What You Wish For by Katherine Center

I have read two Katherine Center novels so far and really enjoyed them. I was so excited when I heard about What You Wish For about a young, quirky school librarian that butts heads with the new school principal. I'm a book nerd that secretly (or not so secretly) harbors fantasies of being a librarian, school or otherwise, so I thought it would be really fun. Samantha (Sam) loves her job at a small private school on Galveston Island in the gulf coast of Texas. Her coworkers are her family and the school is practically her home. When a new principal comes in with plans to change everything Sam loves about it, she is furious and vows to find a way to fight back. When that principal also turns out to be someone on whom she once had a huge crush, it becomes even more complicated.

I was really sad that I didn't like this book as much as I liked the previous two Center novels I had read. There were glaring flaws in the plot that anyone who has dealt with an elementary or middle school would have seen, namely the lack of parental push back to all the changes the new principal wants to make. Given that this is a private school, and not one restrained by state laws or district oversight, it made even less sense that so many of the qualities that presumably attracted people to this school in the first place would be changed without it turning into a full scale war. (No, that's not hyperbole. When was the last PTO meeting you attended?)

Additionally, can I say that I am way over the trope of two extremely different people who don't get along at all suddenly falling in love? I think it goes back to Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy and I really wasn't all that big a fan of them as a couple either. GASP! Did I just commit the cardinal sin of not loving Pride and Prejudice? I'm really sorry and I hope it won't make you disown me, but that dynamic between Lizzy and Darcy is the same thing I don't like in other books meant to be romantic. It annoys me and I just don't get into it.

All that said, I did like this book, I just didn't love it. There were lots of lovely characters and I adored Sam's quirks. And I loved the lesson about finding joy in whatever circumstances you may find yourself. You may not be able to make yourself feel joy, but as one sweet character says: "You can decide to do something joyful."

"Joy cures everything....Joy is an antidote to fear. To anger. To boredom. To sorrow."

"I'm not happy because it comes easily to me. I bite and scratch and claw my way toward happiness every day....I know all about darkness. That's why I am so hellbent, every damn day, on looking for the light."

So, sure, there were problems with this book, but I still liked it. Maybe you will, too.

*This Advanced Reader Copy was provided to me by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for and honest review.*

Need to Know by Karen Cleveland

In Karen Cleveland's Need to Know, Vivian is a wife, a mom to four small children, and she works a plain old office job. Okay, well, maybe it's a little more than plain. Vivian is a CIA counterintelligence analyst. She spends all day combing through records and picking through data in hopes of finding and shutting down Russian spies. She's not out James Bond-ing it so she should be safe, but when a new program she creates starts getting too close for Russian comfort, Vivian's whole life hangs in the balance. What will she risk to keep her family safe? What really comes first, family or country?

I have actually never read a spy novel before and this one was really fun. I needed something a little different and a little lighter. Life is crazy enough right now and I can't be bogged down by my recreational reading. Sure, there were plenty of plot points that seemed more than a little far fetched, but that is the contract we accept when we pick up books like this. Suspend disbelief for a bit and just have a little fun. Would I have made the same choices Vivian makes? Maybe, maybe not. With stakes this high, who knows? If you're in the mood for a little fluff and a little good old fashioned spy fun, add this one to your vacation bag, even if maybe you'll be taking a stay-cation this summer.

*This Advanced Reader Copy was provided to me by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for and honest review.*

Brazen by Penelope Bagieu

Brazen: Rebel Ladies Who Rocked the World by Penelope Bagieu is a collection of graphic biographies about women who fought against what was expected of them and accomplished great things. Bagieu highlights women from around the world and throughout history in hopes of inspiring women of today, both young and old, to raise their voices and change the world. Some of the fascinating subjects include:

Margaret  Hamilton- the wicked witch in The Wizard of Oz

Giorgina Reid- a woman who helped save a historic lighthouse

Leymah Gbowee- a social worker in Liberia

Mae Jemison- the first black woman in space

And so many more!

This wonderful book taught me about so many new (to me) feminist icons and in a concise, easily readable fashion. I actually borrowed this from the library for my daughter to read because I thought its "graphic novel" style might grab her attention. It certainly did- she loved it and insisted I read it, too. I also became a fan and it made me want to learn even more about these amazing women. I have a whole list of further research to do now! I highly recommend you pick up this book yourself and see what you can learn from some of the strongest, most resilient, most interesting women in history.

What I've Heard- Big Magic

After hearing so many rave reviews from friends about Elizabeth Gilbert's Big Magic, I was excited to listen to it myself. Gilbert reads for the audio version and I always feel like that is a plus. Hearing the author read their own words ensures that everything receives exactly the intended emphasis and importance. In this book of advice and inspiration for creativity, Gilbert encourages us all to reach for whatever kind of art or craft we pursue whether that be visual art, music, or writing. Once we have reached out for that creativity, she challenges us to own and develop it.

