Year 2, week 45: Shortest Way Home

This week's book:
Shortest Way Home: One Mayor's Challenge and a Model for America's Future
By Pete Buttigieg

Okay, this week's book is Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend Indiana's book. Ever since I heard of Mayor Pete, I have been slightly intrigued by him. Buttigieg is the current Mayor of South Bend Indiana who is running for president. He was born and raised in Indiana and is only in his mid thirties. He went to Harvard and then was a Rhodes Scholar, and while he campaigned for Obama he decided to serve his country by joining the Navy reserve. He then came home to South Bend and ran for Treasurer of the state of Indiana, when the whole Chrysler plant in Kokomo (my hubby's home town) was all going down. After losing the State Treasurer run he turned around and became the Mayor of South Bend at the age of twenty-nine years old. While being mayor he pulled the town out of essentially dying, with helping tear down abandoned houses and decreasing unemployment and fixing the sewers. When he wasn't fixing his hometown he did a tour in Afghanistan. When he came home after his tour and facing death, the Indiana mayor decided he wanted to be more true to himself, he was finally able to come out to his parents and to his beloved hometown that he is gay. When the information came out he won his next mayoral run my eighty percent of the votes cast.

Now with the 2020 election coming up, Mayor Pete has thrown his hat into the ring to become the next democratic president of the United States of America. Everyone I have talked to has told me that it would be a long shot, that he would make a great Vice president, but he's still young and has only ever been a Mayor, but honestly I don't care. Pete Buttigieg is the first person that I've been excited about since I was a senior in college and a young hopeful candidate came to good old BSU: Barack Obama. Barack Obama spoke about hope and trying to heal our nation. It wasn't that I liked Obama just because I wanted him to be the first African American president. And I don't like Buttigieg just because he could be the first gay president or even that he's a fellow Hoosior; I like the ideas he has.

So if you are as big of a fan of Mayor Pete, or you want to know more about him, I would definitely recommend reading this book. I don't normally dive into political books but I really wanted to know more about this guy.

Year 2, week 44: Truly Madly Guilty

This week's book:
Truly Madly Guilty
By Liane Moriarty

This is, I have no idea what number of Liane Moriarty's books that I have read. She has written a wide variety of different novels, and they never have the same feel. I listened/read this at same time as Moriarty's first novel, "Three Wishes", so that review will be coming soon as well. The library I get audio books on my phone from gave me access to both books at the same time even though I had reserved them at totally different times. 

Truly Madly Guilty was pretty darn good when I finally found out about the big piece of drama the whole book revolves around. The story is about three couples and their children at a barbecue, when something traumatic happens. In true Moriarty fashion, the chapters jump around from character to character, and also jumps to different times and places.

I wouldn't say it was better then Big Little Lies which is the best selling of her books, with its own hit HBO series (season two just started a few weeks ago), but this book is probably my second favorite of her novels I have read so far. I would recommend it, with the asterisk that if you are a mom with young crazy children, just keep calm with some of the plot points.

Year 2, week 43: Barking to the Choir

This week's book:
Barking to the Choir: The Power of Radical Kinship
By Greg Boyle

It's father's day time and this week's book works for the holiday. Barking to the choir is Boyle's second book about his work with former gang members, many of which have done jail time. Boyle is a Jesuit priest who runs Homeboy and Homegirl Industries in LA. The bakeries and tattoo removal businesses help former "bad boys and girls" to get on the right track and get out of the gang mindset that they have been put into. Although Boyle is a man of God, the book doesn't really read like a Christian themed book, or at least in my opinion. It's more a book of second chances.

The reason I think this is a good book for around father's day is that so many of the stories of the people looking for a second chance never had good father (or mother) figures in their lives. Many of the men and women have spoken the words "I wish you could have been my dad" to Boyle. I look at so many of the people in this book and their lives could have been on a different path if they had someone at home that loved them and showed them how to treat others well. I personally know I have married and have been raised by people that have the highest respect for others. I unfortunately lost my mother a little over six and a half years ago, but she saved thousands of children in the foster system and had been abused by people that were supposed to be the people who loved and protected them. My father and step dad are insanely supportive and loving men. My in laws would give the shirts off their backs and have worked in the school system in their hometown. All of the people who have had a hand in raising me have shown me how to respect others and remind me that I am loved. The man I love and have decided to have children with is the most respective and honest gentleman I have always met. I am reminded constantly that our son has a perfect role model of how he should act and treat others, and our little girl will never have daddy issues because the first man in her life has nothing but love and respect. If either of our kiddos fall for a boy someday, that boy will have big shoes to fill because that hubby is pretty near perfect!

But back to the book, I would definitely recommend looking into Greg Boyle and his work. I didn't completely enjoy the way the book was organized; I think it would make a great documentary or I would like to see him speak at one of his many speaking engagements, but I am definitely glad I read the book. 

Year 2, week 42: 1984

This week's book,
1984
By George Orwell

Ok, so I bought this book around the time of the last presidential election. Everyone was reading all of these dystopian novels like 1984, The Handmaid's Tale, A Brave New World and Fahrenheit 451. As of now I have read three-fourths of the above listed books. Everyone keeps talking about how the world is going down the drain and it's the worst it's ever been. As much as it is possible to be heartbroken over and over again when watching the news or reading the articles and opinions that our fellow humans are saying, I still don't believe or can't let myself believe that we are at the end times, so to speak. There are still good people that are out there trying to do good for their fellow man/woman. Everything that is bad can be made good again. People are coming forward and speaking out. We are not putting our heads in the sand and letting "big brother" steamroll over us.

I listened to and read this book, and so far of all of those "people are evil" books that are made to make people freak out, this one is my least favorite. I read Orwell's other classic, Animal Farm, a few years back and enjoyed it much better than 1984. I wouldn't recommend the book, but I guarantee that high schools across the country are still going to force young minds to read it. Do what you will.