Anna reviews 'The Pursuit of Happiness' by Douglas Kennedy

Summary from Goodreads: "Manhattan, Thanksgiving Eve, 1945. The war was over, and Eric Smythe's party was in full swing. All his clever Greenwich Village friends were there. So too was his sister Sara -- an independent, canny young woman, starting to make her way in the big city. And then in walked a gatecrasher, Jack Malone -- a U. S. Army journalist just back from a defeated Germany, and a man whose world-view did not tally with that of Eric and his friends. Set amidst the dynamic optimism of postwar New York and the subsequent nightmare of the McCarthy witch-hunts, The Pursuit of Happiness is a great tragic love story; a tale of divided loyalties, decisive moral choices, and the random workings of destiny."

I know I usually review non-fiction books but every once in a while I come across a fiction book that is so wonderful, I feel compelled to review it. This is certainly one of those. The book begins as a mystery- Kate is at her mothers funeral when she sees Sara, a woman she has never seen before. The two quickly establish contact and the story then flashes back to tell the story of Sara.

Sara is a witty, bright and highly independent woman. She's a talented writer and is devoted to her older brother Eric. During one fateful party on Thanksgiving Eve 1945, falls in love with Jack Malone. Jack Malone is conservative, Irish, and alas for poor Sara, only in town for the night. The two spend a passionate evening together and vow to stay in contact. I'm not going to spoil the plot of the book by revealing what happens next, but suffice it to say that this meeting between Sara and Jack has huge ramifications for her and those around her; it shapes the course of her entire life.

The characters in this book are excellently crafted. Sara is highly credible and likeable, she easily evokes sympathy from the reader. A credit to Kennedy's writing, early on in the book you begin to care about her and this remains true throughout the book. The relationship she has with her brother Eric is also very realistic- there is real tenderness and warmth between them. Eric is a funny and smart while Jack is incredibly human. All of the characters are complex, there are no good guy/bad guy distinctions. Every character in the book is vividly described. I felt that I really knew these people.

One of my favourite things about the book was its setting. Sara grew up in the McCarthy era, the time of the "red scare". Communists and other left-wing people were treated very harshly by the government. This is rather unfortunate for Sara's brother Eric, who was formerly a member of the Communist party. Throughout the book suspicion, deceit were rife; friends betrayed friends in order not to be branded as anything even vaguely left. I also found the effort they all made to define themselves as American and to conform to expectations of what what it was to be American facinating.

Overall, this is an incredible book. It's well-written, compelling and well worth a read. I think the cover of the book reveals a lot- Sara is walking a plank, trying to remain steady and reach the end. Each of the characters pursue happiness but though all have glimpses of it, none of them ever really achieve it. Overall, a well deserved four and a half stars.

Anna reviews 'The Thrift Book: Live Well and Spend Less' by India Knight

Name: The Thrift Book: How to Live Well and Spend Less
Author: India Knight
Publisher: Penguin (2009)
How I got this book: In the library
Why I read it: It sounded really interesting!
Rating: 4 stars

Have you ever looked at your bank balance and almost cried? I've done so quite often, and the thought of 'what on EARTH did I spend my money on?' usually accompany those tears. It's no coincidence, then, that when I saw this book in the library I instantly snatched it up in the hope that it would teach me how to gain control of my spending habits. I'm pleased to announce that it did! India Knight is a middle-class single-mother of three, who like many people, is absolutely terrible with money. She eventually decided that it had to stop, she had to get a grip. It's not hippy-ish, it's simply about how to live well for less. The book discusses several topics- food, beauty, clothes, money, having fun, holidays, etc.

The first topic she discusses is food, and it's absolutely brilliant. There are some really simple things like do food shopping online if possible as it stops you from impulse buying, there's an excellent chart of a list of fruit and vegetables and when they're in season, and there's also things like how to grow your own vegetables and how to cook on a budget. She gives tonnes of great links, one of the best being www.lovefoodhatewaste.com. I went onto this and it's great- it shows you exactly how much food you need for the amount of people you're cooking for, and gives some great recipes for leftovers. Of course you can't mention food without talking about the politics of it- in 2010 around 13.1% of the worlds population are described of as being hungry (as in chronically hungry- where food shortage is a major issue in their life) yet here in the Western world we throw out almost a third of all food we buy. Is that screwed up or what?

The chapter on clothes was facinating! The basics first- if you can buy a t-shirt for $1.50, how much did the people who made it earn? If clothes can be bought for that cheap, it's guaranteed that the people who made those clothes were paid next to nothing, and may even have been child labourers. Beyond that, cheap clothes usually look cheap and are don't last long. India suggests instead that one should save for really expensive, good quality clothes that will last a lifetime and will always look good. She also suggests things like buying vintage clothes, and she has several great links on how to make your own clothes.

