Books I've Read in 2020: 36-40

745 words

6 minute read

36.

Genre:  Fiction

Disability Representation:  Yes (Trauma)

Rating: 4/4 Wheels (Love it!)

Excerpt of GoodReads Summary: To five-year-old Jack, Room is the entire world. It is where he was born and grew up; it's where he lives with his Ma as they learn and read and eat and sleep and play. At night, his Ma shuts him safely in the wardrobe, where he is meant to be asleep when Old Nick visits...

What I Thought:  More popular now with the release of the movie on Netflix, I still find myself coming back to ROOM at least annually.  Each time I read, I find myself noticing more and more of Jack's small triggers.  And Ma's.  I remain super appreciative of the time and attention to the aftermath of what Jack and Ma go through.  (I especially appreciated Jack's first trip to the mall and their move into Independent Living together.)

***

37.

Genre:  Fiction

Disability Representation:  Yes (Trauma; Selective Mutism)

Rating: 0/4 Wheels (Did not like it)

Excerpt of GoodReads Summary: Picoult brings to life a female prosecutor whose cherished family is shattered when she learns that her five-year-old son has been sexually abused...

What I Thought:  I've read this book several times over the years, and this is the first time I've really come away disliking it.  To me, Nathaniel is the only redeeming factor.  His character is, for the most part, well-done (at least in regards to his trauma, if not his selective mutism).

Speaking of his mutism, it's difficult not to see Picoult's use of ASL here as a plot device.  As someone who experiences Selective Mutism told me, it's not about the speaking.  The anxiety lies in the attention one gets for communication.  So the entire premise (Nathaniel making the ASL identification that gets misunderstood) is more than a little problematic in my opinion.

Then there's his mother, who I, the reader, am meant to root for.  But all she comes across to me as is selfish.  She's impatient with Nathaniel's natural recovery process and her actions are about herself, not about him.  I resent, too, all the not-so-subtle ways what she did is reinforced as "the best course of action."

I won't be rereading this one again.

38.

Genre:  Fiction

Disability Representation:  No.

Rating: 3/4 Wheels (Really liked it!)

Excerpt of GoodReads Summary: From the bestselling author of Everything I Never Told You, a riveting novel that traces the intertwined fates of the picture-perfect Richardson family and the enigmatic mother and daughter who upend their lives...

What I Thought:  This was a first-time read for me, and I've never read a book like it.  Being the age of Pearl and the Richardson children at the time this book was set (aka a teenager in the late 90s) this felt familiar.  The time period felt like an old friend.  Aside from that, though, this was super satisfying.  Without a traditional "happy ending" and yet I found myself cheering as the different situations in the novel were resolved in ways that felt true, respectful and honoring to the characters.

***          

39.

Genre:  Children's > Picture Books

Disability Representation:  No.

Rating: 2/4 Wheels (Liked it!)

Excerpt of GoodReads Summary:  Wemberly worried about spilling her juice, about shrinking in the bathtub, even about snakes in the radiator. She worried morning, noon, and night. "Worry, worry, worry," her family said. "Too much worry." And Wemberly worried about one thing most of all: her first day of school. But when she meets a fellow worrywart in her class, Wemberly realizes that school is too much fun to waste time worrying!

What I Thought:  This was a cute book.  I liked that Wemberley's worries did not completely disappear by the end.

***

40.

Genre:  Children's > Picture Books

Disability Representation:  No.

Rating: 2/4 Wheels (Liked it!)

Excerpt of GoodReads Summary:  Owen had a fuzzy yellow blanket. "Fuzzy goes where I go," said Owen. But Mrs. Tweezers disagreed. She thought Owen was too old for a blanket. Owen disagreed. No matter what Mrs. Tweezers came up with, Blanket Fairies or vinegar, Owen had the answer. But when school started, Owen't mother knew just what to do, and everyone -- Owen, Fuzzy, and even Mrs. Tweezers -- was happy.

What I Thought:  This book was sweet.  I did not necessarily like that Mrs. Tweezers got to have an opinion on Owen's blanket, but I liked that his mom's solution worked for him.

***

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