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Jessica Simpson recommended Normal People in Books (curated)

 
Normal People
Normal People
Sally Rooney | 2018 | Fiction & Poetry
6.8 (8 Ratings)
Book Favorite

https://www.amazon.com/kindle-dbs/abr/arp/B08DL6GPJS?ref_=sin_abr_cat_art_list&theme=light "Normal People is one of the most realistic and heart-wrenching depictions of how young love nestles itself within the universal, vulnerable heart. It is a story that lays bare the beauty and brutality of coming-of-age discovery and first love with all of its divine, euphoric highs and melancholy, longing lows. The truth embodied in these characters makes you want to jump right into the pages to express your own empathy for what is being said and left unsaid. We have all lived these honest moments of connection and miscommunication in the soulful, connective force that is love. If I had to give this book a rating with stars I would give it a shooting star indeed."

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The Berenstain Bears and the Joy of Giving
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The Berenstain Bears and the Joy of Giving is a really good book to add to your Advent calendar. Are you struggling with your child or children with the meaning of giving rather than receiving? Well, this one does the job.

This book is a favorite of mine not cause it to deal with Christmas or the meaning of giving. I grew up with The Berenstain Bears series. I still love them. I love the meaning behind the book. It is better to give than to receive.

This tells a story through Brother and Sister Bear's eyes. This book and many in the series teaches a valuable lesson for children. I love that. The pictures are done well. There something that changes the cubs. This book is good to have on your child's bookshelves.
  
The Only Story
The Only Story
Julian Barnes | 2018 | Fiction & Poetry
10
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
A beautifully sad love story
"Would you rather love the more, and suffer the more; or love the less, and suffer the less? That is, I think, finally, the only really question."
This is a book to be savoured and to have time taken over it. It just seems so personal and private, and frankly, I felt nosey reading it. It illustrates a 19 year old boys great love - a 48 year old woman who he meets at a tennis club during his holidays from University. This love endures through disapproval of both families and many hardships before the end.
It was interesting that the book moved through the use of first person when the love was new and exciting, second person when the relationship began to encounter problems and third person at the end when he is more detached from his lover, Joan. Watching the slide of someone in to addiction and eventually, dementia, was a particularly sad part of the novel, with his personal guilt and inaction increasing the melancholy and sadness of the whole situation. At the end of this book, I finished the last page and found myself sitting and thinking about it for a while. It really is a very affecting book.
  
Toward the end of December, I finally picked up and completed reading The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson. This was a first time read for me and, despite knowing the outcome of the story, I can admit that I was pleasantly surprised. I also love how far it delves into the duality of man.

Dr. Jekyll deals with the same dilemma we all do: there’s a darker nature buried within him. This story follows his pursuit of a cure – a way to return him to a wholesome, innocent, good man. Of course, we all know what happens when we try to play the role of a god, and this story is no different.

Stevenson’s pacing is pretty even, which I’m grateful for. I didn’t find the story to difficult to comprehend and I feel that there are some very good points brought up in it. Considering I did not get the chance to study it in high school, I feel as if I missed out on some valuable literature. I would probably read this again.
  
The Girl in The Tower: The Winternight Trilogy
The Girl in The Tower: The Winternight Trilogy
Katherine Arden | 2018 | Science Fiction/Fantasy
10
9.8 (6 Ratings)
Book Rating
I fell in love with The Bear and the Nightingale the second that I started reading it so I was thrilled to receive an advance copy of the second installment in this story.

The story picks up with Vasya driven from her village, orphaned and branded as a witch. She could not face the option of marriage or life in a convent so she decides to become a traveler and explore the world on her own.

Brave and reckless as ever Vasya disguises herself as a boy she travels through Moscow and ends up fighting at the Grand Prince's side as they try to discover the identity of the bandits who have been terrorizing the area.

I enjoyed dynamic between Morozko, Vasya and Solovey. We are also introduced to some new characters and reunited with some old ones as the story progresses.

I found the second installment of The Bear and the Nightingale just as captivating as the first one and am anxiously awaiting the third and final part of the story!