Asian American Histories of the United States by Catherine Ceniza Choy

★★★★

Throughout American history, Asians have been stereotyped as both "subhuman and superhuman threats." (p. x) "An Asian American woman is a lotus blossom, but also a dragon lady." (p. xi) Asian Americans are "whiz kids... who do not complain" (p. ix) but also "harbingers of disease and immorality." (p. x) How did we get here? The author addresses this question "by emphasizing three interconnected themes in Asian American histories of the United States: violence, erasure, and resistance." (p. xii)

Notably, she immediately dispels the myth that Asian Americans are a monolith. She showcases the diversity within the demographic by purposely "writing this book... to narrate and to integrate less well-known stories about Asian Americans... such as Indian, Korean, Filipino, and Cambodian Americans, as well as mixed race and adopted Asian Americans, among others." (p. xvi)

In the preface, the author explains how most Asian American history courses and books tend to cover topics chronologically, "ending approximately in the 1980s...with scant attention to more contemporary issues." (p. xvii) I have found this to be exactly the case in my experience, and I was intrigued by her decision to feature "multiple temporal origins of Asian American history, beginning in 2020, with subsequent chapters moving back in time... [to] illuminate connections among historical events hitherto unseen, such as... the continuity of historical alliances between Black and Asian Americans, from Frederick Douglass's 1869 speech advocating for Chinese immigration to Yuri Kochiyama and Malcolm X's friendship in the 1960s." (p. xvii)

Truly, the author's unique approach made Asian American history feel less like static past events and more like modern-day issues. For example, the book started with the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the work of Stop AAPI Hate in documenting anti-Asian violence and discrimination, and tied the resurgence of racism at the start of the pandemic to the long history in America of "association of Asian bodies with disease" (p. 2) dating back to the first wave of Asian immigrants in the 1800s. It also provided context to how "COVD-19 was taking a disproportionate toll on Filipino American nurses" (p. 12) by fleshing out the decades-long history of Filipino nurses in the American healthcare workforce. She also connected the 2021 killings of 6 Asian American women in spas in north GA to America's history of sexualizing and objectifying Asian women, starting with the Page Act of 1875, which "created a system of enforcement that conflated Asian women's migration with prostitution." (p. 158)

Other often overlooked Asian American histories that are discussed in this book: the arrival and contribution of refugees from Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos, including the involvement of the U.S. in creating the situations from which they fled; the role of Asian Americans in U.S. farming, agricultural workers' rights, and the restaurant industry; the service and treatment of Asian Americans in the U.S. military; the effect of imperialism and the struggle for independence in their homelands on Korean, Filipino, and Indian immigrants.

Overall, this book is a great survey-level introduction to parts of Asian American history that are somehow both commonly overlooked and also contemporarily relevant. It does not delve into any great detail, and is not academically dry. The author frequently presents anecdotal stories of diverse Asian American experiences that personalize the topics, including episodes from her own life, showing that Asian American history is not just a field of study, but a living history unfolding all around us, even within our own Asian American families.

Incidentally, I have just one complaint: On page 46, the author refers to a "Lao Student Association" that promotes "Lao culture", and then on page 47, there's a "Laotian American Society" that supports the "Laotian community". What's the difference between "Lao" and "Laotian"? An explainer would have been helpful. I searched it up and found this article: "Is it 'Lao' or 'Laotian'? In Laos, There's a Big Difference".

The Climate Book by Greta Thunberg

★★★★★

If you don't already see how climate change is an emergency and causing an existential crisis, literally threatening human life as we know it and thus requiring substantial and immediate action from every possible direction, this book is for you. 

If you're already aware and over the age of 30, this book can still open your eyes to the extent of the danger and the negligence of world leaders over the course of your lifetime. For example, in essay 4.22 "The Myth of Recycling", Nina Schrank describes how Coca-Cola was part of a lobbying group that re-framed the problems posed by single-use plastics as a personal rather than corporate or government responsibility, making recycling "the greatest example of greenwashing on the planet" (p. 296); though in principle recycling is good for the environment, this lobby used the idea of recycling to justify corporations maintaining the status quo of using plastic instead of committing to more sustainable packaging practices. Perhaps understanding what opportunities have already been lost will enrage you and fuel you to redouble your efforts in climate activism, as it did for me. 

If you're already in a state of panic about the looming climate catastrophe, and particularly if you're a young person who has known no other world, reading the first half of this book might send you into a spiral of despair. As the book progresses, though, essays do become more hopeful, and you begin to see some encouraging pieces, such as essay 3.9 "Life at 1.1°C" by Saleemul Huq about successful climate leadership in some communities from which we can all learn. There are also some practical pieces, like essay 4.19 "The Cost of Consumerism" by Annie Lowrey about how it's worth it for us to individually curb our materialism and consumerism because even though "it will take governmental and corporate action to help heal the planet" (p. 281), "household action is a crucial predicate for broader action." (p. 283) Essay 5.3 "Towards 1.5°C Lifestyles" by Kate Raworth goes even further, offering concrete suggestions on what a "1.5°C lifestyle" would look like, both publicly and privately, to put us on a better track to stay within 1.5°C of global heating. Overall, the book starts by laying out the alarming facts and daunting reality of climate change and ends with solutions, ultimately leaving us with a sense of purpose that's found in Indigenous philosophy, "dreaming of a time when we are propelled not by fear of what is coming towards us, fearsome as it is, but by love for a beautiful vision of a world whole and healed." (p. 420) We are invited to imagine that we "can live in such a way that the Earth will be grateful for us." (p. 420)

Okay, I'm getting ahead of myself. First, a couple notes on the physical book, which I found disappointing but did not factor into my rating. There are many graphs, charts, maps - all kinds of fantastic infographics - but they are all printed in black-and-white, some with shades of grey that are hard to distinguish. Interspersed among the essays, there are powerful photos from around the world, also printed in black-and-white. A full-color printing would have been much more expensive, but I really think all the images would have been vastly more effective in color. (Does a full color edition of this book exist?) Also, I'm sure my aging eyesight was a factor, but the parts written by Greta Thunberg were black text printed on gray paper, a combination I found difficult to read in anything less than full light.

Now, the content. Being fully aware of the extent of the climate emergency and eager to have a sense of agency, I followed a tip from another reviewer and started by reading the very last section first, essay 5.22 "Hope is something you have to earn", and also the "What Next?" piece about what can and must be done. Thus armed with a modicum of hope, I went back and started the book from the beginning. For a stronger buttress of hope, you could read all of part 5 "What We Must Do Now" first.

Most essays are just a few pages, very accessible, written succinctly while still being chock full of straightforward facts, data, and revelations. The content is essentially a mile wide and an inch deep. Individually and together, they explain climate science, describe the changing climate's effect on human life and other species, and explore the history and current state of climate action and inaction. Though each essay is written by a different expert, the information is carefully scaffolded; one article may introduce a concept and define specific terminology, which is then used in a later piece that explains a part of that issue in greater detail. As a science-based book, it's clear words are chosen carefully; instead of simply saying "climate change", which has been twisted by some to mean "naturally occurring climate change", many authors purposely refer to "anthropogenic climate change" to make clear that the climate is being changed by human activity.

