Monday Minis – February 4th

Happy Monday, friends! It’s hard to believe we’re already on the second month of 2019 but with a new month comes more mini reviews. 😉

This week I want to share with you my reviews of the following books:

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I enjoyed them all for different reasons and I would recommend checking them out if you’re looking for something to add to your TBR.

Dear America: Notes of an Undocumented Citizen by Jose Antonio Vargas
Published by HarperAudio on September 18, 2018
Genres: Non-fiction
Format: Audiobook
Length: 5h 45m
ISBN: 0062864610
Source: Scribd
Goodreads

Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist Jose Antonio Vargas, called “the most famous undocumented immigrant in America,” tackles one of the defining issues of our time in this explosive and deeply personal call to arms.

“This is not a book about the politics of immigration. This book––at it's core––is not about immigration at all. This book is about homelessness, not in a traditional sense, but in the unsettled, unmoored psychological state that undocumented immigrants like myself find ourselves in. This book is about lying and being forced to lie to get by; about passing as an American and as a contributing citizen; about families, keeping them together, and having to make new ones when you can’t. This book is about constantly hiding from the government and, in the process, hiding from ourselves. This book is about what it means to not have a home.

After 25 years of living illegally in a country that does not consider me one of its own, this book is the closest thing I have to freedom.”

—Jose Antonio Vargas, from Dear America

Jose’s memoir is about his life as an undocumented citizen in America. As a kid he was sent to America not knowing all of his papers were fake until he applied for a driver’s license at 16.

I learned quite a bit about the immigration policy in the US through this book, and how it actually doesn’t give undocumented citizens much of a process to become ‘legal’. Simply put, it’s easier to keep undocumented people ‘illegal’ than to help them fix their status. There is no line they can get behind and not much more they can do when there is no system to begin with.

Dear America isn’t a politics or immigration book, but it’s one person’s story about homelessness, of feeling like you don’t belong in the country you call home. It’s about the constant anxiety and the difficult choices made to get by. What does it mean to be American? What does it mean to be a citizen?

Regardless of where you live or where you’re from, this book is a must read. If nothing else, it’s important to remember that “the illigals” are human too, with lives and stories just as real as ours.

We Need to Talk: How to Have Conversations That Matter by Celeste Headlee
Published by Harper Wave on September 18, 2017
Genres: Non-fiction
Format: Audiobook
Length: 5h 11m
ISBN: 006266901X
Source: Library
Goodreads

Today most of us communicate from behind electronic screens, and studies show that Americans feel less connected and more divided than ever before. The blame for some of this disconnect can be attributed to our political landscape, but the erosion of our conversational skills as a society lies with us as individuals.

And the only way forward, says Headlee, is to start talking to each other.

We Need to Talk is a book everyone needs to read. If you’ve ever been frustrated with other people for the things they do when having a conversation, be it interrupting you, not listening to you, or always turning the conversation to focus on themselves, you need this book. We Need to Talk will not only give you information on the psychology of why we often default to these behaviours, but it also provides tips and self-check prompts to help you reflect on things you do that may be negatively impacting your conversations or your relationships. I also appreciated how it encourages readers to have conversations with people they disagree with, as a way to avoid limiting their perspective. The book is sometimes not an easy pill to swallow (who loves being self-critical?) but it’s so essential when it comes to improving ourselves and the way we talk and listen to others.

Dragon Pearl by Yoon Ha Lee
Published by Listening Library on January 15, 2019
Genres: Middle Grade, Science Fiction, Fantasy
Format: Audiobook
Length: 10h 19m
ISBN: 136801335X
Source: Library
Goodreads

To keep the family safe, Min’s mother insists that none of them use any fox-magic, such as Charm or shape-shifting. They must appear human at all times. Min feels hemmed in by the household rules and resents the endless chores, the cousins who crowd her, and the aunties who judge her. She would like nothing more than to escape Jinju, her neglected, dust-ridden, and impoverished planet. She’s counting the days until she can follow her older brother, Jun, into the Space Forces and see more of the Thousand Worlds.

When word arrives that Jun is suspected of leaving his post to go in search of the Dragon Pearl, Min knows that something is wrong. Jun would never desert his battle cruiser, even for a mystical object rumored to have tremendous power. She decides to run away to find him and clear his name.

Min’s quest will have her meeting gamblers, pirates, and vengeful ghosts. It will involve deception, lies, and sabotage. She will be forced to use more fox-magic than ever before, and to rely on all of her cleverness and bravery. The outcome may not be what she had hoped, but it has the potential to exceed her wildest dreams.

Middle Grade science fiction and fantasy book with Korean mythology? SIGN ME UP. Dragon Pearl was an entertaining story filled with magical creatures, space adventures, twists and turns. I loved reading about the different creatures in Korean mythology and was always curious to see where Min’s story took her next. The book also has an adorable sibling relationship which (my favourite) but it came towards the end of the book and I didn’t get enough of it. The story also felt a bit all over the place with too many things going on and I think pacing could have been better. I still enjoyed the book though and think a lot of young readers will have a blast with this one!

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And that’s a wrap! See you next week for the next set of minis. Let me know if any of these books sparked your interest!