I particularly enjoyed the story she told of having a book idea, planning it out, preparing to write it, and then life got in the way so she put it on hold. As she tells it, the idea couldn't wait and went on to another writer. She makes no claim that the idea was stolen, but fully acknowledges that ideas need to be nurtured or they will go somewhere else. And that's okay. I really liked the direction she gives about being open to ideas and all the Big Magic out in the world. 

I would have liked if the book had been a little more instructional than just inspirational, but it serves well as a little boost of motivation. One important tip that she does give is "Don't quit your day job." She spends a fair amount of time talking about how some people think if they are going to really commit to their art they should quit everything else and put it all on the line for creativity. Gilbert says there is no reason at all you can't create, in whatever form that takes for you, in your spare time, of which we all have plenty if we can arrange our priorities. Sure, you may have to go to an office 8-9 hours a day to pay the bills, but the rest of the 15-16 hours of each day are available to be used however you choose. Choose wisely.

Overall, I liked this book, but didn't love it. It has a few good rah-rah moments and is probably good for a little motivation. The audio version is a great way to go because it doesn't require a lot of time investment. I listened to it on morning walks and it only took a few days. Borrow this one from the library and just pop it in when you have time. 

From the Corner of the Oval by Beck Dorey-Stein

Beck Dorey-Stein is a former White House stenographer who tells all about her time working next to greatness in her memoir From the Corner of the Oval. Beck falls into this job after a temporary position at a school in Washington D.C. finishes. She is working several part time jobs when she comes across a Craigslist add for a stenographer. It isn't until she interviews for the job that she discovers it is working at the White House. From 2012 to 2017, she is part of the team that records every speech, every interview, and every press briefing that President Obama conducts. She travels with the White House staff all over the world for meetings with international leaders and to small towns in the United States for meetings with everyday Americans. She details what it is like to fly on Airforce One and travel in protected motorcades and stay in hotels guarded by Secret Service agents. She also shares a great deal about her personal life and how she spent those years meeting new friends and how the job affected her relationships.

Unfortunately, Dorey-Stein isn't particularly likeable. In fact, there were several times she was downright unlikeable. It is obvious she tries, but like the one-dimensional female character in a 2-star YA novel, she fails. She describes herself as unsophisticated out of place in a way that sounds like whining like insincere insecurity. Granted, some of the staff sound pretty awful with one even criticizing her orange blazer: "Bright colors are for senior staffers." It makes me wonder, do they also say "On Wednesdays we wear pink."? Even still, rather than coming off as an underdog, she just sounds pathetic.

Dorey-Stein also recounts how this time is filled with her participation in a despicable affair. For part of it she has a boyfriend, but for all of it the man in question has a girlfriend or is engaged. It is annoying to read about how flat-out stupid she is with this guy, a senior staffer. I know we all do dumb things when we are in love, but nothing about this guy is redeeming or romantic, no matter how hard she tries to write it that way. He constantly leaves her miserable and she just keeps going back for more. It made me want to scream at her "Get. It. Together, girl!" Through it all she is surrounded but so many inspiring people; smart, strong women and men who are busy making a difference and all she can see is a pathetic high school romance with a jerk who is probably a sociopath. That is pretty hard to like.

She bemoans her lot in life after one particularly rough night of overdrinking and fighting with this man and finds herself envying my friends with their full nights of sleep, their unfractured hearts, their focus on what actually matters. Then grow up, figure it out, and be better! On numerous occasions she describes how one drink after work leads to several more which always lead to more bad decisions. It is embarrassing. She tells these stories like she thinks she is Carrie from  Sex in the City, but she really isn't. And she really shouldn't.

An aspiring writer during this time, she shares her writing with several people who all tell her how great a writer she is, but of course she doesn't believe it- no matter how many times over and over  she reports people telling her she's great. It almost sounds like a humblebrag the way she goes on and on about it. A couple of different times she mentions that people ask her when she's going to quit her job and be a writer. She even quotes one friend calling it a "shit job" and suggesting she quit and start writing. First of all, it sounds like a pretty amazing job to me. I'm sure every day isn't a day at Disneyland, but traveling the world? Interacting on a regular basis with President Obama? Meeting inspiring people at every turn? That sounds like a dream job.  And secondly, why does she have to quit to be a writer? There are plenty of writers with day jobs and it sounds like she has plenty of downtime to devote to her writing, if only she could stop going out to bars late into the night, getting wasted like a college sophomore every time she has a free moment, and squandering her time and energy on a useless man who doesn't even care about her.

In the end, this book was a self-indulgent exercise in sensationalism with the sole purpose of becoming a published author. We want to learn about life working in the White House, not about her ridiculous social life. The content of her occupation is fascinating, but Beck? Not so much.

*This Advanced Reader Copy was provided to me by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for and honest review.*