This book covers a huge range of topics just enough to illustrate how the climate crisis isn't just one thing, but many, many interconnected issues. CO2 emissions are a big piece of the puzzle, but other pieces include methane emissions, aerosol emissions, microplastic pollutants, and deforestation. And the consequences of global warming isn't just about warmer temperatures, it's also about altered atmospheric circulation, extreme weather events, ocean acidification, and changing ocean currents, and all of that leading to wildfires, poor air quality, possible extinction of insects and animals that would cause dysfunction in our ecosystems, food and water shortages, increased spread of diseases, increased likelihood of human conflicts and violence, and globally destabilizing climate migration. And that's just a sampling of topics covered. In short, climate change is "deteriorating the conditions for life on our planet." (p. 115)

Many of the essays follow a similar pattern: information is presented, the magnitude and gravity of the situation are made clear, and then we're given a final remaining shred of hope in the concluding paragraph(s). We are not doomed, our planet and species can still survive, if only we commit ourselves to making the necessary changes. Of course, that is a collective "we", though the bulk of the responsibility lies with the richest 10% who cause 50% of the world's CO2 emissions. (p. 132) The countries of the Global North are "most responsible for this crisis" (p. 154) while the most affected people in the most affected areas "are overwhelmingly poor people of colour, even in rich countries." (p. 159) This means "wealthy nations must eliminate their use of fossil fuels by around 2030 for a likely chance of [not exceeding] 1.5°C" of global average temperature rise (p. 206), and, in doing so, "make space for the poorest 50 per cent of people in the world to realize their essential consumption needs." (p. 331) In replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy, governments must, at the same time, "protect and help those who are collateral damage in the energy transition." (p. 227) 

The climate crisis is, at its core, a worldwide equity issue. Heat-related health issues are more likely to affect vulnerable populations such as "the elderly, pregnant women, children and people with chronic conditions" (p. 138), and vector-borne diseases (such as malaria and dengue, whose prevalence depends in part on the climate) "are disproportionately linked to poverty." (p. 143) "The fact that 3 billion people use less energy, on an annual per capita basis, than a standard American refrigerator gives you an idea of how far away from global equity and climate justice we currently are. " (p. 154) As Nicki Becker writes in essay 5.17 "What Does Equity Mean to You?", "Climate justice is not only about preventing climate catastrophe, it is about building a world that is just and equal. We do not want to 'conserve' the world as it is now but to create a fairer one." (p. 396)

So why are we still not treating the climate as the emergency that it is? Thunberg writes, "We have solid unequivocal scientific evidence of the need for change. The problem is, all that evidence puts the current best available science on a collision course with our current economic system." (p. 21) She quotes a WHO executive director who said that "economic growth... [is] becoming a malignancy... driving unsustainable practices." (p. 133) "The key is to scale down less necessary forms of production and organize the economy around human well-being rather than capital accumulation. This is known as degrowth." (p. 312) We need to immediately prioritize people over profits and implement climate-saving solutions even when there is no money to be made, with one author urging that "climate change must be averted at any price because its ultimate cost can be neither imagined nor calculated." (p. 193) We need to be implementing solutions like "rapidly expanding public transport, developing a massive programme of electrification, changing town planning, rolling out e-bikes in cities" (p. 209), regardless of any lack of financial gain.

So how do we make these changes happen? According to Thunberg, "the most effective way for us to get out of this mess is to educate ourselves and others... [T]he moment we do go into full crisis mode we will consider every possible individual detail... [W]e as individuals should use our voices, and whatever platforms we have, to become activists and communicate the urgency of the situation to those around us... and hold the people in power accountable for their actions, and their inactions." (p. 326-327) Thunberg's writing is direct and unapologetic, and she doesn't mince words. To media and TV producers who have the power to inform and shape public perceptions, she says straight up, "unless the reason you became whatever you are today was to silently support the destruction of the living planet, then I suggest you start doing your job." (p. 435)

I appreciate that this book makes clear that yes, our individual lifestyle choices do matter. In essay 5.2 "Individual Action, Social Transformation", Stuart Capstick and Lorraine Whitmarsh write: "There is a troubling mismatch between the enormity of climate change and the smallness of the response asked of individuals... If this is a disheartening viewpoint, the good news is that it also represents a false dichotomy. Focusing attention at the two extremes - the individual versus the systemic - overlooks the vast territory in between... One way in which our actions matter... is through providing cues and examples to others... Many studies have shown that the extent to which people make environmentally friendly choices is affected by their assessment of what others are doing... Personal action... has the ability to spark wider transformations of the contexts that underpin our everyday choices, including by influencing business activity and shifting the sense of what represents a normal or desirable way of life... [I]ndividual action... is the vital building block from which social transformation is made possible." (p. 328-330) 

One final point I found enlightening. After graduating college, I had a career-oriented job for a while, then ultimately decided to stay home after having kids. When my kids were little, I spent an inordinate amount of time feeling guilty and conflicted for not having a "real job". In essay 5.16 "A Just Transition", Naomi Klein writes that "teaching and caring for kids doesn't burn a lot of carbon... In a just transition, we would recognize this labour as green and prioritize it because it makes our lives better." (p. 392) The principle is called "care work is climate work" and indeed, looking back, it is easy to see how the things I considered a financial wash (the savings I brought to the household were balanced out by not having an income) were also compatible with that "1.5°C lifestyle", e.g., I didn't have a daily commute and I didn't need to maintain a work wardrobe. Anyway, it's all good and fine for me to find peace with my decisions, but the point is, this overhaul to make our societies more sustainable is an opportunity to "invest in more care-sector jobs and... ensure that women's labour is fully recognized and appreciated in the next economy." (p. 392)

Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century edited by Alice Wong

★★★★

This book is a "must read" not in a page-turning-I-couldn't-put-it-down kind of way, but rather, because everyone should be exposed to the ideas in these essays.

As someone just beginning to learn about disability justice, I picked up the book after hearing about the editor, but all the writers were new to me. Pro Tip: There's an "About the Contributors" section towards the end of the book with a paragraph-long blurb on each author. I also found myself researching some of the writers online, to learn even more about who they are and what they do.

Some essays include "content notes" at the start of the piece, essentially a "content/trigger warning", so the reader is prepared to confront topics like sexual assault or suicide.

Was it uncomfortable reading personal stories about people's disabilities? Yep. But it was the kind of uncomfortable that everyone needs to sit with. These are people! These are their lives! There's the incarcerated deaf man who is punished as recalcitrant when he's handcuffed and unable to sign or write, and is denied an interpreter when his deafness is even acknowledged. The amputee with a prosthetic leg who needs to make sure she walks an "average" (p. 74) number of steps a day, recorded by the leg's technology, in case her insurance company tries to deny her the leg on the grounds she doesn't use it enough. All people deserve dignity and to be included in our definitions of humanity and society. People with disabilities deserve more than survival; they deserve to have access to all the opportunities and spaces abled people have, with whatever assistance they need, without feeling like a burden to others.

