Book Review: Men Without Women: Stories by Haruki Murakami-Short Stories

Hello dear Readers,

Below my book review of Men Without Women: Stories by Haruki Murakami.

Title: Men Without Women: Stories

Rating: 5/5 Stars

Genre: Short Stories

Author: Haruki Murakami

Publisher: Vintage, Reprint Edition
Publication Date: May 01, 2018

Language: English

Paperback: 240 pages
Meet the Author: Haruki Murakami
Buy Me: Amazon

Book Description

Across seven tales, Haruki Murakami brings his powers of observation to bear on the lives of men who, in their own ways, find themselves alone. Here are lovesick doctors, students, ex-boyfriends, actors, bartenders, and even Kafka’s Gregor Samsa, brought together to tell stories that speak to us all. In Men Without Women Murakami has crafted another contemporary classic, marked by the same wry humor and pathos that have defined his entire body of work.

My Thoughts

It took me a while to finish this book. Not because I was not liking it, on the contrary, I was enjoying  it so much, I wanted to take my time on each story, I wanted to savor each word. That I did and it was totally worth it. 

Men without Women is a collection of short stories, seven in total, stories about everyday people, doctors, students, ex-boyfriends, actors, bantenders, ordinary people, however, their stories, so unique, I never read stories like these before. I was so blown away by the writing, the power of Murakami's storytelling is out of this world. 

That is what makes these stories different, it takes something ordinary and makes it into something extraordinary. Feelings such as loneliness, sadness, pain, betrayal, situations such as lost, heartbreaks, relationships are portrayed, described through such a powerful storytelling that you cannot help but get immersed, invested on each story. I finished the book a few days ago and I am still thinking about all these characters, their ups and downs. It is hard not to.

Not sure what Murakami book I am going to read next but I, without a doubt, will be reading more of his books. His writing is beautiful and kept me engaged on each story of Men without Women.

Wendy

Book Review: Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mother's Will to Survive by Stephanie Land-Biographies/Memoirs

Hello dear Readers,

Below my book review of Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mother's Will to Survive by Stephanie Land.

Title: Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mother's Will to Survive

Rating: 5/5 Stars

Genre: Biographies/Memoirs

Author: Stephanie Land

Publisher: Hachette Books
Publication Date: January 22, 2019

Language: English

Hardcover: 288 pages
Meet the Author: Stephanie Land
Buy Me: Amazon

Book Description

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

Evicted meets Nickel and Dimed in Stephanie Land's memoir about working as a maid, a beautiful and gritty exploration of poverty in America. Includes a foreword by Barbara Ehrenreich. 

At 28, Stephanie Land's plans of breaking free from the roots of her hometown in the Pacific Northwest to chase her dreams of attending a university and becoming a writer, were cut short when a summer fling turned into an unexpected pregnancy. She turned to housekeeping to make ends meet, and with a tenacious grip on her dream to provide her daughter the very best life possible, Stephanie worked days and took classes online to earn a college degree, and began to write relentlessly. 

She wrote the true stories that weren't being told: the stories of overworked and underpaid Americans. Of living on food stamps and WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) coupons to eat. Of the government programs that provided her housing, but that doubled as halfway houses. The aloof government employees who called her lucky for receiving assistance while she didn't feel lucky at all. She wrote to remember the fight, to eventually cut through the deep-rooted stigmas of the working poor. 

Maid explores the underbelly of upper-middle class America and the reality of what it's like to be in service to them. "I'd become a nameless ghost," Stephanie writes about her relationship with her clients, many of whom do not know her from any other cleaner, but who she learns plenty about. As she begins to discover more about her clients' lives-their sadness and love, too-she begins to find hope in her own path. 

Her compassionate, unflinching writing as a journalist gives voice to the "servant" worker, and those pursuing the American Dream from below the poverty line. Maid is Stephanie's story, but it's not her alone. It is an inspiring testament to the strength, determination, and ultimate triumph of the human spirit.