The book deals with loads of other things and it's all excellent. I'm glad though that acknowledged her privilege—it's all very well to say that one shouldn't buy really cheap clothes but some people literally cannot afford anything else. I've tried out some of the things she has suggested, and it's all worked out great! She recommends using olive oil as a hair conditioner. It's cheap, it lasts for ages and it's great for your hair. I tried this and it's so true! I've spent a fortune over the years on expensive hair conditioners, serums, etc in an attempt to control my thick frizzy hair and olive oil is the first conditioner that has actually worked! I also went to some of the links on making clothes and I've now a nice skirt made out of an old pair of jeans that I never wore! This is a really fantastic book that I think would benefit most people.

Anna reviews 'Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture' by Ariel Levy

Name: Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture
Author: Ariel Levy
Publisher: Pocket Books, 2006
How I got this: I read it at college and then I bought it.
Why I read this: It was recommended to me by my sister.

Jenna Jamison. Pamela Anderson. Playboy models. Girls Gone Wild. No, this isn't a list of my favourite porn stars, but a list of just some of the people that many women in the USA look up to as role models and people they aspire to be like. Levy's sharp, witty and clever look at the sex industry in America examines all of this and makes some well-observed and well-argued points about sex and sexuality for women in the USA.

Levy begins by describing the sudden rise in popularity of lap-dancing classes for women, the increasing popularity (amongst women) of magazines like Playboy and Esquire, and the acceptance of porn-stars as legitimate role models. She examines some of the reasons why this has happened and comes up with the term 'female chauvinist pig'. Female chauvinist pigs (FCPs) are women who view themselves and other women as sex objects. This is seen in women embracing Girls Gone Wild, Playboy, porn stars, and many of the other things that have traditionally being viewed as degrading towards women. She then goes on to examine the rise of raunch culture, and why women have accepted this. She also looks at the history of feminism and how society has come to this place, as well as looking at how raunch culture affects adolescents.

The book is compelling and Levy makes some excellent points. She argues that this rise of raunch culture and FCP's does not mean that feminism's aims have been achieved and it certainly does not mean that women are sexually liberated. As she points out, since when is aspiring to look like a porn star or a playboy model-whose job is to fake sexual pleasure- liberating for women? Women- and only women- are under more pressure than ever to be perceived as hot, which means being sexually desirable and saleable. It's not enough for women today to be successful, beautiful, talented, and accomplished, they have to be hot. Case in point: Amanda Beard, and American Olympian swimmer appearing in Playboy. This importance on being hot applies only to women- no male Olym pian has felt the need to prove his self worth by putting his genitals on display in a magazine.

Her analysis of why this happens is excellent. She gives several reasons, one of them being the 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' mentality. I haven't read that book but briefly, it involves 'tomming'. Tomming means conforming to another more powerful person(s) idea of who you are and who you ought to be. In other words, if you can't beat the system that oppresses you, join it and embrace it. Women in the USA are not sexually liberated. She quotes Susan Brownmiller "You think you're being brave, you think you're being sexy, you think you're transcending feminism. But that's bullshit."

This is one of the best books I've read in a long time. It's utterly compelling and Levy's clever, angry and well-written book really makes you think. It's sad because despite some of the major advances women in the USA have made, it shows that there is still a very long way to go. As she points out, if women today are sexually liberated, why do we work so hard to look like someone elses idea of what sexy is instead of just being ourselves?


Random aside: take a look at this postsecret. I think it shows that the sexuality of Western women and women of Islamic faith are both equally repressed and restrained by patriarchy, just in different ways: 

Anna reviews 'Stolen Time' by Sunny Jacobs

Name: Stolen Time
Author: Sunny Jacobs
Publisher: Doubleday, 2007
Why I read this book: I was at a talk Sunny gave at college and I instantly went out and bought her book.
Rating: 5 Stars


"I now know from hard-earned experience that each of us, male or female, must at some point take responsibility for ourselves and our lives. That's the way it is. "

This is the biography of Sunny Jacobs, a woman who, at the age of 28 she was sentenced to death for her role in the murders of two policemen in Florida, a crime she never committed. Her death sentence was later commuted to life in prison, and in total, she spent seventeen years in jail, five of which were in solitary confinement. It is an incredibly moving book and makes you think long and hard about whether the death penalty should be allowed.

The book opens with Sonia describing her early years- she got pregnant as a teenager and swiftly married the father of the future child, Kenny. The marraige didn't work- both were too young and immature and they ultimately separated. She moved to Miami in 1973 where she became involved with the mysterious, charismatic and troubled Jesse Tafero. The two moved in together and began trying to make things work as a family. By 1976 they'd been living together for three years and had a child together, their daughter Tina. The night that would shape the rest of their lives happened in 1976 when they were driving to Palm Beach with their friend Rhodes. Two cops pulled them over and a shoot-off happened that left both of the policemen dead. Despite there being absolutely no evidence that either of them took any part in the crime- in fact there was plenty of evidence that neither of them had done it- both were sentenced to death. Her children were taken from her and put into her parents care.