What's most striking about this collection is how intersectional the essays are. This book is not just about disabilities in themselves, but about being a disabled black woman, or making a significant contribution to science as a blind astronomer. Authors offer their perspectives on disability and parenting, or disability and sexuality. There's an essay about having to reconcile being disabled and Muslim during Ramadan, when those with medical conditions are exempt from fasting; a fashion manifesto about disabled queer clothing; a piece about navigating disability as an Asian American in an immigrant family with a culture that stigmatized disabilities. Some of the authors are born with disabilities, some are disabled by new onset medical conditions or injuries. Some accept their disabilities as part of their identity while others may hope for a cure or recovery. The essays drive home the point that "the presence or absence of a disability doesn't predict quality of life." (p. 9) 

Since learning about disability activism, I've been increasingly frustrated at how DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) leaders and organizations routinely ignore disability. They rightly fight for so many marginalized groups but somehow stop short of recognizing that "disability rights are civil rights" (p. xvii). According to an essay by the Harriet Tubman Collective, "60 to 80 percent of the people murdered by police are... Disabled and/or Deaf people." (p. 237) When the Movement for Black Lives completely omitted any mention of disability from their 6-point platform released in 2016, the Harriet Tubman Collective said, "It is disingenuous, at best, and violently irresponsible at worst, to claim to want justice for those who have died at the hands of police, and neither name disability nor advance disability justice." (p. 240) It looks like the Movement got the message, because their website does now mention disability and ableism. This awareness still needs work at the local level, where I have yet to see any DEI initiatives address disability. (Notably, in these covid times, widespread masking would allow people at higher risk for severe illness to more safely enter public spaces, yet masking as a disability accessibility issue is widely disregarded.) 

On a personal note, I don't consider myself disabled, but having had cancer, and having gone through related surgeries and chemo and other treatments - some that have left me with permanent, uncomfortable-but-not-disabling side effects - I understand plainly that anyone can become disabled at any time, and I feel I've existed, perhaps sometimes still exist, temporarily, within the disability world. Some aspects of disability resonate with me and, in particular, an essay by Ellen Samuels struck me like an epiphany. (One of the many things I learned in this book is that the disabled community is reclaiming the word "crip", slang for "cripple"; I would not use the term myself, but I am including it below as part of the original quote.)

"Crip time is time travel. Disability and illness have the power to extract us from linear, progressive time with its normative life stages and cast us into a wormhole... Some of us contend with the impairments of old age while still young... we rage silently--or not so silently--at the calm straightforwardness of those who live in the sheltered space of normative time... Crip time is grief time... What I have found much harder to let go is the memory of my healthier self. With each new symptom... I grieve again for the lost time, the lost years that are now not yet to come... crip time is broken time. It requires us to break in our bodies and minds to new rhythms... It forces us to take breaks, even when we don't want to... It insists that we listen to our bodyminds so closely, so attentively, in a culture that tells us to... push the body away from us while also pushing it beyond its limit... crip time is vampire time... we live out of time, watching others' lives continue like clockwork while we lurk in the shadows." (p. 190-192, 195-196)

Rememberings by Sinéad O'Connor

★★★★

I regret that it was Sinéad O'Connor's death that finally spurred me to read her book. I was a fan of her music in high school and college, but I admit I didn't much follow her personal life.

This is the second memoir in a row that I've read by someone who died shortly after the book was written, which adds a certain amount of gravitas to the book. It was heartbreaking to read her plans for her future: "So this is only my first memoir. My intention is to live a long life and keep diaries this time so I won't forget." (p. xii) Towards the end, she described her next album, which was never released.

I think Sinéad O'Connor is a good storyteller. Her prose was sometimes lyrical, sometimes cheeky. She wrote as if she were speaking, so the text is dotted with "ain't" and "dunno" and "gonna". Each chapter is a short vignette, most just a few pages long. Black-and-white photos are interspersed. The book is mostly in chronological order, but sometimes it jumps around in order to follow the full thread of a theme or person. I read the book with a certain amount of apprehension, knowing unpleasant things would be revealed.

She is honest and vulnerable, child-like and God-loving, especially in the first two parts that describe her childhood and early adulthood, yearning for love and being drawn to gentleness. The whole book is a reminder to have grace for others, and to treat others kindly, because you really don't know what they may be going through.

In the last part of the book, she wrote of her adulthood and later albums. Fans will appreciate that she explained the story behind many of her songs. She mostly provided only a glimpse of her personal life at that point, and in the chapter called "The Wizard of Oz," she explained that after she had finished writing up to and including the Saturday Night Live Pope photo-ripping incident, she "had an open-surgery radical hysterectomy... followed by a total breakdown... and by the time I'd recovered, I was unable to remember anything much that took place before it." (p. 267)

(An aside: As someone who has also gone through surgical menopause due to ovary removal, though my experience was not nearly as extreme as hers, I welcome any opportunity to raise awareness of women's health and GYN procedures. If you have a uterus and ovaries, please make sure you have a GYN doctor you trust, and if something unexpected should arise, be open with other women in your life; very likely someone knows something about what you're going through and can offer information, insight, or support.)

What is abundantly clear throughout the book is that through all her life's ups and downs, she had music. She genuinely conveys her deep, abiding, life-long love for music and singing.

Her rock-n-roll lifestyle may be shocking to some readers, but despite the way music executives tried to market her, she was always "a punk, not a pop star." (p. 149) She lived her life true to her lyrics in "The Emperor's New Clothes" - Whatever it may bring / I will live by my own policies / I will sleep with a clear conscience / I will sleep in peace. I was really struck by how principled she was: "To the great consternation of many, I refused all the awards I was personally offered for my second album. Because I knew... that I wasn't getting awards because of anything I stood for. Rather, I was getting awards because I'd... sold a lot of records. Commercial success outranked artistic merit. I made a lot of money for a lot of men who couldn't actually have cared less what the songs were about. And in fact would prefer I told no one." (p. 149) Those rich men did a good job enforcing their preference, because even when she tore up the Pope's picture on Saturday Night Live, I clearly remember how it was a big scandal and everyone was all up in arms about it, but as a young teen at the time, I had no idea she did it to protest child abuse within the Catholic church. I feel a bit guilty now for having been a part of the commercialization of her music, one of those people who enjoyed her songs without understanding how intensely personal they were, without really seeing her.

I was also profoundly moved by her account of how she was booed at a Bob Dylan celebration concert a couple weeks later. I searched up the video of this performance on YouTube, and it's incredible: As she walks onto the stage, you can see in her face how happy she is to be a part of an event in honor of one of her personal heroes. She's supposed to sing a beautiful rendition of Bob Dylan's "I Believe In You" (one of my favorite songs to listen to around Christmas), but then, you see the realization dawn on her face as she processes the booing. You can see the wheels turning in her head, she makes an on-the-spot decision to change her song, and she belts out "War" by Bob Marley - the same song she sang on SNL just before tearing up the photo - and you can see she is all anger and defiance and hurt. She was truly an extraordinary woman, standing up for abused children when no one else would even acknowledge the problem.

Quite remarkably (since there is so little reference to the covid-19 pandemic in contemporary culture), the epilogue was written in the spring of 2020; she described the state of the pandemic, and America, at the time, and was hopeful. Again, she had plans.

Reading her book, it felt like she was alive again. When I finally put the book down upon finishing it, the reality of her death was such a weight of sadness.

The World of Yesterday by Stefan Zweig

★★★★★

A nostalgic, heartfelt tribute to a bygone era, made all the more poignant knowing that the author apparently mailed the final manuscript to his publisher the day before he and his wife died by suicide.

I think it's remarkable how much this book illustrated Mark Twain's quote: "History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes." In the Foreword, Zweig wrote that his generation, which lived through two world wars, carried "a heavier burden of fate than almost any other in the course of history." (p. xi) I certainly don't mean to take anything away from the Lost Generation, but I can't help but wonder if maybe Generation Z might have a similarly heavy burden, as young people today are facing the climate crisis, backsliding democracy, a resurgence of white nationalism, gun violence, loss of bodily autonomy for women, etc. The author seems to tap right into the fears and worries of Gen Z when he writes, "Only those who could look forward with confidence to the future enjoyed the present with an easy mind." (p. 24) I wouldn't be surprised if Gen Z-ers find this book surprisingly relatable.

