Take a photo of a barcode or cover
1.37k reviews by:
onmalsshelf
A quick holiday read perfect for reminiscing about trips to Alaska.
Simply put, I hated Amber and I almost DNF'd this book because of her. The only thing that kept me going was people telling me to wait until I got to Daphne's part, which I loved. Also, the TWIST! Daphne's part and the twist helped give this an extra star.
TRIGGER WARNINGS: rape, domestic abuse, eating disorder, and emotional abuse
TRIGGER WARNINGS: rape, domestic abuse, eating disorder, and emotional abuse
Trigger Warnings: Suicide, child death, emotional abuse
What I liked about The Road to Jonestown: So many details that I had never heard before. I enjoyed learning more about his life in Indiana prior to the move to California as well as the facts of the time in California. Guinn went into extreme detail on how Jim recruited people and the lengths he went to get to more money for Peoples Temple. I had no idea how hard he tried to get into local politics in either Indiana or California.
What I didn't like: Chapter 7, "University of Indiana" was used three times. This university does not exist and it is called Indiana University. How can a reader trust the facts in the rest of the book when a simple university name is wrong three times in one chapter and then correct in the following chapter. I'm giving the benefit of the doubt to Jeff Guinn by saying this is merely an editorial error.
What I liked about The Road to Jonestown: So many details that I had never heard before. I enjoyed learning more about his life in Indiana prior to the move to California as well as the facts of the time in California. Guinn went into extreme detail on how Jim recruited people and the lengths he went to get to more money for Peoples Temple. I had no idea how hard he tried to get into local politics in either Indiana or California.
What I didn't like: Chapter 7, "University of Indiana" was used three times. This university does not exist and it is called Indiana University. How can a reader trust the facts in the rest of the book when a simple university name is wrong three times in one chapter and then correct in the following chapter. I'm giving the benefit of the doubt to Jeff Guinn by saying this is merely an editorial error.
.jpg)
Note: This is not an own voices story. If you’re looking for that, you won’t find it here.
My rating and opinion is on the style and the composition of the overall story and was written before the controversy boiled over.
Synopsis: Lydia is living a semi peaceful life in Acapulco with her reporter husband and her geography loving son, Luca. When Lydia gets a regular customer that turns out to be the leader of a cartel that her husband is currently writing an article on, sixteen lives are lost. American Dirt follows Lydia and Luca as they make their way to el norte where Lydia thinks they’ll be safe.
_______
Jeanine Cummins has created a fast paced story that held me in limbo from the first page. It’s impossible to keep yourself from crying at parts. There are so many times that I wanted to throw the book across the room because it was so powerful. Some may not like this book because it does bring to light political issues that many choose to ignore. I can see this becoming a classic.
TRIGGER WARNINGS: murder, miscarriage, suicide, infertility, death by cancer, gun violence, alcoholism, child death, unintended pregnancy, animal cruelty, robbery, gang/cartel violence and activity, and sexual assault.
Please educate yourself on the current controversy surround American Dirt.
-A Poor Imitation: "American Dirt" and Misrepresentations of Mexico by David Schmidt: https://thebluenib.com/a-poor-imitation-american-dirt-and-misrepresentations-of-mexico/
-Pendeja, You Ain’t Steinbeck: My Bronca with Fake-Ass Social Justice Literature by Myriam Gurba: https://tropicsofmeta.com/2019/12/12/pendeja-you-aint-steinbeck-my-bronca-with-fake-ass-social-justice-literature/
-Cummins’ Non-Mexican Crap by David Bowles: https://medium.com/@davidbowles/non-mexican-crap-ff3b48a873b5
- A Mother and Son, Fleeing for Their Lives Over Treacherous Terrain by Parhul Sehgal: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/17/books/review-american-dirt-jeanine-cummins.html
American Dirt and the drama surrounding it (did Jeanine Cummins actually have the right to write this when it’s not #ownvoices), has also made me want to read more own voices stories on the subject. Anyone have any recommendations?
My rating and opinion is on the style and the composition of the overall story and was written before the controversy boiled over.
Synopsis: Lydia is living a semi peaceful life in Acapulco with her reporter husband and her geography loving son, Luca. When Lydia gets a regular customer that turns out to be the leader of a cartel that her husband is currently writing an article on, sixteen lives are lost. American Dirt follows Lydia and Luca as they make their way to el norte where Lydia thinks they’ll be safe.
_______
Jeanine Cummins has created a fast paced story that held me in limbo from the first page. It’s impossible to keep yourself from crying at parts. There are so many times that I wanted to throw the book across the room because it was so powerful. Some may not like this book because it does bring to light political issues that many choose to ignore. I can see this becoming a classic.
TRIGGER WARNINGS: murder, miscarriage, suicide, infertility, death by cancer, gun violence, alcoholism, child death, unintended pregnancy, animal cruelty, robbery, gang/cartel violence and activity, and sexual assault.
Please educate yourself on the current controversy surround American Dirt.
-A Poor Imitation: "American Dirt" and Misrepresentations of Mexico by David Schmidt: https://thebluenib.com/a-poor-imitation-american-dirt-and-misrepresentations-of-mexico/
-Pendeja, You Ain’t Steinbeck: My Bronca with Fake-Ass Social Justice Literature by Myriam Gurba: https://tropicsofmeta.com/2019/12/12/pendeja-you-aint-steinbeck-my-bronca-with-fake-ass-social-justice-literature/
-Cummins’ Non-Mexican Crap by David Bowles: https://medium.com/@davidbowles/non-mexican-crap-ff3b48a873b5
- A Mother and Son, Fleeing for Their Lives Over Treacherous Terrain by Parhul Sehgal: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/17/books/review-american-dirt-jeanine-cummins.html
American Dirt and the drama surrounding it (did Jeanine Cummins actually have the right to write this when it’s not #ownvoices), has also made me want to read more own voices stories on the subject. Anyone have any recommendations?
Call Me God: The Untold Story of the DC Sniper Investigation
Peter McDonnell, Tim Clemente, Jim Clemente
Full review to come soon, but do yourself a favor and start this audiobook NOW.
I'm so glad that I was able to pick up the audiobook from Libro.fm as the wait was too long for me at the library. I COULDN'T WAIT ANY LONGER. (Also considering Harvey Weinstein is currently undergoing trial, this was perfect timing for me).
I remember listening to the episode of the New York Times podcast, The Daily, where Jodi and Megan joined host Michael Barbaro (mentioned in She Said), to discuss their world shattering article. Their investigation was a work of art and a masterpiece of investigative journalism.
Everyone needs to either read or listen to this. I really enjoyed the audiobook. In the narration, you hear from Megan and Jodi briefly before the narrator takes over for the bulk of the story. An audiobook perfectly consumable in a day (around 9 hours long). I binged it at work and had to keep listening when I got home.
Trigger Warnings: Rape, Sexual Assault, and Sexual Harassment
I remember listening to the episode of the New York Times podcast, The Daily, where Jodi and Megan joined host Michael Barbaro (mentioned in She Said), to discuss their world shattering article. Their investigation was a work of art and a masterpiece of investigative journalism.
Everyone needs to either read or listen to this. I really enjoyed the audiobook. In the narration, you hear from Megan and Jodi briefly before the narrator takes over for the bulk of the story. An audiobook perfectly consumable in a day (around 9 hours long). I binged it at work and had to keep listening when I got home.
Trigger Warnings: Rape, Sexual Assault, and Sexual Harassment