Book Review — Furiously Happy

Title:  Furiously Happy
Author:  Jenny Lawson
Genre:  Humor/Non-Fiction
Pages: Hardback, 329
Publisher:  Flatiron Books
ISBN:  978-1-250-07700-4
Opening Lines:  "This is where I was going to put a simple Mary Oliver quote but instead I decided to replace it with the idea I had for the cover of this book because I'm pretty sure it'll never get accepted and I don't want it to go to waste."

Rating

"In FURIOUSLY HAPPY, #1 New York Times bestselling author Jenny Lawson explores her lifelong battle with mental illness. A hysterical, ridiculous book about crippling depression and anxiety? That sounds like a terrible idea.

"But terrible ideas are what Jenny does best.

"As Jenny sayd, "Some people might think that being 'furiously happy' is just an excuse to be stupid and irresponsible and invite a herd of kangaroos over to your house without telling your husband first because you suspect he would say no since he's never particularly liked kangaroos. And that would be ridiculous because no one would invite a herd of kangaroos into their house. Two is the limit. I speak from personal experience. My husband says that 'none' is the new limit. I say he should have been clearer about that before I rented all those kangaroos.

'Most of my favorite people are dangerously fucked up but you'd never guess because we've learned to bare it so honestly that i becomes the new normal. Like John Hughes wrote in The Breakfast Club, "We're all pretty bizarre. Some of us are just better at hiding it." Except go back and cross out the word "hiding."'

"Furiously Happy is a book about embracing everything that make us who we are—the beautiful and the flawed—and then using it to find joy in fantastic and outrageous ways. Because, as Jenny's mom says, 'Maybe "crazy" isn't so bad after all.' Sometimes crazy is just right."

~ Jacket copy

This was a book club book.  To be quite frank, I never would have picked this book up, and I very nearly put it back down again when I started reading it.  But, sometimes, things are than they first appear.

This is another instance when the jacket copy does a far better job than I could describing this book.  Putting it very, very simply, this is a book about being mentally ill and choosing not to be a victim or letting society put you into a box.

As I previously stated, I almost put this book down.  Soaking in a warm bath after a long, hard day at work, I had high hopes that this book would lift my mood, make me laugh, and just forget about the stress.  Sadly, I found it starting to ratchet me up and piss me off.  Jenny is very upfront and honest with the fact that she's mentally ill, and that was kind of a draw for me.  I've struggled with OCD and severe anxiety since my early 20s, so the whole concept was intriguing.  However, after getting a few pages past the first chapter, she made me irate.  First of all, she was setting my own anxiety off.  In addition, it felt as though she was letting her mental illness define her and using it as an excuse.  But, considering that it was a book club pick, I persevered.

In some ways, this book was just a series of random stories thrown together.  Most of them were ridiculously funny and had me reading long into the night.  Digging deeper, however, they were all little pieces that went into showing the reader just who Jenny is, how crazy she is, and be able to see her illness through a different lens.

This book is extremely hard to describe.  She is all over the place, over the top, intensely crazy, and, in some ways, extremely brilliant!  If you struggle with mental illness or have dealt with it in you life, give this book a chance.

Book Review -- The Rite: The Making of a Modern Exorcist

Title: The Rite: The Making of a Modern Exorcist
Author: Matt Baglio
Genre: Non-fiction
Pages: Paperback, 247
Published: 2009
Opening Lines: "The thirty-five-year-old woman lay on a padded massage table, her arms and legs held by two men. She wore a black Puma sweat suit and her dark brown hair was pulled back tightly into a ponytail."

"Written with an investigative eye that will captivate both skeptics and believers, The Rite is a uniquely intimate glimpse into the chilling world of a real-life Roman Catholic exorcist. Father Gary Thomas was working as a parish priest in California when church leaders asked him to travel to Rome for training in the rite of exorcism. In Rome, as an apprentice to veteran Italian exorcists, his eyes were opened to a side of the Catholic faith he had never known, and he came to see the battle between good and evil in a whole new light. Journalist Matt Baglio had full access to Father Gary over the course of his training, and the astonishing story he found reveals that the phenomena of possession, demons, the Devil, and exorcism are not merely a remnant of the archaic past, but remain a fearsome power in many people's lives even today."

~ Jacket copy

Thoughts: After watching The Rite, I was curious about reading the book is was based on. I was fairly skeptical as to whether this book would actually be a work of fiction or if it would be something else. What I found was an excellent scholarly work that gives an interesting glimpse into exorcism. While Baglio is a Catholic, I felt that it was not biased one way or the other. On the contrary, I felt it was informative and based solely on research and his dealings with the Catholic exorcists in Rome.