It's heartbreaking that Zweig didn't live to see his beloved Europe, and especially Austria, rise from their war-torn ashes and thrive again. Still, the book gave me hope; as desperate and impossible as things may be, humanity has faced down potential ruin and survived before, so maybe it can do so again.

For the rest of this "review", I'm just going to highlight my favorite parts and quotes that I found especially meaningful, insightful, or just plain fascinating.

Early in the book, Zweig thanked his father for instilling in him his "one secure possession: [his] sense of inner freedom." (p. 31) It wasn't until the end of the book, however, after I learned of all that the author had lost through two world wars, that I understood the full weight of that statement.

The way the author compared pre-WWI Austria to WWII times felt very much like something Americans might say today: "Hatred between... the occupants of one table and those of another, did not yet leap to the eye daily from the newspaper, it did not divide human beings from other human beings... The herd instinct of the mob was not yet as offensively powerful in public life as it is today; freedom in what you did or did not do in private life was something taken for granted - which is hardly imaginable now." (p. 46)

It was really interesting how something published in 1942 about a politician from around 1900 (Dr. Karl Lueger) could just as easily apply to modern populist politics (Trumpism) and the scapegoating of immigrants and people of color as a distraction from wealth inequity: "A clever and popular leader... exploited this discontent and anxiety and... united the discontented lower middle class, whose envy of those more prosperous than themselves was considerably lesser than their fear of sinking from bourgeois status into the proletariat... [He used] anti-Semitic slogans, thus showing the disgruntled lower middle classes a visible enemy and at the same time imperceptibly diverting their hatred from the great landowners and feudal wealth." (p. 83) 

Seeing the similarities between students then and now was entertaining, though the object of students' interests have changed quite a bit. In Stefan Zweig's day, disinterested students surreptitiously read off-curriculum poetry in class and competed to be the most knowledgeable about theater and literature. "Discovering and being right up to date with the very latest, most recent, most extravagant and unusual subject... was our passion." (p. 62) It's almost refreshing to know that youth today are the same as they have always been, except pop culture now centers around YouTube, memes, and video games instead of newspapers, journals, and books.

Stefan Zweig was a true intellectual, and he lived in a time when being an intellectual was not only a thing, but an admired thing. He "couldn't swim, dance or play tennis... and in [his] general knowledge of sport any ten-year-old puts [him] to shame" (p. 79), yet he never regretted his "passion for the things of the mind" because he believed "the mind can be trained only in those crucial years of development to rise to its full powers of comprehension, and only someone who has learnt to spread his intellectual wings early will be able to form an idea of the world as a whole later." (p. 80) In his later years, he felt that "even in the darkest days [of WWII] a conversation with an intellectual man of the highest moral standards can bring immeasurable comfort and strength to the mind." (p. 445)

I was intrigued by the author's account of his peers in Paris with "discreet sinecures for poets and writers who did not earn large sums from their work... What these writers wanted from their modest posts, sought without professional ambition, was only a modicum of security in everyday life that would guarantee them independence in their true work." (p. 157-158) I had to look up the definition of "sinecures", and I was struck by how attitudes have changed so that it's more common today to see people trying to monetize their "true work", making it their actual work with all sorts of professional ambitions.

Just a few pages later, times again seemed not so different after all when he wrote of "our new way of life, which chases people out of their own peace of mind like animals running from a forest fire... ours, of all times, is one that allows no quiet moments even to the purest and most private minds, none of the stillness to help them wait, mature, meditate and collect their thoughts." (p. 162-163)

Without giving away any spoilers, I'll say I was floored at the bizarre series of events related on pages 190-199, about Zweig's first foray into dramatic playwrighting. As it turned out, Stefan Zweig would have a surprising role in, or at least a connection to, a number of publicly significant events. There was a great deal of name-dropping - of writers and politicians and various public figures - and I will sheepishly admit that I am not much of a student of European history or literature, so even with the helpful footnotes, oftentimes it wasn't until after I researched someone that I realized how impressive the dropped name was.

In fact, it wasn't just names, but whole swaths of European history that I didn't know much about. I kept putting the book down to do online research to better understand the bigger context of the book's narrative. I definitely learned a lot.

I appreciated the author's candor - which I read with a touch of humor - describing his predicament when World War I broke out: "All the committees examining men for military service had declared me unfit for it... My own nature, as I am not ashamed to confess frankly, is unheroic. My natural reaction to all dangerous situations has been to keep well out of their way... it was unthinkable for a relatively young man to wait until he was unearthed from his hiding place and sent to some place unsuited to him. So I looked around for something I could do without being involved in any violent activity." (p. 251)

At one point, when Zweig described being the only anti-war person even among his friends, his words felt oddly relevant to being a lone covid-aware person in a covid-minimizing world. He wrote that his isolation "made me doubt whether I myself was mad among all these clever heads, or perhaps was the only person to be shockingly sober amidst their intoxication". (p. 275) He goes on to meet a fellow believer in peace through reconciliation, whom he quotes: "We have suffered over a million dead. We have done and sacrificed enough! Not one more human life, not a single one, should be thrown away in the cause of German world-domination!" (p. 284) Again, to me, by replacing "German world-domination" with "saving the economy" or "returning to perceived normalcy", the words could just as well apply to the ongoing covid pandemic. In perhaps a related "history rhyming" vein, it's noteworthy that the book did not mention in any way whatsoever the 1918–1920 flu pandemic.

There's a lot more I could mention but I've gone on long enough!

I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life by Ed Yong

★★★★★

I'm a big fan of Ed Yong (for his reporting on COVID-19, for which he won the Pulitzer Prize for explanatory reporting), and I picked up this book just to read more of his work.

The topic is fascinating. I have heard of probiotics and the gut bacteria that may be linked to everything from food allergies to Parkinson's Disease. I feel like every person who pushes probiotics should have to read this book. It presents a sweeping history of microbes and discusses both the bacteria that live in and on other animals as well as human microbiomes and the vast universe of microbes that live symbiotically all over and inside our bodies.

In accordance with the book's subtitle, I certainly did gain a much grander view of life. For me, the rest of the title seemed like a bit of a misdirection because I was expecting to read mostly about the bacteria inside of humans, but actually, a lot of the book covers all kinds of bacteria out in the world and in other animals. The way the information was presented made sense - Yong described the history of microbial discoveries and explained all the very many characteristics of bacteria as seen in other animals, and then applied that knowledge to better understand the research on bacteria that affect humans - but I have to admit, the book had a bit of a slow start for me; it was mostly when the subject turned to human microbiomes that I became hooked.

The footnotes were inconveniently located at the back of the book, instead of on the bottom of the page on which they are referenced, which made for a lot of flipping back and forth. While some footnotes simply listed a source, others provided additional context, or a "behind the scenes" anecdote, or just a fascinating or entertaining tidbit; I think it's worth the minor trouble of using a second bookmark to keep your place in the Notes section. (Incidentally, the footnotes in Chapter 3 in my edition were messed up, which made for a bit of confusion.)

