The Book Addict Reviews: Moonglass by Jessi Kirby

Genre:  Young Adult, Realistic Fiction, Social Situations
Order Online: Amazon.com  
Author Info: Goodreads | Website
Rating: 4 stars   
Received this ARC in a giveaway from one of my favorite blogs: Jen Ryland/YA Romantics 

In A Nutshell:  
Anna Ryan has to move.  Her father has just taken a promotion that requires he move to another beach.  But Anna is not sure that she wants to leave.  She lost her mother here and she is afraid that with leaving she will lose her again or maybe lose more of herself.  For Anna's father though, this move means coming back to the place where he met her mother and to the memories of her that are the happiest.  And he wants to share all of that with Anna--if she will let him. 

Review:  
I was so excited when I opened the package with this book because on the cover of the book is a review by Sarah Dessen.  As many of you know--I love her books.  So the review made me confident I would love this book too.  And I did.  I do think that fans of Sarah Dessen will really like Jessi Kirby because their styles and the topics that they approach have a lot of similarities. 

Anna is a fairly private person who has had to hide a lot of secrets within herself.  This personality does not generally make for a great narrator.  At the beginning of the story, I was a little frustrated because Anna was not sharing very much of her story.  However, as the story progressed I found myself really drawn to Anna.  I wanted to find out her story--and I wanted to be there as Anna figured out her story.  I wanted to see Anna find some peace.

At the end though, I was a little disappointed that while the primary story was tied up, some of the side stories did not get tied up.  What happened with the track team?  How did Ashley and Anna work everything out?  I wanted to know more--and see if Anna found closure. 

Recommendations:
After reading Jessi Kirby's first book--I cannot wait to read her next:

But this book also made me realize how long it has been since I read a Sarah Dessen book--I need to read another one soon!

The Book Addict Reviews: Millionaire Women Next Door by Thomas J. Stanley

Genre: Women & Business
Order Online: Amazon.com  
Author Info: Website | Goodreads
Rating: 4 stars   
Borrowed this book from the library.  

 
In A Nutshell:
The Millionaire Next Door and The Millionaire Mind had revolutionized the way that I thought about money--or maybe it is more accurate to say that these books changed the way I aspire to approach money.  No longer did it seem impossible to be financially independent even on the salary that I currently make and the salary I can hope to make in my current career (which I do love and I do feel utilizes my talents and aptitudes).

But those books did have a very strong focus on male millionaires, and as a single mother I felt some of the principles out of my reach.  So I almost jumped for joy when I saw Millionaire Women Next Door.  Financially independence now feels attainable--even for me.

Review:  
I had read both The Millionaire Next Door and The Millionaire Mind a few years back.  But after some recent major changes in my life, I decided to rededicate myself to the goal of financial independence, so I checked them both out from the library to re-read.  It was during the search for these two books that I found Millionaire Women Next Door. So after re-reading both of the originals, I dove into this newer installment.  

Reading them so closely together, I did see that there is some repetition between the three books.  It makes sense because some of the principles that people follow as part of their plan for financial independence are going to be the same regardless of gender.  But the repetition did get to be a little boring in certain spots.  There is also a lot of quotes directly from the previous books, which is probably necessary for the people who started with this book without reading the other two.  But for me, it just further accentuated the repetition.

There is a large section where Thomas J. Stanley goes into detail about the difference between "Alpha" women millionaires (women who became millionaires after growing up in a loving, supportive, and in many cases frugal environment) and "Beta" women millionaires (women who became millionaires after growing up in negative and/or hostile environment).  This section really hit close to home for me and really gave me insight into who I am and why I approach money in some of the ways that I do.  He goes on to talk about being married to "Marginal Bob."  It explained so much to me about how I ended up in the situation(s) I did.

Understanding some of these things about myself have helped me as I focus on my goal of financial independence.  I can see some of the areas that I have to watch for myself so they do not get out of control again.  I have also been able to forgive myself for some of the mistakes of my past--with an understanding that I have to work hard to not end up in that same place a second time.

As a parent, this book has also made me think of how I want my daughter to relate to money.  As she gets older, I want to start to implement some of the techniques the millionaire women talked--such as open honest discussions of how money is spent as a family every paycheck.
 
Recommendations:
If you have not read any of Thomas J. Stanley's books, I cannot recommend them highly enough.  I have found them to be so informative and inspiring.  I do honestly believe that one day I can be financially independent, and when I start to doubt that I will pick these books up again.  The next book I want to read by him is:

The Book Addict Reviews: Prom by Laurie Halse Anderson

Genre:  Young Adult, Realistic Fiction
Order Online: Amazon.com  
Author Info: Goodreads | Website
Rating: 3 stars   
Bought this book with my birthday discount at Changing Hands.  

In A Nutshell:  
Ashley Hannigan sees herself as a "normal kid."  Not special enough to go to college.  Not special enough to worry about prom.  However, she is surrounded by friends and classmates who feel prom is one of the most important day of their lives.  These different orientations to prom collide when the faculty advisor to the prom committee steals most of the money that was raised for prom.  At that moment, Ashley shows her true colors by stepping in to help her best friend who wants the prom experience more than anything in the world.  In the process, Ashley's view of herself, what she wants, and what she deserves starts to change in significant ways. 

Review:  
I picked this book up after reading Speak.  By comparison, Prom seems frivolous.  It seems trite.  It seems underwhelming.  Those were my initial reactions to this story.  I had expected a story that touched me in the same way that I had been touched by Speak.  However, after some time away I realized that was really not a fair way to rate this book.  This book never claimed to be like Speak. 

So, I started to look at this story on its own merits.  As a light-hearted book, Prom delivers a unique cast of characters.  I think my favorite was Nat's grandmother who could moonlight as a professional baker if only she were not so obsessed with swimming (many times with her clothes on).  Prom delivers a strong coming-of-age story.  The Ashley we see in the beginning of this story would not even recognize the Ashley at the end who makes a stand for herself in a big way.

After recognizing these elements of Prom I realized that I really liked this book.  I am glad I read it, and I cannot wait to read another one of Laurie Halse Anderson's books.  I am sure she will surprise me yet again--but this time I will not let my initial feelings be dictated by the expectations set by other books I have read by her.

Recommendations:
If you have not read Speak, I cannot recommend it strongly enough--this book really shook me to the core:


The next book I would like to read by Laurie Halse Anderson: