I could feel this book trying to be funny on every page and it never, ever got there for me. And I simply wasn't engaged; I kept finding myself thinkiI could feel this book trying to be funny on every page and it never, ever got there for me. And I simply wasn't engaged; I kept finding myself thinking about the writing (Why isn't this funny? Why did he choose that word? Would I describe this style more as arch or droll?) rather than thinking about or reading the story. ...more
Somewhere around the 10% mark of this, I said to my wife, "I bet this author has a podcast. I bet this book is based on it." The chapters just felt liSomewhere around the 10% mark of this, I said to my wife, "I bet this author has a podcast. I bet this book is based on it." The chapters just felt like a certain kind of podcast segment -- short, under-researched, and designed to make people feel like they learned something without going into too much depth. I googled McRaney and felt very smug when I saw that yes, he does indeed have a podcast.
But then some textual clues -- like a mention of Blockbuster (!) -- made me check the publication date. Turns out when this was written, McRaney didn't have a podcast, he had a blog, because this is a fifteen-year-old book. And that's a problem. Several of the landmark studies he's relying on in these chapters have been debunked, found unreplicable, or rethought in the last decade and a half.
(If you want an example: (view spoiler)[Take the Marshmallow Test, that vaunted study that says that kids who can't wait five minutes for a marshmallow at the age of five will end up sad shadows of their more patient peers. In the decade and a half since this was written, scientists have tried and mostly failed to replicate the original study's results. Meanwhile, a number of people have pointed out that the study has some serious problems, including the fact that what the Marshmallow Test may actually be measuring, at least in part, is how much the subjects trust the adults in their lives. (If you don't believe the second marshmallow will ever come, why bother to wait? Also, if in your household food uneaten is food that's lost -- maybe because of food insecurity -- waiting is an actively bad strategy.) Not being able to trust your adults is a known predictor of worse outcomes in life. So is growing up without enough food. In other words, the Marshmallow Test may actually just have found that oldest, most replicable result: poverty is bad for people. (hide spoiler)])
This isn't necessarily McRaney's fault, but it does mean this book has been rather overtaken by events. It's a decent summary of some of the stuff you'd learn in a Psych 101 class, yes, but in that class you'd ideally have a professor who is keeping up with the latest in the field and changing their syllabus as a result. Basically, this is a light read that shouldn't be trusted too much.
This a readable but unremarkable collection of travel essays. Janetti's shtick (or personality) is being a curmudgeon, and he's certainly living up toThis a readable but unremarkable collection of travel essays. Janetti's shtick (or personality) is being a curmudgeon, and he's certainly living up to his brand here, but not in a way I found particularly offensive or (usually) mean-spirited. He even documents the times he's wrong. So it wasn't his attitude that made this mid. I just -- expect more from essays. If you're just documenting your travels, then it's the book equivalent of your vacation photo slideshows: something you're going to have to force on your friends and relations, or shove through a filter and slap up on Instagram for a few dozen likes.
To work, to be interesting, travel essays need to be intensely descriptive, funny, unusual, or revealing. These are none of the above. I didn't come out of this feeling almost like I'd been in the places he describes. Janetti's tone is light, but he doesn't really hit the humor mark; I'd consider this "quips exchanged with a radio host who hasn't read the fact sheet your PR agent provided" level humor. And these trips are far from unusual; he goes on cruises, he stays too long in a hotel in London, he goes to Greece. I could get these same stories from my own mother, pretty much. The closest he comes to hitting the mark is in the revealing category; occasionally he does manage to hit some interesting note there, like when he talked about when he and his sister discovered class consciousness on a cruise ship. But overall: yeah, no.
Also, at the end of the book he provides a list of favorites. He might be right about the hotels, but holy god don't take this man's advice on restaurants. I mean, first of all don't do that (unless you share his tastes) because he's, let us say, a very unadventurous eater. His favorite meal? Burger, well done, not a hint of red. I'm a vegetarian and I'm side-eyeing that. His other big thing appears to be "the chicken," no modifiers or description. Also, he went to the Noma pop-up in Mexico and apparently barely tasted the food; he spends most of that essay describing what the waitstaff said and what the place looked like. Bonus: one of his top LA restaurants is Malibu Seafood, which is a shack by the sea with amazing views that serves pretty good basic seafood -- something you can get in a LOT of places here without driving to Malibu. You go to Malibu Seafood for the view, not the food. (Unless you live in Malibu.)