The book then goes on to describe her life in jail. She spent five years in solitary confinement where she passed the time doing yoga and meditating. She continued her relationship with Jesse, where they sent each other letters of love, hope and despair. Ultimately her death sentence was overturned to life in jail. Her parents died in a tragic aeroplane crash in 1982. Naturally she is devestated and her children are put into care. She then describes the horrific murder of her partner Jesse. Jesse was given the electric chair, where it took 13 minutes for the state of Florida to murder him- flames came out of his head while he was still alive. The inhumanity of his death can scarcely be described. Finally, in 1992 after a lengthy court process, Sonia's sentence was overturned and she was released.

"In 1976, when I went in, I was a young mother, a daughter and a wife. When I came out, in 1992, I was an orphan, a widow and a grandmother."Sonia is an incredibly inspirational person and her courage, intelligence, humanity and wit shine through in every page. What she suffered is unimaginable- it is absolutely disgusting that she was sentenced to seventeen years in jail for a crime she never committed, and her husband was brutally murdered for a crime too was innocent of. Although she has plenty to be angry and bitter about, she never loses her sense of humour, she keeps herself busy and she never ever loses her incredible sense of humanity. I was lucky enough to meet this amazing woman last year when she and her partner Peter Pringle gave a talk at my university. I highly, highly recommend this book. It is a womans story of being convicted for a crime despite ones innocence, as well as a broader reflection on the death penalty as a whole.

RIP Jesse Tafero.

Anna reviews 'How I Live Now' by Meg Rosoff

Name: How I Live Now
Author: Meg Rosoff
Publisher: Wendy Lamb Books, 2004
How I got it: My aunt sent it to me as a gift.
Why I read it: It got excellent reviews and it seemed really interesting!
Rating: 5 stars!

This being Valentine's week, I've decided to review one of my favourite love stories ever put on paper, 'How I Live Now' by Meg Rosoff! This is the wonderful, unusual tale of Daisy, a fifteen-year old girl from New York who is sent to live with her cousins in England for one summer.Daisy is a smart, cynical, street-wise and anorexic teenager who is not looking forward to moving from the centre of civilisation to a remote farm in England with her cousins. Home for her is New York City, a world entirely different from where she is going. She is pleasantly surprised, then, to find out her cousins Piper, Edmond, Issac and Osbert are wonderful and quirky, and that the summer will not be as bad as she'd anticipated. Her cousins are an odd bunch- there's telepathic Edmond, sweet and sensitive Piper, Edmond's twin Issac who communicates with animals but rarely with humans, and Osbert, smart-ass know it all. She becomes very close to all of them, and falls in love with Edmond. However, when war breaks out between England and the country occupying it their idyllic life on the farm is shattered and they are forced to separate, and the book becomes a story of survival at any cost.

This is a truly wonderful book. The love story between Daisy and her telepathic cousin Edmond is unexpected and incredibly moving. Both of them are very young, two teenagers in a great war that neither of them knows much about, or really care; the only thing that matters for them is each other. Their love affair is spontaneous, passionate and one of whose consequences will reverberate for them for the rest of their lives. Meg Rosoff creates some facinating and memorable characters. Daisy is very likeable- she's smart and sarcastic, with a great knack for understanding people. She's also quite vulnerable- she feels responsible for her mother's death, she despises her step-mother and she's never had a place where she could really call home until she goes to England. The other characters, especially Edmond and Piper, are very well developed and incredibly realistic. By the end of the book I felt as though I really knew these people!

One thing I loved about the book was how it went from an idyllic love story between two teenagers to a fast-paced fight for survival in a country torn apart by war. Daisy and her cousins don't know much about the war, or care- all they want is to be reunited with each other. However, they still experience all of the brutalities of it, and witness some truly horrendous events. The book is very well written- it's exciting, memorable and thoroughly original. It is written in an unusual style, marked by sentences that reach a paragraph long. This book is one of the most memorable, original books I've ever read with a poignant and unusual love story. It definitely gets a well-deserved 5 stars!

Top Ten Tuesday: Anna's Top Ten Most Inspirational Characters.

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created here at The Broke and the Bookish. This meme was created because we are particularly fond of lists here at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!


Each week we will post a new Top Ten list complete with one of our bloggers answers. Everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND post a comment on our post with a link to your Top Ten Tuesday post to share with us and all those who are participating. If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. If you can't come up with ten, don't worry about it---post as many as you can!

THE TOPIC FOR NEXT WEEK IS:  Top Ten Books I Wished I Read as a Kid. Check out future TTT topics.

