seemed interesting. I borrowed it and read it off and on for a few weeks.

Subtitle: A Companion-Planting System for a Beautiful, Chemical-Free Vegetable Garden

Published: 1998

Genre: nonfiction gardening

Length: 278 pages

Summary: Short version: How to increase production in an organic garden by encouraging beneficial insects