I was about to close this essay by saying that a big part of the problem is that I'm not the audience here. But then I tried to figure out who the audience IS, and I'm drawing a complete blank. I guess if you think you might the audience, give this a try? But most people probably shouldn't bother. ...more
This was fun and I'll read the second one even though I had to rant at my wife a bit halfway through. I enjoyed the tropes at work here, I enjoyed theThis was fun and I'll read the second one even though I had to rant at my wife a bit halfway through. I enjoyed the tropes at work here, I enjoyed the story (with caveats), I enjoyed the characters (with caveats). The writing is brisk and fun; this is an author who knows how to keep things moving. The plot is, yes, predictable, but frankly that is what I need and desire in this time, and also, what are tropes except comfortingly familiar plot devices?
Okay, so the biggest caveat for me is in the characters. Serious unaddressed trauma can make people behave like assholes. I get that. Hell, I've written that. But man is it hard to read Leo's combination of self-centeredness, irresponsibility, and refusal to share vital information. At one point I mentally shrieked at him, (view spoiler)["So you cannot trust your ACTUAL FRIEND, who has stood by you through ALL OF YOUR BULLSHIT, or either of the other two people who are trying very hard to help you, but you are bang alongside trusting a RANDOM OBVIOUSLY SHADY WOMAN YOU MET IN A BAR???" (hide spoiler)] Like. Come on, my dude. And the number of times he says something that is remarkably dickish, or does something that completely fucks up someone else's chances -- well, let's just say it's good this is a trilogy. He's got time to correct all those flaws. (And I do believe the author knows they're flaws and will help him get better. Doesn't make it easier to read him in this larval state.) Sebastian is similarly struggling with trauma, but we don't live in his head, so that was a lot easier for me to deal with. (And also he doesn't make consistently terrible choices.)
And there is at least one plot element that I really had to take some deep breaths about. (view spoiler)[Leo is under a love spell for the entire book and does not notice that. It has to be pointed out to him. I decided this is just a sign that Leo is not at all introspective but quite, quite suggestible and moved on, but it took me a bit. (hide spoiler)]
But despite all that -- this is a fun, compelling, fast read. If you like these kinds of tropes, you'll probably like this book....more
Look. I get it. This was written during 2020, so Bythell wasn't really doing anything either in the shop or out of it. But I don't read Bythell for hiLook. I get it. This was written during 2020, so Bythell wasn't really doing anything either in the shop or out of it. But I don't read Bythell for his whinging about customers (and, frankly, as someone married to a librarian, I could write my own very similar list of people); I read him for all the rest of it. So this is just some very dull, barely steeped tea for me. ...more
This series is such a rich delight. The worldbuilding, the characters, the concepts -- I adore them all. This book is for sure not the place to start,This series is such a rich delight. The worldbuilding, the characters, the concepts -- I adore them all. This book is for sure not the place to start, but fantasy fans and romance fans can both find a lot to love here. ...more
Someone else's small problems are ideal reading right now, especially on nights when I can't sleep. I miss Nicky -- Shaun, honestly, have you ever conSomeone else's small problems are ideal reading right now, especially on nights when I can't sleep. I miss Nicky -- Shaun, honestly, have you ever considered ASKING her what you did to piss her off? Because I absolutely guarantee it's your fault -- and I do wish Shaun's way of dealing with every one of his interpersonal problems wasn't "rub some dirt on it and wait," but it doesn't matter. Wigtown seems lovely, and so do most of the people in it.
(Also, thanks to Lincolnshire Libraries for loaning this to me. They let anyone be a member!)...more
I mean, it's the third book in the series, and it's certainly not the place to start, but if you liked the first two, you'll probably like this as welI mean, it's the third book in the series, and it's certainly not the place to start, but if you liked the first two, you'll probably like this as well. I didn't love Lloyd walking back Caroline's penury, but I do still enjoy the characters and the setting. ...more
I feel bad giving this two stars because it's very well written, compelling, and does precisely what it set out to do. But my ratings are about how muI feel bad giving this two stars because it's very well written, compelling, and does precisely what it set out to do. But my ratings are about how much I enjoyed the book, and I did not enjoy this at all. If there was ever a time when I wanted to read literary fiction about isolation, alienation, dissociation, and invisibility in the gig economy with an absolute bummer of an ending, it has long since passed.
Part of this is on me for not doing my due diligence on this book before I read it, and part of it is on the cover artist and marketing team, who did not do this book ANY favors by presenting it as something a lot lighter and funnier than it is.
This book made me so sad it drove me to rereading old favorites instead of all the holds I currently have in from the library. ...more
If you read book one, you know exactly what you're getting here. I am, however, knocking it down a star for time fuckery; the last book ends on FebruaIf you read book one, you know exactly what you're getting here. I am, however, knocking it down a star for time fuckery; the last book ends on February 5, but this one picks up on January 1, and it's clear from context that there's not most of a year between them. Just go from February to February, my dude!...more
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