***Spoiler Alert: This post contains spoilers about the characters Severus Snape and Sirius Black from the Harry Potter series.***

1. Jane Eyre in 'Jane Eyre' by Charlotte Bronte- Despite the hideous clothes and the awful taste in men (I've never really gotten the appeal of Mr. Rochester) Jane Eyre is an incredibly inspirational woman. She is honest, hot-tempered, full of integrity and she always follows her conscience, even when doing so causes her a great deal of distress. She defies authority and lives life on her own terms. One speech of hers said in a moment of passion in has always inspired me: "Do you think I am an automaton?-a machine without feelings?..Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain, and little, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong!" It echoes Shylock's famous speech in 'The Merchant of Venice'. I think Jane Eyre is one of the most inspirational characters in English literature, and fictional though she is, she has had quite an influence on me.

2. Albus Dumbledore from the 'Harry Potter' series. It's too bad people like Albus Dumbledore don't exist in real life (or if they do, I've certainly never met them). Albus Dumbledore has to be one of the most inspirational characters ever written. I find him inspirational because he's incredibly intelligent, wise and brave, yet just like any other person, he is deeply flawed. I've learned a lot from him.

3. 'Atticus Finch' in 'To Kill A Mockingbird' by Harper Lee. I would hazard a guess and say if you asked people what fictional character they find most inspiratonal, Atticus Finch would come up a lot and it's not difficult to understand why. A lawyer and widower, Atticus Finch is an incredibly wise and humane character. As a father he tries to lead by example and teach his children right from wrong. Atticus ignores the predjudice that existed towards black people, choosing to follow his own conscience instead. So much of what he says I find inspirational. For example: "..before I can live with other folks I've got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience". He truly is an inspirational character.

4. Ursula Riggs in 'Big Mouth and Ugly Girl' by Joyce Carol Oates. I love reading books that have simple plots (in this case, girl befriends boy who has been wrongly accused of threatening to blow up his high-school) and well-rounded, quirky characters. This book is a great example of this. Ursula is the first character I've ever come across in a book who completely embraces being unattractive. She calls herself 'Ugly Girl' and sees it as a positive thing. She is also brave, honest and a loyal friend. In a world where people, especially women are constantly told the importance of being attractive, I found her to be very inspirational.

5. Laura Byrne in 'Is Anybody Listening?' by Larry O'Loughlin. Whoa. This book makes for tough reading but despite all the doom and gloom, the protagonist Laura remains a beacon of inspiration. Laura becomes friends two young children whose lives are in grave danger and does everything she can to try and save them. I find her inspirational because she's smart, funny, brave and she stands up for what she believes in.

6. Heidi in 'Heidi' by Johanna Spri. *Sigh*... this book has remained a constant favourite ever since I first read it when I seven. It's funny, although I'm now an athiest, and a lot of the book deals with Heidi's relationship with god, I still find her incredibly inspirational. I think it's beacause she forces me to change my perspective on life, to remember that joy can be found in the smallest of things. Heidi is wonderful. She revels in nature, she appreciates the simple things in life like gusts of wind and drinking a nice glass of milk. I've always found her inspirational.

7. Sirius Black from the 'Harry Potter' series. *Spoiler alert* For those who don't already know, Sirius Black is Harry's godfather and the former best friend of Harry's dad. I find him inspirational because of his courage and compassion. Black's life was filled with hardship and tragedy yet despite all the tragic things that have happened to him (eg his best friend being betrayed and murdered, being sent to Azkaban for a crime he never committed) he remains courageous, kind and loyal. I admire people who stand up and fight against others who commit evil deeds, thus I find Sirius to be very inspirational. Sirius fights Death Eaters, he is a committed member of the Order of the Phoenix and he is a kind and loyal friend and godfather to Harry. PS- damn you Bellatrix Lestrange!

8. Severus Snape from the 'Harry Potter' series. *Spoiler Alert* I think Snape is by far the most complex, interesting character in the 'Harry Potter' series. He's inspirational because he shows that one can make a mistake, a major mistake that one will spend the rest of one's life regretting but ultimately redemption is possible. Once Snape realizes the consequences of reporting the prophecy to Lord Voldemort, he immediately leaves the Death Eaters and spends the rest of his life trying to make up for what he has done. He dedicates his life to protecting Harry and fighting Lord Voldemort. The courage that this involves, and the way he completely changed his life around I think is highly inspirational.

9. Stargirl in 'Stargirl' by Jerri Spinelli. Who could be failed to be inspired by Stargirl? 'Stargirl' tells the tale of teenager called Leo who falls for Stargirl Caraway, a young woman who refuses to conform to the demands of high-school. Stargirl is one of the most unique, inspirational characters ever seen in literature. Stargirl strums the ukulule at lunch, carries around a pet rat, and in her spare time does selfless deeds for others. I find her inspirational because of this, and also because I can appreciate how difficult it often is for people to stand out in secondary school and I respect anyone who does it.

10. Rachel Walsh in 'Rachel's Holiday' by Marian Keyes. 'Rachel's Holiday' tells the story of Rachel Walsh who is furiously angry when her family send her to rehab for drug and alcohol addiction. While Rachel is in rehab, we get flashbacks into the drug and alchohol-fuelled life that Rachel led in New York and we get to witness Rachel's slow transformation. I find Rachel really inspiring partly because I can relate to her a lot. She's inspiring because she ultimately begins to accept who she is and to rid herself of all of her insecurities. She struggles to overcome her addictions and ultimately, after much hard work, she succeeds. 