Being a Christian, I have not issues accepting the existence of Satan and demons. After a lot of the stuff I have seen in my life, I have believe in the reality of demonic possession. Strangely enough, I am drawn to the literature and movies that deal with this issue. Needless to say, I was pleasantly surprised by this book! It follows the story of Father Gary. After completing his time at San Altos parish in California, he decides to go on a sabbatical to Rome and study at the Catholic universities. Knowing that he is going, he is approached by his bishop and asked to take part in the exorcism course offered by the Vatican. It was the hope that every diocese would have an exorcist. According to the book, there has been a rise on occult activity; therefore, more people have been searching out the help of Catholic priests. Many priests in the U.S. had been practicing as exorcists while they were untrained in the rite. Wanting to combat this problem, the church opened a class in 2004 called "Exorcism and the Prayer of Liberation."

During the later half of the course and Father Gary's time in Rome, he apprenticed under Father Carmine and sat in on over 60 exorcisms. He learned a great deal about his faith and the reason for exorcisms.

In the process of creating this course, it was agreed that psychiatrists and criminologists would be involved with teaching sections of the course. Several times the author discusses that mental illness and demonic possession have been misdiagnosed. Many of the exorcists suggest working hand in hand with an open-minded medical doctor and psychiatrist. Several of the exorcists recommend that the person being afflicted seek attention from these other specialist before they enter into an exorcism. In addition, they are also extremely mindful of the people seeking attention and those who truly are afflicted. At one point, Father Carmine tells Father Gary not to mention to the person that they are possessed, because it could very easily damage their psyche. The point is liberation, not fear.

The thing that struck me the most about this book is the Catholic view on demonic possession. While it is something that most people never want to experience, the church views it as a way to return to Christ. Since the priests try to have people partake in the Sacraments after exorcism and to keep the demon from returning, they see it as God allowing a possession in order to turn people back to a righteous path. It forces them to seek out God. The other interesting thing I learned from this book is that demonic possession appears to be more common in women. However, they are unsure why this is the case.

I also found it interesting that exorcisms are not this "wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am" and you're cured. According to the book, exorcisms could last over a number of years. (That might be the only connection to the movie!)

While I should find it surprising, many of the priests did not believe in Satan or demons. They viewed it more as a metaphor for sin and something used to scare people. For that reason, many exorcists got a lot of flack and they were not taken seriously. Father Gary himself was challenged in his unbelief.

This book was though provoking, thorough, and fascinating. I felt that the writing style was smooth and the diction was excellent. The book was not written to scare people. On the contrary, I felt it was meant to be an informative work. The author wanted to lift the veil on something that is shrouded in mystery and only seen on the Hollywood silver screen. Even though I am a Christian and believe in demonic possession, this book really opened by eyes to things I never knew and misconceptions. In short, this is an amazing book! If you're curious about this subject, I suggest reading this book.


Rating: ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
Currently: Horns by Joe Hill
Current Pages: 23373
Current Progress:

65/50 books

Book Review -- Stolen Innocence

Title: Stolen Innocence: My Story of Growing Up in a Polygamous Sect, Becoming a Teenage Bride, and Breaking Free of Warren Jeffs
Author: Elissa Wall with Lisa Pulitzer
Genre: Non-fiction
Pages: Hardback, 431
Opening Lines: "I clutched the delicate silk nightgown and embroidered robe of my bridal gown as I hurried to the bathroom. Though it was just a few feet from my bedroom, the bathroom seemed like a sanctuary, the one place I could be alone."

"In September 2007, a packed courtroom in St. George, Utah, sat hushed as Elissa Wall, the star witness against polygamous sect leader Warren Jeffs, gave captivating testimony of houw Jeffs forced her to marry her first cousin at age fourteen. This harrowing and vivid account proved to be the most compelling evidence against Jeffs, showing the harsh realities of this closed community and the lengths to which Jeffs went in order to control the sect's women.

"Now, in this courageous memoir, Elissa Wall tells the incredible and inspirational story of how she emerged from the confines of the Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints (FLDS) and helped bring one of America's most notorious criminals to justice. Offering a child's perspective on life in the FLDS, Wall discusses her tumultuous youth, explaining how her family's turbulent past intersected with her strong will and identified her as a girl who needed to be controlled through marriage. Detailing how Warren Jeffs's [sic] influence over the church twisted its already rigid beliefs in dangerous new directions, Wall portrays the inescapable mind-set and unrelenting presure that forced her to wed despite her repeated protests that she was too young.