I enjoyed the photos included towards the end of the book, but they were not printed in the order of reference in the book's text, which made for a less than ideal experience trying to match up photos with their corresponding section in the text.

Waxing On: The Karate Kid and Me by Ralph Macchio

★★★★★

Like many others who grew up in the 1980s, I consider The Karate Kid to be representative of my generation. Any time I happen to see the movie playing on TV, I have to stop and watch a few minutes; it doesn't even matter which minutes, it evokes warm feelings of nostalgia every time. Add to that, I am a huge fan of Cobra Kai on Netflix. I LOVE THAT SHOW! It's just so much FUN!! I love seeing all the old characters again, it's like getting together with old friends.

So, I guess you could say I was predisposed to like this book. I was practically giddy when I finally picked it up, and I swear I read the introduction with a smile on my face. The whole book feels like a love letter to the best of the 1980s. It gets 5 stars simply because it was a joy to read.

The writing itself is very conversational, like Ralph Macchio is just talking to you. It's an easy, breezy, enjoyable read filled with fun behind-the-scenes stories from both the original movie franchise and the Cobra Kai series. Ralph Macchio talks about his role as a timestamp in other people's lives and how he came to fully embrace being synonymous with Daniel LaRusso. He is intensely protective of both his own character and the legacy of Mr. Miyagi, and it's clear how gracious he has been in sharing this part of him with the world.

I included the "Asian" tag to highlight the iconic Asian American character of Mr. Miyagi, played by the equally iconic Pat Morita.

Pro Tip: Have the internet close by when reading this book. Ralph Macchio frequently references specific scenes from the movies and Cobra Kai, plus other projects and clips of auditions or cut scenes, many of which are available on YouTube. It was super fun looking up these videos as soon as they were mentioned in the book.

Hormone Repair Manual: Every Woman's Guide to Healthy Hormones After 40 by Lara Briden

★★½

This book was written by a naturopathic doctor. I am a strong believer in science and evidence and data, which means I do not generally subscribe to naturopathy or other forms of alternative medicine. I do, however, acknowledge that the human body is complex, and there is still so much we don't know, which means there may be some aspects of alternative medicine that really do work, and we just haven't done the studies yet. 

I appreciate that the author did not try to replace conventional medicine. In the introduction, she explicitly asked the reader to "speak with your doctor or pharmacist about possible interactions with your medical conditions or medications" (p. viii) when trying her recommendations. I also liked that she included "How to speak with your doctor" sections in which she provided helpful language and wording that can be used to bring up topics with medical doctors.  

I think the average, healthy woman turning 40 will find valuable information in this book, and I want to emphasize that my rating is a reflection of my personal experience reading it. Here's why I picked it up: While in my early 40s, my treatment for hormone-positive breast cancer involved eliminating estrogen from my body, which meant taking medication that put me into medically-induced menopause, and then later getting my ovaries removed, which put me into surgically-induced menopause. I have experienced all the usual symptoms of menopause, but the most common suggestion for managing symptoms is to get hormone replacement therapy (HRT), which is not an option for me because it would completely undermine my breast cancer treatment. So, I am looking for natural remedies to manage symptoms of menopause. 

As it turns out, surgically-induced menopause is quite a bit different from natural menopause, and I was discouraged when the book stated early on that "surgically and medically induced menopause...can produce stronger symptoms than natural menopause and almost always requires estrogen plus progesterone therapy" (p. 9), which I already know is contraindicated for me because of my hormone-positive breast cancer. Just a few pages later, I was encouraged to read, "If you don't want to take hormone therapy, that's perfectly okay because there are other options for many symptoms." (p. 17) I did manage to come away with some helpful suggestions, mostly from Chapter 5 "General maintenance for perimenopause and beyond," Chapter 7 "Rewiring the brain: help for hot flashes, sleep, migraines, memory, and mood," and Chapter 10 "What comes after."  

The writing was straightforward, and the content was conveniently broken into easily digestible chunks. Still, I think the information could have been organized better; the author frequently restated the same information and constantly redirected the reader to other chapters, making the text feel disjointed and repetitive. I read the book cover-to-cover because I wanted to know everything, but perhaps this book would best be used more as a reference, where you skip around and read only the sections that are immediately relevant to you. Incidentally, the author referenced Professor Jerilynn C. Prior so often that I wondered if maybe I should go straight to the source and read her works instead!

I was put off when I read that "the only time estrogen plus progesterone therapy is truly needed is for the prevention of long-term health risks associated with early or medically induced menopause." (p. 128) The word "needed" irked me; given my medical condition as described earlier, even if I "need" hormone therapy for long-term health, I am absolutely not a candidate. The author only mildly dialed back her statement about 10 pages later when she acknowledged, "If you have a personal or family history of breast cancer, you will probably be counseled to avoid estrogen therapy." (p. 139) I guess people with a history or high risk of breast cancer who experience early/medical/surgical menopause are just considered an exception case, and I felt like the message to me was: Hmm. You don't fit into any of the standard boxes. Looks like you are now doomed to poor health with "an increased risk of osteoporosis, heart disease, dementia, and premature death." (p. 140) (For the record, I was aware of these long-term risks associated with surgical menopause before I had my ovaries removed, but they were outweighed by the more pressing risk of breast cancer recurrence.)

Also, I wasn't comfortable with the way the author made assumptions about what my doctor may or may not know, e.g., when she wrote, "Your doctor thinks progesterone's only job is to protect the uterus, but it has many other benefits." (p. 138) Moreover, for almost the entire book, every time she mentioned talking to "your doctor", I imagined a patient talking to their primary care physician or a gynecologist, but it wasn't until late in the book that one of her "How to speak with your doctor" suggestions included, "Should I have a referral to a gynecologist to discuss this possibility?" (p. 227) The realization that gynecologists were not already implicitly included in all previous references to "your doctor" shocked me! I guess it does not go without saying that if you have concerns about menopause or menstrual health, a gynecologist would be a great place to direct questions; if insurance is a hindrance, look for a Planned Parenthood near you.

An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us by Ed Yong

★★★★★

Even before reading this book, I was an Ed Yong fan. He's my go-to journalist for pandemic-related articles, for which he won a Pulitzer Prize in explanatory reporting. I appreciated his writing so much that I picked up this book simply because I wanted to read more of his work.

I am not particularly fond of animals (I have no pets and have never found zoos especially interesting), and yet, Ed Yong not only motivated me to read a book about animals, but he totally blew me away with every fascinating detail. This book is filled with astonishing, awe-inspiring revelations about animals and their senses. Yong has a unique gift for science writing; he distills complex ideas into approachable reading while also conveying beauty and wonder. It was truly humbling to realize that the world as we experience it - as humans with our limited 5 senses - is exclusive to us, and that other animals experience the world in their own particular, and sometimes very special, ways. 

Ed Yong's writing flows naturally - he is a master of segues - and he keeps the tone light. Reading this book, and learning all it had to impart, was an effortless delight. I also really enjoyed his footnotes, which sometimes shed an entertaining light on his research in a behind-the-scenes kind of way.

The final chapter poignantly discusses man-made lights and noises and their deleterious effects on animals and insects. Yong refers to quiet and darkness as "endangered sensory environments" and calls on all of us to "save the quiet, and preserve the dark." (p. 338) He encouragingly lists a number of ways humans could reduce light and noise pollution - if only we were sufficiently moved to do so.