Anna reviews 'The Umbrella of U.S. Power: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Contradictions of U.S. Policy' by Noam Chomsky

Name: The Umbrella of U.S. Power: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Contradictions of U.S. Policy
Author: Noam Chomsky
Publisher: Open Media Pamphlet Series, 1999
Where I got it: I bought it.
Why I read it: It's written by Noam Chomsky!


Noam Chomsky gave a talk via satellite three years ago at my university. I didn't go because I'd made plans to see some crappy blockbuster at the cinema with my friend. Man was I an idiot! If Noam Chomsky is giving a talk, you skip the cinema. You skip anything. Why? The man is, quite simply, a legend. He's the worlds most famous living anarchist, the eighth most cited source of all time, the most quoted person alive as well as a hugely influential linguist. Noam Chomsky truly is amazing. 'The Umbrella of U.S. Power...' is just a drop in the ocean in his body of work, and one that is well worth reading.

The book describes the USA's response to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). Chomsky aptly points out that publicly the USA is one of the most ardent supporters of UDHR as well as being one of the harshest critics of countries that violate it. However, what the USA says and what it actually does are two entirely different matters and what quickly becomes apparent is that the USA has an unbeaten track record for violating UDHR. Chomsky gives several excellent examples to back up all of his points and some of these really struck me. To give one example: In 1993, the New York Times reported that "At Vienna talks, U.S. insists Rights Must be Universal". However, the USA often both supports and funds governments who enforce the free market, support US. multinational corporations and expand the U.S. empire by committing genocide, torturing their citizens, stifling free press, overthrowing democratically elected leaders, etc. This has happened in countries like Nicaragua, Panama, Columbia, Chile, Iraq, Iran, East Timor, Haiti, and many others. Chomsky points out that "It is not that U.S. leaders prefer torture; rather, it has little weight in comparison with more important values". The hypocrisy of the USA stunned me.

There are many fantastic things about the book. Firstly, it's a real eye-opener. I was sickened as well as incredibly angry by the information in this book. The depth of Chomsky's knowledge is also incredible. It is clearly and factually written. It contains no emotive language, it plainly describes the USA and UNHR. It's also very short- fifty-seven pages in total, which is great because one could read it entirely in a very short period of time. He makes some interesting observations that really make you think. I highly recommend it to everyone, especially anyone interested in human rights, politics, or who wants a deeper understanding of the world as it is today.


Rating: 5 incredible stars!

Anna reviews 'Before I Die' by Jenny Downham

Name: Before I Die
Author: Jenny Downham
Publisher: Random House, 2007
How I got it: I bought it.
Rating: 5 stars

Synopsis: Tessa is sixteen years old and terminally ill with leukemia. In the last few months before she dies, she makes a list of all the things she wants to do before her death.

Tessa is your average sixteen year old girl. She's smart, witty, and the list that she compiles before her death is exactly what you'd expect from a sixteen year old: get a boyfriend, lose her virginity,fall in love, become famous. She asks her best friend Zoey to ensure she carries out the list no matter what. Her divorced parents struggle to accept that their daughter will die soon, while her younger brother Cal is cheerful and matter-of-fact about the situation.

The characters in this book are amazing. Although Tessa is only sixteen, being terminally ill with leukemia has made her wise beyond her years. She has trouble accepting her death at times, and feels older than her parents as they struggle to do so. Her mother, who abandoned her until very recently, is clueless about how to look after Tessa while her father is desperate, searching for any cure that can save his daughter. She falls in love with her next door neighbour Adam, and their relationship is a complex one. Part of her desperately wants Adam and their love to save her, which she knows is ultimately impossible. Although he loves Tessa, Adam finds it hard to be there for her in the way she wants him to. He is brave- he knows that her death will cause him a tremendous amount of grief yet he is there for her every step of the way, never holding back. Honestly, I found this completely heartbreaking- they had just found each other, they were tremendously happy together, yet they knew that their happiness could only ever be momentary as Tessa has only a few short months to live.

Another fantastic thing about this book is Tessa coming to terms with her illness, and the way in which death is dealt with. Early on in the book, Tessa, Adam and Zoey go to the woods and take magic mushrooms. Tessa is desperate to be healthy and gets very excited in the woods and tells Adam she thinks it has cured her: "I'm not sick any more...I need to stay here in this wood. I need to stay away from the modern world and all its gadgets and then I won't be sick. You can stay with me if you want..We'll grow vegetables". I had tears in my eyes at this point- she had an early death sentence pronounced on her which she tried, but ultimately could not escape. Later on she is angry with everyone, that they'll go on living while she'll be buried underground. As the book progresses and Tessa gets weaker and weaker, her thoughts become more fleeting and she sees death everywhere. The book literally ends on the moment when she dies.