My Thoughts

"The Alchemist's theme, this Personal Legend, pulled at me. I'd wanted to be a writer for nearly twenty-five years."

I cannot explain with enough words how much I can relate with that sentence. That line, this entire book gave me one more reason for wanting more than ever to pursue what I really want in life. And that part in reference to The Alchemist, which just happen to be my favorite book.

I cannot imagine how hard it was to go through what Stephanie went through. Our stories are different in that sense, but as Stephanie and many other women out there, I can relate to the desire of wanting a better life for me and the love ones around me, of having to go through difficult times in life and doing whatever it takes to make it better, to be better, to pursue our dreams and make them happen. 

I have seen many comments and reviews on this book where people consider it to be a display of pity, a person seeking attention and sympathy. I respect all these people's opinions, you cannot expect everybody to like one's story but I cannot feel and have other than respect and admiration for the author. I respect their opinions but I also think if you have not been in a given situation, can you really understand and relate with what other people's lives are and what they go through?

It is not easy to share with the world your struggles and hardships in life. I don't know if being in the situation I would be brave enough, open enough to share my story. But as a reader who loves reading books about other people's lives and a writer who writes about her life, I always appreciate the honesty and openness of other writers, authors. 

That is what I see in Stephanie's book. Honesty, a person sharing her story in an honest and open way, a human being sharing her difficulties in life, the daughter, the mom, the worker, the writer, the friend, the partner, the human.

Wendy

Book Review: The Silent Patient-by Alex Michaelides-Mystery/Thriller/Suspense

Hello dear Readers,

My book review of The Silent Patient-by Alex Michaelides.

Title: The Silent Patient

Rating: 5/5 Stars

Genre: Mystery/Thriller/Suspense

Author: Alex Michaelides

Publisher: Celadon Books

Publication Date: February 05, 2019

Language: English

Paperback: 325 pages
Meet the Author: Alex Michaelides
Buy Me: Amazon

Book Description

The Silent Patient is a shocking psychological thriller of a woman’s act of violence against her husband―and of the therapist obsessed with uncovering her motive.

Alicia Berenson’s life is seemingly perfect. A famous painter married to an in-demand fashion photographer, she lives in a grand house with big windows overlooking a park in one of London’s most desirable areas. One evening her husband Gabriel returns home late from a fashion shoot, and Alicia shoots him five times in the face, and then never speaks another word.

Alicia’s refusal to talk, or give any kind of explanation, turns a domestic tragedy into something far grander, a mystery that captures the public imagination and casts Alicia into notoriety. The price of her art skyrockets, and she, the silent patient, is hidden away from the tabloids and spotlight at the Grove, a secure forensic unit in North London.

Theo Faber is a criminal psychotherapist who has waited a long time for the opportunity to work with Alicia. His determination to get her to talk and unravel the mystery of why she shot her husband takes him down a twisting path into his own motivations―a search for the truth that threatens to consume him....

My Thoughts

This was brilliant. Loved it, loved it, loved it.

Theo Farber is one of these characters that you really like and then turns out he is not such a good and likeable character you thought he was. That twist at the end, oh my God, totally unexpected. Still, Theo remained a likeable character for me because he is such a great character that was able to fool me in liking him and believing in him.

The Silent Patient is one of a kind thriller, that amazing thriller that you as a lover of this genre always want to read. What makes this such a great story, for me, definitely, was that unique premise. A silent character, Alicia Berenson, a brilliant painter who is accused of killing her husband Gabriel, and after that she goes silent, never speaks again. Until Theo is brought to the picture and well, the rest, you will have to read it to see how brilliant the story is, that mind blowing twist at the end.

The hype for this book was overwhelming, saw it everywhere. I was a little hesitant to read it, specially being a debut novel, but this time, it was totally worth it. A stunning debut novel by Alex Michaelides, I recommend it 100%. 

Wendy