Book Club: Lolita & Reading Lolita in Tehran

For Book Club, Allison @ The Book Wheel & I decided to do things a little differently, and we are super excited about it!

For April, we will be reading Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov, which is a classic novel on “love as outrage and hallucination, madness and transformation” (from Goodreads summary).  

Then in May, we have Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi, which is the memoir of how an inspired teacher fought the Islamic regime by reading forbidden texts with her small group of select students.

I love this idea for 3 reasons:

1. It’s innovative – we haven’t done a Book Club comparison yet!

2. We get to compare a classic and a modern story.

3. We get to compare a related fiction and a nonfiction.

For April and May, we’ll discuss each book only twice during each month on my blog, Love at First Book.  Same amount of time to read, half the amount of discussion weeks per month, but the same amount of amazing discussion!

Interested in participating in only one of the Book Club discussion months?  That’s okay, too!  We’d love for you to participate in both, but feel free to join in only one book discussion if that works better for you.  We also made sure that both books would be readily available at most local libraries.

And don’t worry – both Allison & I will be sure to let you know of and remind you of the schedule!

Now who is going to participate with us?

Mind Without a Home by Kristina Morgan + Giveaway!

Photo Credit: Goodreads

I received this book from TLC Book Tours in exchange for a fair and honest review.  

Mind Without a Home is a book that hooked me just from the title.  I am very interested in books about psychology, and this one is no different.

Kristina tells her own story of alcohol addiction and schizophrenia living/diagnosis.  It’s disjointed in parts, but it’s supposed to be an echo of how Kristina’s life feels as someone who has schizophrenia.

I could not put this book down.  For the first 3/4 of the memoir, I was so hooked.  Kristina gives insight into her disorder in a way that I haven’t seen before and she’s very honest.  She also describes her family life, her battles with alcohol, and her many visits to mental institutions.

When I reached the 3/4 mark of the book, though, my interest lagged a little.  I’m not exactly sure why, but I do have some ideas.  Maybe Kristina’s story became more disjointed and harder to keep up with.  Maybe I was “over” the way the story was written by that point.  I’m not exactly sure.

No matter the reason of why I thought the book lagged at the end, it’s still one I would recommend.

Kristina gives readers an inside look into her life with schizophrenia, in a way that reminds you that individuals with mental illness are human and struggle to maintain a sense of normalcy.  It’s hard not to be touched by this book.

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Are you a fan of books on psychological issues?

 

Interested in getting your own copy? Check out the publisher’s website: Hazelden.

Related Post: A fictional tale of mental illness, Leave of Absence by Tanya J. Peterson

Becoming OCD w/ Devil in the Details by Jennifer Traig

 

Photo credit: Goodreads

Devil in the Details: Scenes from an Obsessive Girlhood by Jennifer Traig falls right in the middle for me.  I picked this book up while on my road trip, after having been recommended to read it by a family member.

I enjoyed Jennifer’s tales of her obsessions, both with germs and religious scrupulosity, because of the humor and honesty she used when describing herself as a teenager.  She knew she was obsessive and a lot to handle, but was able to tell her stories with a positive twist.

However, about halfway through I decided I didn’t need to know much more about her life, so some of the stories seemed to me a bit superfluous.

Even so, they were humorous and thought-provoking.  I understand how someone could obsess over germs and cleanliness (some of my friends will attest to my disgust with dirty things) but Jennifer also had an interesting issue: scrupulosity, where she took the Jewish ideals, customs, and rules and followed them strictly, but also made up a bunch of her own.

For instance, she was not allowed to worship graven images.  However, this translated in her mind to not being able to make eye contact with teachers and also to not being able to look at paintings in a museum.

But as a whole, Devil in the Details was entertaining and a light-hearted way to look at a serious mental illness that affects people, and I do believe it brought me a greater understanding of compulsions.

What’s a memoir that you enjoy reading?

Interested in getting your own copy? Check it out on Amazon & IndieBound. I get a small percentage if you purchase from those links, and it doesn’t cost you any extra.

The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe – Book 35

I’m participating in The End of Your Life Book Club discussion hosted by Jen at Devourer of Books, who was also giving the book away for this discussion!  Also participating are a few of my favs, Between the Covers, Books Speak Volumes, and The Relentless Reader.

Anyway, since I’m going to be talking about the book in length on Devourer of Books, I’ll keep my thoughts here short.

The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe is a memoir of the time that the author, Will, spent with his mother after she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.  Knowing she only had a few months to a few years to live, Will was determined to make the most of his time with his mom.

They spent the doctor’s appointments, chemotherapy treatments, etc., discussing books in their own tiny book club of two people.  Through the book club and following discussions, Will was able to find out more about his mom, things he never knew previously.

Short notes on The End of Your Life Book Club:

• The appendix has a full list of the many, many books talked about in this memoir, thus adding to my already-long to-read list.
• The book started out a little slow for me, but picked up.  Definitely is a slower read, not one I rushed through, but worth it.
• Should you read it?  Yes, there are great lessons in the book, including just taking the time to help those in need, and taking the time to appreciate what you’re lucky enough to have.

What book have you read that makes you appreciate you life?