This is a truly extraordinary, unforgettable book. It took a while for me to get into the book, but once I did I was hooked! Downham's book is touching and well written; although it deals with a fairly unpleasant subject, it is ultimately an uplifting book. It is also a major tear-jerker! Overall an amazing book, and a well-deserved five stars.


Discussion: What would be on YOUR list of things to do before you die?

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books That Made You Cry!

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created here at The Broke and the Bookish. This meme was created because we are particularly fond of lists here at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week we will post a new Top Ten list complete with one of our bloggers answers. Everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND sign Mister Linky at the bottom to share with us and all those who are participating. If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Don't worry if you can't come up with ten every time..just post what you can!


**SPOILER ALERT** This post contains spoilers from 'The Amber Spyglass' by Philip Pullman, 'Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix' by JK Rowling, and 'Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince' by JK Rowling.


1. Chinese Cinderella by Adeline Yen Mah. This is a true account of Adeline's childhood in China. Adeline was abused by her family, and she had a thoroughly miserable childhood. It's one of the saddest books I've ever read, I cried almost the whole way through. Early in the book she gets a duck,which soon becomes her only friend. Tragically, the duck is killed by a dog, and Adeline was devestated. Tears began to flow at this point, and I honestly don't think I stopped crying till I finished the book. Great book, but I wouldn't read it again.

2. The Amber Spyglass- Philip Pullman. *Spoiler Alert* This is the final book in Pullman's magnificent trilogy. It's my all-time favourite book, but boy did it make me cry! I was so happy when the two main characters, Will and Lyra fell in love. It seemed natural, and after everything they'd been through, I was sure that Pullman was going to give them a nice happy ending. However, due to forces much bigger than them, they are forced to part. I cried so much during this. Over the course of the three books I'd come to love the characters of Lyra and Will, and I really really wanted them to be happy. For them to be torn apart as soon as they'd discovered that each loved the other was heartbreaking. The maturity of their separation also made me cry- they knew that though this was the most awful thing that had ever happened to them, but it was for the greater good and they just had to accept it. Definitely a tear-jerker.

3. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix- JK Rowling. *Spoiler Alert* Of all the characters that Rowling had to kill off, why did it have to be clever, brave, (and honestly the hottest fictional character ever) Sirius Black? Why couldn't it be someone really annoying like Ron? I don't think I was the only person who cried when Sirius was murdered by his cousin Bellatrix at the end of the book. Sirius had led a miserable existence for most of his life,and I was sure that finally by the end of the book, Sirius would be free. It was not to be, and his death was tragic. I also cried because Harry had lost yet another person he loved. Sirius was a combination of brother, father and friend to Harry and at the time of his death, they had only known each other for around three years. RIP Sirius!

4. Before I Die- Jenny Downham. I think this book made a lot of people cry! Tessa is a sixteen year old who is terminally ill with leukaemia, and the book follows Tessa's last few months of life and what she does with the time she has left. When Tessa is on her deathbed, her younger brother says to her: "Bye Tess. Haunt me if you like. I don't mind". I couldn't stop crying!

5. Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince- JK Rowling. *Spoiler Alert* It is Harry's sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and things have got a whole lot darker. Again, Rowling kills off another beloved character- this time Albus Dumbledore. I began to cry while reading Dumbledore's funeral. Harry had lost yet another person in his life, someone who loved Harry and whom Harry loved also. Dumbledore was also an amazing character- he was someone I wanted to be my grand-dad or something. He was brave, wise, had a sense of humour and really loved Harry. A fantastic character who Rowling should not have killed.

6. Genocide: A Comprehensive Introduction by Adam Jones. This is an excellent introductory text to genocide. It discusses several genocides that have occured throughout history, as well as debating whether September the 11th can be considered as genocide. I've never cried so much when reading a book. I remember that after I read it I just curled into a ball beside my radiator and sobbed my heart out that people did such things to other people, that millions of innocent people were murdered. I eventually realized that tears are absolutely useless- action is what is needed to stop such atrocities from happening, not tears.

7. Is Anybody Listening? by Larry O'Loughlin. This is the story of a young girl who fights to save the lives of two people who are in grave danger. Laura hears about the life of Sanjid, a young child who works in a carpet factory and Rosa,a young street kid in Rio de Janeiro. I wept when I learned that Rosa and Sanjid may have been fictional characters, but the lives they lived were real- there are around 158 million child labourers in the world, and thousands of street kids are murdered in Brazil every year. Their crime? Simply being alive.

