Category: Nonfiction

Review: I’m Glad My Mom Died

Jennette McCurdy was six years old when she had her first acting audition. Her mother’s dream was for her only daughter to become a star, and Jennette would do anything to make her mother happy. So she went along with what Mom called “calorie restriction,” eating little and weighing herself five times a day. She endured extensive at-home makeovers while Mom chided, “Your eyelashes are invisible, okay? You think Dakota Fanning doesn’t tint hers?” She was even showered by Mom until age sixteen while sharing her diaries, email, and all her income.

In I’m Glad My Mom Died, Jennette recounts all this in unflinching detail—just as she chronicles what happens when the dream finally comes true. Cast in a new Nickelodeon series called iCarly, she is thrust into fame. Though Mom is ecstatic, emailing fan club moderators and getting on a first-name basis with the paparazzi (“Hi Gale!”), Jennette is riddled with anxiety, shame, and self-loathing, which manifest into eating disorders, addiction, and a series of unhealthy relationships. These issues only get worse when, soon after taking the lead in the iCarly spinoff Sam & Cat alongside Ariana Grande, her mother dies of cancer. Finally, after discovering therapy and quitting acting, Jennette embarks on recovery and decides for the first time in her life what she really wants.

Told with refreshing candor and dark humor, I’m Glad My Mom Died is an inspiring story of resilience, independence, and the joy of shampooing your own hair.

Review: The Principles of Philosophy

Over the millennia, the great thinkers of the world have sought to come up with rules for how to live better lives, how to govern better, and how to understand the world around us. As they have written down their thoughts, they have discovered laws and techniques that can help further advance human thought and explain why the world is the way it is today.

This fascinating introduction to the world of philosophy will help make even the most complex ideas accessible to everyone.

In this book you will learn about:

The different schools of philosophy which have held sway over the years.
The most influential philosophers in history.
The key concepts in every area ranging from ethics to metaphysics to epistemology.

Review: Our Global Lingua Franca

Across continents and cultures, English has emerged as the shared bridge language that connects business, arts, sciences, and entertainment worldwide. In this thought-provoking and impassioned manifesto, a globally experienced EFL educator sheds light on the humanitarian importance of continuing to spread English as a universal means of communication—most notably in parts of the world where educational standards are lacking.

This polemical and informative guide challenges prevailing English as a Foreign Language programs that most often leave learners struggling to attain conversational English fluency, despite years of enforced study and superficially good grades, test scores, and other accolades. It boldly delves into the overlooked consequences of bad English education for cultural, economic, and individual growth that disempower foreign English learners everywhere.

Our Global Lingua Franca is an essential companion for both native and non-native English instructors navigating the challenges of sub-par language learning. It will validate your frustrations about learning and teaching under the conventional approach to EFL. Intelligent without being overly academic, it offers invaluable outside-the-box advice on reading, writing, listening, speaking, grammar, vocabulary, and pragmatics to help you impart conversational English fluency and beyond.

Review: Goodnight Smartphone

Sleep is central to every part of our lives, and a good night’s sleep begins by putting aside the day’s worries. But in today’s technology-saturated world, saying goodnight to the day is harder than ever. Allow author Arianna Huffington (Thrive, The Sleep Revolution) to guide you to a peaceful night’s slumber as she performs Goodnight Smartphone: a classic tale reborn for the modern age, when the hardest thing to say goodnight to is not the moon but our phones, our email, our social media, our always-on digital selves.

During a visit to Audible to speak about the benefits of sleep, Arianna joked about what a wonderful book Goodnight Moon is and how other childhood classics help transition kids from daytime to sleep time. She posited why there weren’t such books for adults. “Goodnight cares of the day, goodnight worries about tomorrow, goodnight laptop!” she exclaimed. Soon after, Goodnight Smartphone was born. Listen as Arianna borrows from the traditions of children’s bedtime stories to create this modern age adaptation for adults, and learn more about her daily sleep regimen in her introduction. Exclusively written for Audible, available only in audio.

Inspired by children’s bedtime classics, this audiobook is a playful and relaxing guide to help you transition from the worries of a stressful day to a good night’s sleep, and you can hear it only on Audible.

Review: The Year of Magical Thinking

When celebrated writer Joan Didion’s life was altered forever, she wrote a new chapter. In this adaptation of her iconic memoir, Didion transforms the story of the shattering loss of her husband and their daughter into a one-woman play performed by Tony Award winner Vanessa Redgrave, who originated the role on Broadway in 2007. Written with Didion’s trademark style of cool observation, The Year of Magical Thinking weaves back and forth in time, taking listeners on a poignant journey through heartbreak, grief, and resilience. It’s an unforgettable theatrical experience that resonates with anyone who has ever loved.

