#12DaysofReadThis 2017 | May
Working Stiff: Two Years, 262 Bodies, and the Making of a Medical Examiner | Dr. Judy Melinek | This was the best surprise. I know it doesn't sound like it would be heartwarming, but it somehow was. I originally heard about it on one of my favorite true crime podcasts, Sword and Scale. This is a memoir of Dr. Judy Melinek and her first two years of training for a forensic pathologist and just so happened to have been training in Manhattan during 9/11. She writes about the stories of her patients with compassion, and I thought it was fascinating to hear about the work that a forensic pathologist does. Rating, 5/5
The Breakdown | B.A. Paris | For fans of domestic noir. Cass is a schoolteacher who, after a work party, decides to take a short cut home through a rainstorm, going against the advice of her husband. She sees a car broken down on the side of the road, and debates about stopping to see if the driver needs help, but decides to keep moving. When she finds out that the woman in the car was murdered, she goes to pieces. The story took awhile to ramp up and I was starting to get very annoyed with the mess she was becoming, but once the story got there, it was great. If you like reading a story told from an unreliable narrator, you'll like this. Rating, 4/5
George | Alex Gino | I picked up George because I'm always interested in reading books with diverse characters. George is in elementary school and she is trans. She was born biologically a male but knows she is female. There is a school play coming up, and she wants nothing more than to play Charlotte. Unfortunately, their teacher is saying that "only girls" can try out for the part. Enlightening, heartbreaking, and uplifting at the same time. I am so glad YA books like this exist. Rating, 4/5
The First Word | Isley Robson | This was a Kindle first pick and a wonderful surprise! A young occupational therapist gets hired to move in with a rich single father. His son has autism and he is desperate to do anything he can to help him. As you might imagine, there is a little bit of romance, but it wasn't too cliche. It was well written, handled the discussion of having a child with special needs well, and was an enjoyable read... Rating, 3.75/5
Into The Water | Paula Hawkins | This was my least favorite book for the year. It was a mess. There were 11 narrators, none of whom were really well done. There were 5 storylines going on at the same time and things got confusing. I know sophomore novels are hard (especially when your first book is a MASSIVE success, like The Girl On The Train). Full review here. Rating, 1.5/5
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