8. Unweaving The Rainbow- Richard Dawkins. "We are all going to die, and that makes us the lucky ones. Most people are never going to die because they are never going to be born. The potential people who could have been here in my place but will in fact never see the light of day outnumber the sand grains in Arabia. Certainly those unborn ghosts include greater poets than Keats, scientists greater than Newton...In the teeth of such stupefying odds it is you and I, in our ordinariness, that are here". This is part of the opening paragraph of Dawkin's wonderful book. Richard Dawkins really makes you fall in love with science and this book made me cry- cry tears of joy and happiness! When I read the paragraph and what follows afterwards, I realized how incredibly, incredibly lucky I am to be alive, how precious life is. I was laughing and crying while reading it, and I had the biggest smile on my face for ages afterwards!

9. Juno and Juliet- Julian Gough. This is another book that made me cry- rolling around, can't breathe, marvellous tears of laughter! This book is the story of two beautiful identical twin girls who go to university in Galway, Ireland. It's also the funniest book I've ever read! Juliet is incredibly sarcastic, and many of the lines she comes out with are hilarious. I call this book my happy book- whenever I want to read something that is guaranteed to put me in a good mood and make me cry with laughter, I pull this book off my shelf and get reading!

10. Heidi- Johanna Spri. I cried when I read this book for the first time since I was seven- fifteen years later the book still makes me cry! Every time I read the part where Heidi goes back to the mountains after living in the city for months, a tear slips out. It's a tremendously happy moment when she finally goes back to her home on the mountains with her grandfather, where she is reunited with what she loves. This is not just a children's classic,it is a classic book for people of all ages!


Next week the topic is: Top Ten Most Unfortunate Character Names...you know those names when you are just sitting there thinking, "Author, you really could have picked a kickass name but you decided to name them THAT."

Anna's review of 'Is Anybody Listening?' by Larry O'Loughlin

Title: Is Anybody Listening?
Author: Larry O'Loughlin
Publisher: Wolfhound Press, 1999
How I got it: I bought it.

'Is Anybody Listening' is the extraordinary tale of a young girl who is faced with the task of rescuing two friends who are in grave danger before it is too late. The story begins in flashback form. Seventeen year old Laura Byrne is in class feeling very unwell and having an argument with her teacher. She goes home and quickly loses consciousness. Her family find her and Laura is rushed to hospital. As Laura hovers between life and death, her family read her diary and begin to understand what has been happening in her life.

Laura Byrne is a perfectly normal, average teenager. She loves photography, has a great family and is a generally happy person. It all changes when she begins to hear voices and images in her head. Someone repeats constantly: 'Sanjid- my name is Sanjid. Is anybody listening?' Laura thinks she is going insane, and does much to resist the voices. Eventually however, she begins to communicate with them, and what she learns is terrifying. Laura has developed a strange telepathic communication to two young children called Sanjid and Rosa. Sanjid is a young boy who works in a carpet factory in Mirzapur, India. He and the other children who work there are treated very cruelly. The man who owns Sanjid and the other chidren in the factory beats them regularly, makes them work almost all day, and feeds them very little. Rosa is a thirteen year old street kid in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil who fears for her life because she witnessed the Candaleria massacre on 23rd July, 1993. She lives in squalour, and every day is a struggle to survive. As Laura learns more about their lives, she realizes the grave danger that they are in and she is prepared to do anything to save Rosa and Sanjid.

One of the things I loved about this book is how it blends fiction and non-fiction: Laura Byrne, Sanjid and Rosa are fictional characters, but their lives certainly are not. Thousands of street kids are murdered in Brazil every year, and the Candalaria massacre actually happened. One quote, said by an actual man who has been convicted of murdering street children in Brazil made me gasp with horror: "You have to be cold, look right in their eyes, kill them and smile at them. I've always done it like that". Likewise, there are approximately 158 million child labourers on earth. The book is utterly compelling, from start to finish I couldn't put it down for a moment. It is very well written, in particular the parts where Laura writes in her diary: one gains a real insight into what she was experiencing and her desperate need to save two children from a terrible end. I think the title of the book is very revealing: it is not just the words of Sanjid, begging for Laura to listen to him. but the words of the millions of other children who are in similiar situations to Sanjid and Rosa who need to be heard and who need help.

This book is one of the most hard-hitting books I've ever read. After I read it, I literally couldn't speak for around an hour, I was completely stunned by what I'd just read. It really was like being kicked in the stomach- I couldn't believe that such things happen in the world, happen as I write this. I can't recommend the book highly enough, and I'd give it more than five stars if I could.

Rating: 5 stars.

Anna's review of 'Full Frontal Feminism' by Jessica Valenti

Title: Full Frontal Feminism: A Young Woman's Guide To Why Feminism Matters
Author: Jessica Valenti
Publisher: Seal Press, 1997
How I got this book: I read it at college then I bought it.


I gotta make a confession: I used to think feminism was ridiculous. Whenever I heard it mentioned I'd roll my eyes, and I had several arguments with people where I said that it was just a bunch of crazy man-haters. It wasn't until I was forced to read this book for sociology that my views on feminism began to change. I realized that everything I'd thought about feminism was wrong and that feminism is, in fact, a gift to both women and men. We just have to accept and embrace it. Valenti's book addresses the many myths that exist about feminism and broadly describes what feminism is about.

