Book Review #79: "Watch Me Disappear"

Hey Everyone,

     I am going to review the book "Watch Me Disappear," by Janelle Brown. This book is hot off the press as it was published today July 11, 2017 by Random House Publishing Group.  For those of you who would like to purchase a copy of this book CLICK HERE. Janelle Brown is a bestselling author. She previously wrote the books "All We Ever Wanted Was Everything," and "This is Where We Live."  "Watch Me Disappear" is about Billie a married mother of one child dies while she is hiking. This is about the grief of a loss of a mother and how her daughter, Olive and husband Jonathon cope with her loss. Olive starts seeing her mother and receiving messages from her mother through hallucinations. From there while her husband is writing a book about his loss he finds out information that his wife had a different life before him and was keeping secrets. From here both Olive and Jonathon begin to question Billie's death of whether she died or left them behind. 

     Overall I rated this book four stars out of five. I really did enjoy reading this book, it had a lot of substance to it. It was a book that had it not been for the publisher who sent me a copy of this book I would probably have never read, but I am definitely glad I did read it. The characters were likable and had depth. The story kept me on my feet wanting to find out what happened to Billie. And I absolutely loved the ending. There were a few times in the book where I did want more to happen, but overall I would highly recommend this book to read. Go ahead and find out for yourself does Billie die while hiking or does she leave her family for a different life altogether?

     I want to thank Netgalley, Janelle Brown, and Random House Publishing Group for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Until the next page,

Jill

Book Review #78: "Policing the Black Man"

Hey Everyone,

     I am going to review the book "Policing the Black Man: Arrest, Prosecution, and Imprisonment," edited by Angela J. Davis. This book is hot off the press as it was just published today July 11, 2017 by Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. For those of you who would like to purchase a copy of this book CLICK HERE. This book is a collection of eleven essays about the injustice when it comes to the criminal justice system and African Americans. 

     Overall I rated this book four stars out of five. This was a very persuasive, informative book on the unfairness in how African Americans are treated in this country. This book was extremely well written and well researched. It brought all the facts to the forefront. And the astonishing facts you will read about in this book are difficult to ignore. My favorite essays were "Boys to Men: The Role of Policing in the Socialization of Black Boys" by Kristin Henning. This essay was particularly important because it discussed children, our upcoming generations of children and how they are affected growing up in a country where our criminal justice system unfairly treats African Americans. My other favorite essay was "The Prosecution of Black Men" by Angela J. Davis because it was the essay that I learned the most. Like others I was focusing on the police and did not realize how huge of an impact prosecutors have in the unjust treatment of African Americans. The only criticism I have of this book is it was a bit repetitive. But being repetitive for this country to change we probably need to hear this over and over again. I think this book should be read in schools, basically everyone should read this book. But it should first be a mandatory read for police officers and everyone involved in our criminal justice system.

     I would like to thank Netgalley, Angela J. Davis (including all the authors who were a part of this book) and Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Until the next page,

Jill

Book Review #77: "Lost Boy"

Hey Everyone,

     I am going to review the book "Lost Boy: The True Story of Captain Hook," by Christina Henry.  This book is hot off the press as it is just published today July 4, 2017 by Berkley Publishing Group. Christina Henry is a fantasy author of "The Chronicles of Alice" series and "Black Wings". For those of you who would like to purchase a copy of this book CLICK HERE. This book is about the story behind Captain Hook on how he went from being one of the lost boys' of Peter Pan to being Captain Hook. This story focuses on the relationship between Jamie/Captain Hook and Peter Pan.

     Overall I rated this book four stars out of five. This was a very creative story. You can definitely tell how creative the author is by reading this book. I really did enjoy the story. It was dark, but lightly entertaining. The only thing I was wishing for was more excitement. I kept reading waiting for the moment I would fall in love with this book, although I really liked that book this moment never came and I was completely expecting and hoping it would. It seemed that this book was missing something as for what I can't seem to put my finger on it. But I definitely am glad I read this book and am looking forward to reading "The Chronicles of Alice" series that I have already purchased.

     I would like to thank Netgalley, Christina Henry, and Berkley Publishing Group for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Until the next page,

Jill