"Once she was married, Wall's childhood shattered as she was obligated to follow Jeffs's [sic] directives and submit to her husband in "mind, body, and soul." With little money and no knowledge of the outside world, she was trapped and forced to endure the pain and abuse of her loveless relationship, which eventually pushed her to spend nights sleeping in her truck rather than face the tormentor in her bed.

"Yet even in those bleak times, she retained a sliver of hope that one day she would find a way out, and one snowy night that came in the form of a rugged stranger named Lamont Barlowe. Their chance encounter set in motion a friendship and eventual romance that gave her the strength she needed to break free from her past and sever the chains of the church.

"But though she was out of the FLDS, Wall would still have to face Jeffs -- this time in court. In Stolen Innocence, she delves into the difficult months on the outside that led her to come forward against him, working with prosecutors on one of the biggest criminal cases in Utah's history, so that other girls still inside the church might be spared her cruel fate."

~Jacket copy

Thoughts: Working as a copy desk editor at our local paper, many articles came across my desk when this case hit the papers. I admit, that I have always been curious about the FLDS lifestyle, and I wanted to know the outcome of the trial. As with many people, I was happy to see Warren Jeffs punished. It's one thing to desire to follow your own religion in freedom, but it crosses a line when it forces little girls into situations of marital rape, abuse, etc. I was drawn to this book after looking up Under a White Flag, which was mentioned on Dr. Phil. I remembered Elissa from the various AP articles in the paper, and I was very curious about actually reading her memoir.

While the story was exceptionally hard to read, it was an interesting look into the FLDS community. It is also interesting to compare these women to "modern" polygamists like the Browns or the authors of Love Times Three. Elissa Wall is very well spoken, a good writer, and really thinks deeply about the religion she was raised in. Even though she was mentally, emotionally, and physically abused by the system, she is still able to see the religion itself as something other than the people. She is also able to have a large amount of grace and mercy for the people still in the religion. I was also surprised at how she was able to star to feel a stirring of compassion for Allen during the court case.

I felt the book was well paced. It never felt as though it was dragging. In fact, I read this dense book in a manner of days. It was very, very engaging. I really enjoyed the pictures that her included in the book. In a lot of ways, it made the book more real and accessible. And, at some level, I felt sorry for Allen and the position he was put in by Warren Jeffs.

I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a deeper looking into FLDS.


Rating: ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
Currently: Hammer of Thor by S. Evan Townsend and Kitty Raises Hell by Carrie Vaughn
Current Pages: 21942
Current Progress:

61/50 books

Book Review -- Three Cups of Tea

Title: Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace... One School at a Time
Author: Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin
Genre: Non-Fiction
Edition: Kindle
Published: 2007
Opening Lines: "In Pakistan's Karakoram, bristling across an area barely one hundred miles wide, more than sixty of the world's tallest mountains lord their severe alpine beauty over a witnessless high-altitude wilderness. Other than snow leopard and ibex, so few living creatures have passed through this barren icescape that the presence of the world's highest mountain, K2, was little more than a rumor to the outside world until the turn of the twentieth century."

"While critics agree that Three Cups of Tea should be read for its inspirational value rather than for its literary merit, the book's central theme, derived from a Baltistan proverb, rings loud and clear. "The first time you share tea with a Balti, you are a stranger," a villager tells Greg Mortenson. "The second time, you are an honored guest. The third time you become family." An inspirational story of one man's efforts to address poverty, educate girls, and overcome cultural divides, Three Cups, which won the 2007 Kiriyama Prize for nonfiction, reveals the enormous obstacles inherent in becoming such "family." Despite the important message, critics quibbled over the awkward prose and some melodrama. After all, a story as dramatic and satisfying as this should tell itself." ~Bookmark Magazine

Thoughts: This book captivated me. There were so many passages that struck my attention that my Facebook friends complained that I was posting too many. It is beautifully written and really takes you there. This man, Greg Mortenson, has done more for more people than many of the people acclaimed internationally. His story is an inspiration.

It is amazing reading how much can be done with so little money and so little experience. It shows that the passion of one man or woman really can change the world. At a time when most Americans thought all Muslims only cared about war and should all die, Greg was helping those who needed it, battling terrorism in a much greater way than all the bombs in the world.

I recommend this book to anyone. It will inspire you, and you will learn about a people and a part of the world few know about. It might just change your life.

Reviewed by:
~Raven