Review: Thicker than Water

From the hero whistleblower of the infamous Theranos scam, Thicker than Water is a look at never-before-revealed details behind closed doors at the company, revealing a cautionary tale of corporate bullying, gaslighting, ego, and wealth run amok in Silicon Valley.

Tyler Shultz had been in the workforce for less than a year when he emailed Elizabeth Holmes, his employer and the CEO and founder of Theranos, with concerns that the company’s lab practices were faulty, ignored quality control, and were potentially dangerous to patients. The COO fired back with a dismissive and insulting email, to which Tyler replied: “Consider this my two weeks’ notice.”

From there, his life spun out of control at the hand of Elizabeth, her team of high-powered lawyers, and the patriarch of Tyler’s own family, George Shultz—one of America’s most prominent statesmen, who sat among the top of the Theranos Board of Directors. And yet, Tyler forged on. To protect his own conscience, the honor and reputation of his grandfather, and the health of patients worldwide.

Thicker than Water is Tyler’s as-told-to story—a harrowing and heartbreaking roller coaster of biomedical drama, family intrigue, and redemption—that will ultimately make you feel as though you are at a dinner party, seated next to a brilliant friend with one hell of a story.

Review: A Grown-Up Guide to Dinosaurs

Ben is the Professor of Evolutionary Biology and Science Engagement at the University of East Anglia, in Norwich. He has a Bachelor’s of Science in Animal Behavior from Anglia Ruskin University, a Master’s of Science in Wild Animal Biology from the Royal Veterinary College, and a PhD, which looked at monkey evolution on tropical islands, entitled ‘Primates of the Caribbean’ with the University College London and the Zoological Society of London. Ben has recently announced So You Think You Know About Dinosaurs…?! is now on sale as part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2019 following his third UK tour earlier this year.

Review: Childhood, Interrupted

In this evocative, personal piece, Dr. Sanjay Gupta reflects on his life as a parent during this unprecedented time. He shares his fears and questions about raising his three young daughters amid our current public health crisis—and gives listeners a candid glimpse into how he’s navigating the pandemic at home. The neurosurgeon and CNN chief medical correspondent helps parents think about this time from the perspective he knows best: the workings of the brain. Equal parts essay, advice, and reassurance, Gupta reminds us that despite the relentless challenges of growing up during a pandemic, the kids will be all right.

Review: Agent 355

From Marie Benedict, New York Times bestselling author of The Only Woman in the Room, The Mystery of Mrs. Christie, and co-author of The Personal Librarian, comes a captivating work of historical fiction about a young female spy who may have changed the course of American history.

The tide is turning against the colonists in the Revolutionary War, and 18-year-old Elizabeth Morris cannot sit by idly. Quietly disdainful of her Tory parents, who drag her along to society events and welcome a British soldier into their home during their occupation of New York City, Elizabeth decides to take matters into her own hands. She realizes that, as a young woman, no one around her believes that she can comprehend the profound implications of being a nation at war – she is, effectively, invisible. And she can use this invisibility to her advantage. Her unique access to British society leads her to a role with General George Washington’s own network of spies: the Culper Ring.

Based on true events, Agent 355 combines adventure, romance, and espionage to bring to life this little-known story of a hero who risked her life to fight for freedom against all odds.

Review: Undercover: Operation Julie – The Inside Story

Meet some of the most sexually charged creatures in the world.
Bampires, with a “B,” crashed on earth. These creatures survive, not from blood, but sex. But not just any kind of sex… the purest sex there is, untouched humans. They also drink blood ofcourse, but only to blend there skin color in with humans. They can enter your mind and sex you in anyway they please. Are you interested now?

***** WARNING 18+ Adult content with strong language *****

If you think this is just another story about a girl that falls in love with a vampire, far from it. Everything you know about Vampire is wrong. For starters what is a Bampire? They are creatures that survive from sex. But not just any sex, the purest kind. Every hour and everywhere, there is a lot of steamy hot desires being satisfied at every turn. Are you curious enough to enter MIND NIGHT BLUE Now?

LB is the most powerful Bampire to ever walk the earth. He fell in love and accidentally killed her. Now he roams the earth until he finds this young woman again. Will this be his second chance at life, or something completely different? But at this same time, his past comes back to haunt him. This young woman gets caught between a love triangle that uses her to get back at LB. There are 3 days of sexy, seductive, and erotic world. Can you (the reader) handle all of these delicious scenes? Will you be able to figure out what is going to happen, while your desires are on an all time high?

Let’s get started shall we.

Can you figure out what is going to happen before its revealed? Will you be able to hold off your own desires and emotions while reading what happens? Hmmm lets see if you can handle your first night in MIND NIGHT BLUE? Lets get started shall we?