Radical Remission: The Nine Key Factors That Can Make a Real Difference: Surviving Cancer Against All Odds by Kelly A. Turner

★★

This book was mentioned by a friend who was diagnosed with glioblastoma brain cancer. Facing a bleak prognosis, she refused to resign herself to fate and has committed herself to defying the odds. This is not the type of book I usually read, however, when faced with the possibility of imminent death, I can understand the desire to grasp at all possible sources of hope, and I was intrigued.

The premise is fascinating: there are real people whose medically diagnosed cancer disappeared with no known medical reason, so let's study them and try to figure out what happened. Where the book falls short, for me, is how the investigation does not actually look for scientifically supported reasons for recovery, but instead relies almost entirely on each person's opinion on what they think caused their cancer to go away.

First, if you are the kind of person who absolutely never believes in ghosts, don't even try to read this book. There are no ghosts here, but for this book to even be readable, you have to be open to the idea that something might possibly, could be real, even if it defies all reason and there's no scientific explanation. You don't have to buy into alternative medicine, or believe in the paranormal, to get something positive out of this book, but you do need to take everything with a grain of salt.

Now, I am 100% a believer in conventional medicine and science, so I read most of this book with an attitude of, "Wow, that's interesting, not sure I believe all the details, but how amazing that that person is still alive!" The author does not exactly advocate for alternative medicine, in fact, she stated unambiguously that "most people will need conventional medicine to outrun cancer." (p. 9) But right off the bat, in the book's introduction, it's clear that she believes in alternative medicine, since her husband is a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner and studied "an esoteric form of energy healing." (p. 5) When telling the stories of survivors, she gave validity to "[t]he notion that a cancerous tumor is simply a buildup of stuck energy," (p. 94) and she reported matter-of-factly on the various alternative therapies people used, like Reiki or other forms of "energy healing", without any commentary regarding the controversy surrounding those methods.

In fact, it's that lack of transparency that led me to rate this book 2 stars. One of the featured survivors is someone who credits Brazilian John of God for curing his brain tumor. It was a very compelling account, so of course I immediately Googled John of God. Turns out, he's a convicted sex offender! The allegations first surfaced in 2018, and this book was published in 2014, so the author is off the hook for that particular oversight, however, James Randi, known skeptic of paranormal claims, discredited John of God in 2005. I think the complete omission of any reference to documented efforts to expose him as a fraud is downright negligent and detracts from this book's credibility. The author only hinted that John of God may not be legitimate when she wrote that the power of John of God's healing center "could simply be the placebo effect; in other words, our sheer belief that something powerful happens at John of God's center could have caused us to have a deeper meditation experience." (p. 250)

Another thing I wasn't fond of was the author's decision to soften the outlandishness of John of God's healing methods by using carefully chosen words. Though many online articles refer to him succinctly as a "psychic surgeon", the author described John of God as having "the ability to leave his body and go into a trance, thereby allowing the spirit of a higher being to enter his body and perform energetic healing work." (p. 237)

Not all the stories were as off-beat as the one involving John of God, but many of them had alternative medicine elements. Ultimately, I felt conflicted by the personal stories included in each chapter. On the one hand, they were very inspiring and would certainly give hope to a cancer patient with a poor prognosis; on the other hand, all the alternative medicine therapies were beyond belief, if you ask me.

Despite all that, if you can disregard the parts that you find unbelievable, there are valuable insights in this book that would benefit any cancer patient, regardless of prognosis. The nine "key factors" that radical remission patients share all sound very reasonable:

1. Radically Changing Your Diet
2. Taking Control of Your Health
3. Following Your Intuition
4. Using Herbs and Supplements
5. Releasing Suppressed Emotions
6. Increasing Positive Emotions
7. Embracing Social Support
8. Deepening Your Spiritual Connection
9. Having Strong Reasons for Living

Only two items are physically related to your body: changing your diet and taking supplements. While some diets and supplements may be more well-founded than others, at least the author periodically reminded readers to consult their doctors, e.g., "Remember, always speak to your doctor first in case your fast needs to be medically supervised." (p. 28)

If you're like me, you may be surprised that exercise is not on that list. Most health guides lead with diet and exercise, and throughout the book, I kept wondering why exercise was not singled out, especially since it was certainly mentioned in passing, e.g., "Thanks to a combination of yoga, hiking, and walking, [John] now feels like he's in the best shape of his life" (p. 39) and "[Jenny] also continued with the same daily exercise regimen she had created for herself years earlier." (p. 127) It wasn't until the very end of the book (p. 282) that the author revealed that exercise was not included as the 10th key factor because many patients were too weak to exercise when they first turned to alternative therapies, presumably either because of the cancer itself or due to side effects of having tried conventional treatment like chemotherapy. This explanation is fair, but I just wish she had said it up front at the beginning, so I didn't have to spend the entire book wondering why exercise was being glossed over.

The remaining items all fall under mental and emotional health, and even at face value it's easily conceivable that they each would have a positive effect on healing.

Every chapter concluded with actionable items that a person can do to put into practice the concepts outlined in that chapter. These suggestions were generally sensible and doable and essentially just useful advice for maintaining good mental health. In the end, it's these "Actions Steps" that made the book worth the read, in my opinion.

The Complete Guide to Food Allergies in Adults and Children by Scott H. Sicherer

★★★★

I've been managing my children's life-threatening food allergies for over 13 years, since my youngest was 18 months old. On the one hand, this book was extremely informative; there's a lot of misinformation out there, so it's good to have a reliable go-to source. On the other hand, there are things I wish the book included, but didn't.  

First, what I liked. The information was delivered very straightforwardly in question-and-answer format. The book was comprehensive, covering not just allergies but also other food-related conditions like intolerances and sensitivities. 

The section on oral food challenges (p. 83-90) and all of chapter 4 on anaphylaxis and epinephrine (p. 98-130) were especially instructive and helpful. In particular, I appreciated that the book was very clear about treating anaphylaxis with epinephrine as the first line of defense, and how other medications (e.g., antihistamines, bronchodilators, and corticosteroids) are supplemental interventions. (p. 118-120)

Chapter 6 on "Mastering Allergen Avoidance" (p. 159-203) was also excellent. I wish EVERYBODY - teachers, parents, family members, employers, all medical professionals - could read this chapter!! 

Importantly, when discussing oral immunotherapy (OIT), the book stated unambiguously that "the primary benefit is to increase the threshold of reactions" (p. 268) and "this is a treatment, not a cure." (p. 272) I was relieved to see this information so clearly presented because in my experience, it is very common for people to misunderstand OIT and believe it is a full-fledged cure.

Now, what I wish the book had included. Everything below is going to sound nit-picky, but if there's one thing managing allergies has taught me, it's the importance of being thorough!

For the most part, the Q-and-A format helped make the book approachable. Occasionally, though, I think it broke up a topic unnecessarily. A person skimming the book might read one answer and think it was complete, not realizing additional information is presented under another question. For example, this question and answer appeared on page 32: "If I am allergic to one nut, do I need to avoid all nuts? A person may be allergic to one or two or many nuts. Avoiding all nuts when there is an allergy to just one or two is a personal decision." Reading just this excerpt, a reader might think that the decision is a simple matter of personal preference. It's not until later on the same page that the nuances were described. A separate question asked: "What considerations are important in deciding whether to eat some types of nuts when there are allergies to other types?" The paragraph-long answer to this question pointed out, "Because nuts are often processed together it is difficult to find ones that are not at risk for cross-contact." So, it turns out, the decision involves a deeper understanding of nut manufacturing processes and also a personal risk assessment. Because of this tendency for details regarding a specific issue to be broken up among several questions, I wish some questions were grouped together, with a "main question" serving as a section header, and related questions listed underneath, maybe as bullet points. 