The book begins that many people are feminists but don't identify as one for a variety of different reasons. Reasons such as they believe the myths about feminism like every feminist is a lesbian who hates men, all feminists are ugly, etc. Those myths just that- myths, and by the end of the book, Valenti will have you convinced that there is not a shred of truth in those myths. Valenti then goes on to discuss how things like pop culture, sexuality, work, and violence against women relate to feminism. The book is directed at an American audience. I'm not from America but it didn't lessen my enjoyment of the book. One of the best things about this book is its language. Valenti writes very colloquially; it reads like a conversation you are having with your best friend who is telling you about feminism. Another wonderful thing about 'Full Frontal Feminism' is that at the end of most of the chapters, there is information about where one can find out more about a topic, as well as how one can help out. Throughout the book I found myself nodding along agreeing with Valenti and being able to relate to most of it. For instance, what woman hasn't heard things like wearing a short skirt/dress/top means a man may thing you are 'asking for it', what woman doesn't fear walking on her own at night in a city because she's afraid she'll be raped? As Valenti rightly says, rape is seen as an inevitable part of life instead of an epidemic that needs to be stopped.

Valenti also talks about men and feminism. Men are harmed by patriarchy also and as Valenti says, "their problems are our problems, ladies". The first time I read this book this chapter was one of the biggest shocks to me, which I feel really bad about now. She talks about how men are affected by patriarchy as they are taught that they must never show emotions, that they must be aggressive, dominant, be the bread-winner, etc. I really wish that Valenti had talked about men and feminism more, but the one chapter she wrote on it is excellent.

Overall I loved this book. One of the few things I disliked about it is that she doesn't write enough about patriarchy and capitalism- capitalism reinforces patriarchy and vice versa. That aside though, it is an excellent book. It's interesting, gives a broad introduction to feminism, and uses many concrete examples to back up the points made. I'll always have a soft spot for this book as it made me believe in feminism. As soon as I read this book I insisted that all of my friends read it and now we all identify as feminists! For this, I will be forever grateful to Valenti.

Rating: 4 stars


What does feminism mean to you? Do you find yourself thinking of the same stereotypes about feminists?

Anna reviews: 'Letter to D: A Love Story' by Andre Gorz

Book Title/Author:Letter to D: A Love Story by Andre Gorz
Publisher/Year Published:Polity Press, 2009
How I got this book:I bought it
Why I read this book:The inner romantic in me!
Rating:5 stars

“You’re 82 years old. You’ve shrunk six centimetres, you only weigh 45 kilos, yet you’re still beautiful, graceful and desirable. We’ve lived together now for 58 years and I love you more than ever. I once more feel a gnawing emptiness in the hollow of my chest that is only filled when your body is pressed next to mine.”

These are the opening lines of ‘Letter to D’, a remarkable letter that the famous French philosopher Andre Gorz wrote to his wife Dorine as she lay on her deathbed. Andre Gorz was married to his wife for fifty-eight years, and he wrote this letter to her in an attempt to truly understand his relationship with Dorine, and how his life has been changed by it. In September 2007, Andre and Dorine took their own lives. Neither wanted to live without the other.

The letter begins by describing how Andre and Dorine met in France in 1947. He was enchanted by the beautiful, English-born Dorine, and he instantly fell in love with her. Eventually he worked up the courage to ask her out, and they instantly became inseparable. He describes the qualities that attracted him to her; her quick wit, her intellect, her confidence, and how he could completely forget himself around her. Like any relationship, things didn’t always run smoothly, and she said she would break up with him as he wasn’t certain about marriage. In that instant, he realized that he could not be without her, and they got married.In the early days of their marriage, money was scarce and they did what they could to make ends meet. Eventually things began to look up when Andre got a job editing a daily evening paper. As the years went by, their marriage began to change also. Dorine no longer let herself be challenged by the “intellectual arrogance” of her husband, and began to question his ideas and put forward her own. Her confidence in her own views grew. He recognised that she was always right, and he loved her even more. As the years went by, they eventually moved to the French countryside. Dorine was diagnosed with arachnoiditis and cancer, and her health rapidly declined. Gorz retired from work and focused entirely on what was most important in his life: his wife. The letter ends with Gorz stating that he does not want to live without her. On the 6^th of June, 2006, Andre and Dorine took their own lives. They couldn’t bear to be separated.

This is one of the most touching books I have ever read. With divorce rates so high, it’s pretty incredible to see that is actually possible for two people to stay in love for almost sixty years. It was never meant to be published; Gorz wrote this letter for his wife only, which gives it a raw honesty. It was fascinating to read the complex relationship that Gorz had with his wife, and also with himself. I expected that I would feel sad at the end when I read of their deaths. I didn’t at all. They were incredibly lucky to experience such love, and I Instead I found myself rejoicing that love can last, that falling and staying in love is actually possible. It is a truly wonderful book.