Brave with Beauty by Maxine Rose Schur

Brave with Beauty: A Story of Afghanistan by Maxine Rose Schur
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

“Let the beauty we love be what we do.” – Rumi

This children’s book teaches us about Queen Goharshad, a 15th century monarch, from western Afghanistan. She dedicated her life to supporting art, music, poetry and architecture. During her reign she generously sold of her riches to build mosques, colleges and libraries for her people. After her passing everything went to ruins but what lives on is the Queens strong will to build a community that lived in beauty, peace and tranquility that continues to inspire us today.

It makes me so happy to see diverse children’s books like this one being published so that stories of amazing figures like Queen Goharshard can be illuminated for more to read. I look forward to sharing this with the little ones in my life.

I received this book through a giveaway from the publisher. This in no way impacts my review and all opinions are my own.

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All-American Muslim Girl by Nadine Jolie Courtney

This is a wholesome and heart warming story, set in a post 9/11 world, about a girl named Allie who is getting curious about her Muslim faith although her parents do not practice it. To everyone else she looks like a typical red headed white girl so she has always dodged questions about her identity and where her family comes from. However, as she hears about Islamophobia from prominent figures in her town as well as from kids at her high school she becomes proactive about learning more about herself.

She buys a Qur’an, prayer rug, abaya and joins a local group of girls who get together to discuss the teachings of the Qur’an. I loved the friendships Allie was able to form as a result of this group. She had started feeling alone at home and at school so these connections she was able to form were so important. Allie is also navigating life with her boyfriend which is exciting but also confusing for her because dating is not allowed in Islam. There is much discussion in the book about what it means to be a “good Muslim” or “bad Muslim.”

It was so nice to see how positive her experience was with learning to pray and setting her intentions. I could see that the more she prayed the more she felt that this path that she has chosen is the right one, even though her Dad is a man of science and doesn’t understand why she would want to make Islam such a big part of her life.

Although I am not Muslim, I still felt connected to this story because my parents immigrated to America from India so I have always felt stuck between two worlds like Allie. I thought this book was so well done and I know people will be able to take so much away from it about being Muslim but also American and what that can look like.

I won this book through a giveaway which in no way impacts my review. All opinions are my own.

Conversations with RBG

Conversations with RBG: Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Life, Love, Liberty, and Law by Jeffrey Rosen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book is a great introduction to Ruth Bader Ginsburg but it may not provide any new information for fans that have followed her career since the beginning. I only recently watched her documentaries on Netflix so I had some knowledge of RBG already and this book served as a great addition.

In the book we get a rundown of her landmark cases, her thoughts on marriage, the cases she would overturn as well as her thoughts on the #metoo movement and so much more. It reads like a biography with some parts that are interview style, going back and forth between her and Jeffery Rosen. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who would like a good intro to the life and career of RBG.

Thank you to Netgalley and Henry Holt & Co. for providing my with this ebook for review. This in no way impacts my review. All opinions are my own.

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Regretting Motherhood by Orna Donath

Let me start by saying that you have to be very open minded to read this book, if not it might make you pretty upset. I’m a pretty open minded person and still had some difficulty objectively reading some of the statements made by the women who participated in this study.

The book covers interviews with women who discuss the routes they took to motherhood, their lives before and after, and the way they deal with the choice of becoming mothers when they don’t want to be mothers. I want to point out that there is a whole section in the book that discusses the distinction between the fact that the women in no way regret their children just the construct of motherhood.

The women in this study are Israeli women who voluntarily sought out this study because they had things to say which is a big point to keep in mind because this is not a random sampling of mothers. All the women in the study regretted motherhood in some way. This brings me to believe that they all had some traits in common to make them feel not suited for motherhood.

The more important point here is that in Israel women have, on average, about 3 children which is much higher than most other countries. There seems to be more pressure in this society to conform to the big family structure and the idea that motherhood is the “right” choice. I believe that the same sort of things happens in other countries except that the pressure may not be as intense.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is intrigued by this topic, like I was, or anyone who has had an inkling that motherhood may not be for them. I’m glad this book exists because it is obviously a taboo subject that no one wants to talk about. Let me know if you’ve read it or plan to read it!

4/5

publication date: July 11th 2017 by North Atlantic Books

Thank you to North Atlantic Books for the gifted copy. This in no way impacts my review and all opinions are my own.

My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell

My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What an amazing debut for Kate Elizabeth Russell. I thought this book was well written and tackled a difficult subject with ease.

Vanessa is a very introspective teen who doesn’t have a lot of friends. A teacher notices her and gives her attention which she likes and gradually she becomes obsessed with this teacher. The chapters flip back and forth between present day Vanessa and young Vanessa. We learn what happens to Vanessa when she is at boarding school and how that plays out in her life. The thing that makes this story so compelling is that Vanessa thinks that she is living in a love story. She feels completely adored and worshipped by this older man. She makes herself believe this story because it has engulfed her whole life. This story is unique because we get to see what Vanessa’s life looks like in the aftermath and how she comes to terms with the story she created for herself versus reality.

I was frustrated with Vanessa’s parents. I feel like her relationship with her parents wasn’t flushed out enough. There were clearly some mother daughter issues but I couldn’t getting a good grasp on that. It felt like they could have done so much more to see the signs or help before it was too late.

Most people know the story of Lolita even if they haven’t read the book which was the case for me. This book references Lolita quite a bit and made me wish I would have read that first. So just in case you are thinking of reading My Dark Vanessa maybe pick up Lolita first.

Thank you Edelweiss and Harper Collins – William Morrow for an advance digital copy. This in no way impacts my review and all opinions are my own.

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