Along the same lines, I didn't understand why small pieces of information were separated out in the "Delving Deeper" section on pages 157-158. This section consisted of just 3 paragraphs, one each for addressing questions related to FPIES, eosinophilic esophagitis, and atopic dermatitis. Each topic had a whole section earlier in the same chapter, so why weren't these paragraphs just included in their respective sections?

I was disappointed that the brief section on allergic-like reactions to alcoholic beverages (p. 45-46) did not at all mention the "Asian flush", which was only alluded to in passing under an earlier question about alcohol intolerance. (p. 5) Asians having allergic-like reactions to alcohol is not a true allergy, but it is a well-known issue caused by a deficiency of the enzyme aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2), a condition similar to lactose intolerance, which was examined more closely. (p. 3-5)

Chapter 3, "All about Allergy Tests," was extensive, yet still managed to omit one of my most pressing questions: Can both the skin test and blood tests be positive even when there is no allergy? I actually found it odd that this question was not posed, since the opposite question was asked and answered: "Can both the skin test and blood tests be negative even when there is an allergy?" (p. 77)

I also wish the section on antihistamines (p. 116-119) was more thorough. On page 117, different types/brands were mentioned, e.g. diphenhydramine (Benadryl), cetirizine (Zyrtec), and fexofenadine (Allegra), but loratadine (Claritin) was noticeably absent; why? This section mostly discussed antihistamines as a group, but there's a whole bunch of questions regarding the different types/brands that I frequently see debated, and they were not addressed at all: What's the difference among these options? Does it matter which one you take? Why would a doctor prescribe one over another? Can a person build up tolerance to one type/brand, thereby requiring a switch to another type/brand? Is any particular type/brand recommended for acute allergic reactions vs. on-going maintenance of seasonal/environmental allergies? If one type/brand of antihistamine is routinely used daily for maintenance, will the same type/brand still be effective for an acute reaction? Is it better to use the same type/brand for an acute reaction, or a different type/brand? Is it possible to exceed an allowable daily dose limit if taking a specific type/brand of antihistamine for an acute reaction when the daily maintenance dose of the same medication has already been taken, and if so, is that okay?

On page 189, a question asked, "How does one know when a student is capable of carrying emergency medication?" I especially appreciated that a specific age was NOT given (it really depends on the child), but I was disappointed to see "self-carry" conflated with "self-administer", as the first item on the list said, "They express a desire to carry and self-administer epinephrine." But there are grown adults with a fear of needles who don't "desire" to self-administer! My children were responsible enough to self-carry (they knew EpiPens were not toys and were only to be taken out and used by a parent, teacher, or other supervising adult) years before they were confident or capable enough to self-administer. In fact, on the following page, the answer to a related question about self-treating says, "If your school allows your child to self-carry, be sure to emphasize that this situation does not mitigate the need for an adult to take full responsibility for administering the medication in the event of an emergency" (p. 190); so a child CAN self-carry even if they aren't expected to self-administer, and I wish that distinction was made clearer. Also, parents of newly diagnosed young children might appreciate a few suggestions - perhaps by being directed to "see chapter 11" (see next paragraph) - on HOW epinephrine autoinjectors can be self-carried (e.g., in a SPIbelt or small cross-body bag), as well as tips on how to keep the autoinjectors within the acceptable temperature range (e.g., use an insulated bag for extended time in excessively hot/cold conditions).

Chapter 11 "Accessing Help and Information to Manage Food Allergies" was surprisingly short. I excitedly flipped to this chapter early when the author advised, "Chocolate may be better purchased from specialty manufacturers that cater to people with food allergies (see the resources in chapter 11)" (p. 27), expecting to see a list of allergen-free chocolatiers. Alas, there was none; the singular reference to "Foods Allergen-free specialty manufacturers; local allergy-friendly restaurants and bakeries; cookbooks; recipes" (p. 291) was almost comically unhelpful. I understand why the author would want to avoid any appearance of supporting a for-profit company, but maybe just a little more direction in how to go about finding some of those resources might have been nice. For example, someone dealing with a new diagnosis might appreciate knowing that nut-free ice cream shops, multi-allergen-free bakeries, and nut butters free from cross-contamination by other tree nuts do exist.

Okay, that's it. I know the "what I wish the book said" list is longer than the "what I liked" list, but the book certainly did not have any misinformation, and in terms of volume of information and value added, it was definitely worth the read.

The Only One Club by Jane Naliboff

★★

I saw this book recommended as a way to help support covid-cautious kids who continue to wear masks in mask-optional settings, like school. Peer pressure is real, and being the only person in a classroom wearing a mask can be isolating and intimidating.

I really, really wanted to like this book. Growing up in the 1980s, I remember the discomfort and embarrassment of being the only Asian person in my class, the only kid who wore glasses, even the only student in my class who was a member of the Brownies! Young me absolutely would have benefited from the way this book takes being "the only one" of something and turns it on its head as something to be PROUD of. When the main character, Jennifer, realized she was the only Jewish kid in her class, she immediately delighted in being "the only one" and wanted to celebrate it. That premise is fantastic! I just wish the implementation could have been better.

Right off the bat, the book felt dated. Mrs. Matthews, the teacher, had the whole class making Christmas decorations. Back in the '80s, this type of classroom activity was commonplace. Maybe it was still happening here and there in 2004, when this book was first published. But definitely in 2022, when I read this book, a teacher presumably in a public school centering a Christian holiday in the classroom just didn't feel right.

I do love how Jennifer did not for a second feel embarrassed about being the only Jewish kid in her class. Being Jewish was something that could potentially put Jennifer on the receiving end of hateful words and deeds, and being the only one made her particularly vulnerable because she had no obvious or automatic allies. For her to take pride in something that could be used as fodder for taunts or other inappropriate behavior directed towards her is what made Jennifer's attitude and actions particularly brave, meaningful, and mature.

It was strange, then, when her classmates joined The Only One Club for things like: having a last name that is also the name of a bird, having a pet iguana, and being able to jump Double Dutch. These are not the type of differences that would normally cause chidren to feel like they don't belong, as being a different race or religion, or being the sole mask-wearer, would. Moreover, some of the reasons didn't even make sense! TWO twin girls joined by being "the only one(s?)" who were twins?! And then the teacher joined because she was "the only one" who wasn't already in the club, thereby negating her reason for joining as soon as she joined!

According to the illustrations, Jennifer's class was wonderfully culturally diverse. Alongside some of the superficial differences, it would have been easy to include more substantial differences, e.g., one kid could have been the only one who was Chinese, another could have been the only one who spoke Spanish, this kid could have been the only one with glasses, or a wheelchair, and that kid could have been the only one with asthma, or a food allergy.

Speaking of food allergies, the exchange between Jennifer and Jonah during lunch nearly gave me a conniption! With a "mouth full of peanut butter", "Jonah gave her a raspberry, spraying peanut butter all over the lunch table"!!!!! The illustration literally had food particles on a trajectory to land on Jennifer's food! What if Jennifer was allergic to peanuts!? What if the next kid to sit at that table was allergic!?

Anyway. This book might be a good option for its Hanukkah theme, but as a book about inclusion, I feel it doesn't quite get across the idea that inclusion needs to extend to attributes that may make individuals feel out of place because they are atypical compared to a widely accepted norm.

Just Ask! Be Different, Be Brave, Be You by Sonia Sotomayor

★★★½

This book is a good read-aloud to help encourage young kids to ask questions when they see differences in the people around them, which hopefully would take the place of whispers, gossip, teasing, or fear.

Each two-page spread of illustrations and text discusses a different medical condition or developmental disability. It is noteworthy that the book never uses the word "disability", and the dust jacket uses the phrase "differently abled". I suspect these word choices are somewhat controversial, since even in 2019, when this book was published, there already existed guidelines regarding language surrounding disabilities (copyright 2018 at the time of this writing) that advised against "differently abled".

Still, I applaud the book's existence. It's hard enough to talk about disabilities and identities among adults, so I appreciate that this book broaches the subject with kids, tries to normalize differences, and can serve as a springboard for further discussions.

The conditions covered are: diabetes, asthma, use of wheelchair, blindness, deafness, dyslexia, autism, stuttering, Tourette's syndrome, ADHD, food allergies, and Down syndrome.

As a parent of children with food allergies, I wish the food allergy page mentioned EpiPens as a just-in-case tool for people with life-threatening food allergies, since some kids may feel self-conscious about self-carrying their epinephrine autoinjectors.

Also, the autism page says "I have autism" and "Tiana also has autism", even though, again, in 2019 (when this book was published) the debate regarding preferred language (link to article published in 2015), e.g., "person with/has autism" vs. "autistic person", was already well under way. I think there are no easy answers, but maybe the book could have at least exposed readers to both options by using "I'm autistic" in one sentence and "Tiana also has autism" in the other.

Overall, not perfect, but serves a purpose.

Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin

★★★★

*** Warning: This review contains spoilers!! ***

CW/TW: assault, sexual assault

For those who might appreciate a heads-up, this book does include the slurs "dyke" and "faggot" directed at the main character.

What Loveless did in terms of helping me to understand aromanticism and asexuality, this book did in regards to gender fluidity. I can't speak to how authentic the portrayal of gender dysphoria is, but I'd definitely recommend both these books for adults and parents who want to better understand these concepts.

Interestingly, the author purposely withheld the main character Riley's assigned gender at birth. Admittedly, I was curious at first, especially because I figured even Riley's new classmates could find the answer, since whether Congressman Cavanaugh had a son or a daughter would be public information. But the lack of disclosure really drove home the point that it doesn't matter. Riley is a person, end of story. The book is written in the first person, so we never even see Riley's preferred pronouns; for this review, I'll use "they".

Unlike any other book I've ever read, this book offers some valuable mental health representation. Riley has a therapist, uses techniques taught to them by their therapist to cope with stress and anxiety throughout the day, and takes antidepressant and anti-anxiety medication.

I liked that more than once, the book presented one point of view, and then later on presented an opposing point of view. These differing perspectives showed how complex gender issues can be. For example, we know, of course, that Riley is frustrated when others try to put them into a "girl" box or "boy" box. Yet, when Riley starts at a new school, every new person they meet is identified as a "girl" or "boy". It seemed kind of hypocritical! Eventually, Riley acknowledges their own tendency to put people into gender boxes, and they even feel a sense of shame for having misjudged other people's gender identity. (p. 154)

I also really appreciated that the bullies in this book are not entirely one-dimensional. We don't get to know their motivations explicitly, but it's made clear that they aren't just evil, they have complex home lives, too, and other contributing factors that influence their thinking and behavior.

As much as I got out of this book, I can't help but feel it was lacking in two specific ways. When I think about gender identity, the first two things that come to mind are bathrooms and pronouns. Yet, this book did not address either of these issues. It just seemed to me that figuring out which bathroom to use, and thinking about how certain pronouns make them feel, would be a significant part of Riley's experience as a gender fluid person, and I wonder if not discussing these matters was a missed opportunity.

The ending was satisfying, yet it also felt like there were too many loose ends. Solo said the entire football team had Riley's back, but how did that come to be, when they had always deferred to Vickers as their leader? What kind of consequences do Vickers and Sierra have to face, and how are they viewed by their peers if/when their actions become public knowledge? What happens with Erik and his hopes of joining the football team?

Finally, there was one minor detail that just didn't sit right with me. At one point, while spiraling out of control, Riley destroyed someone else's belongings, and didn't apologize. (p. 290) I get that Riley was destructive in a kind of unconscious or subconscious way - they're not willfully causing damage with any specific purpose - and we know that they've damaged their own property before, too. But taking anger out on someone else's things feels like it crosses a very specific boundary. The items weren't important, and in the same scene, Riley did apologize for saying hurtful things and the friendship is intact, but I would have liked to see an apology for their actions, as well as their words.

Jane Austen Roundup

I have now read every Jane Austen novel and watched every Jane Austen screen adaptation I could find!

Here's a list of her books in order of my preference, and under each book, a list of all the screen adaptations I watched, in order of my preference. The links take you to my "reviews" - and I put that in quotes because I know I didn't actually review each movie/mini-series entirely on its own merits; how well it represented the book was a large factor in how much I liked it.

1. Pride and Prejudice ★★★★★
   
   1. 1995 BBC Mini-Series with Colin Firth ★★★★★
      
   2. 1980 BBC Mini-Series ★★★★½
      
   3. 1940 Film with Laurence Olivier ★★★★
      
   4. 2005 Film with Keira Knightley ★★★
      
   
   
2. Emma ★★★★★
   
   1. 1996 TV Movie with Kate Beckinsale ★★★★★
      
   2. 1996 Film with Gwenyth Paltrow ★★★★
      
   3. 2009 BBC Mini-Series ★★★½
      
   4. 1972 BBC Mini-Series ★★★½
      
   
   
3. Mansfield Park ★★★★½
   
   1. 1983 BBC Mini-Series ★★★★
      
   2. 2007 TV Movie ★★★
      
   3. 1999 Film ★★★
      
   
   
4. Sense & Sensibility ★★★★
   
   1. 1995 Film with Emma Thompson and Kate Winslet ★★★★★
      
   2. 1981 BBC Mini-Series ★★★★
      
   3. 2008 BBC Mini-Series ★★★
      
   4. 1971 BBC Mini-Series ★★★
      
   
   
5. Northanger Abbey ★★★★
   
   1. 2007 TV Movie ★★★★
      
   2. 1987 TV Movie ★★½
   
   
6. Persuasion ★★★★
   
   1. 1971 BBC Mini-Series ★★★★★
      
   2. 1995 TV Movie ★★★★
      
   3. 2007 TV Movie ★★★
      
   4. 2022 Netflix Movie with Dakota Johnson ★★★
      

The book Emma was a very close second behind Pride and Prejudice. I found Emma overall more entertaining, but Pride and Prejudice did have more wit, though less humor. And the fact that Emma was a bit of a snob - a charming and endearing snob, but a snob nonetheless - was a little off-putting sometimes.

I also really enjoyed Mansfield Park, and I don't know if it's really fair to dock it half a star just because it wasn't quite as entertaining. I thought its characters were the most complex of all Jane Austen novels.

And even though Persuasion is listed last, and given the place of "least favored Jane Austen novel", that's not to say that I didn't enjoy it. It is, after all, still rated four stars!