Brand New Human Being by Emily Jeanne Miller

Logan Pyle is a stay-at-home dad whose own dad just died. Logan's relationship with his wife is not going so well, and his son is regressing.

This book started out promising and smart, but went downhill from there. Around the 2/3 mark, I was reading just to finish and found myself skimming some. The story just started falling flat.

If I was on a plane, I'd rather read this book than have nothing to read, but I'm not recommending that you pick this one up.

30 Things Every Woman Should Have and Should Know by the Time She's 30 by Pamela Redmond Satran and the Editors of Glamour

A list of 15 must-haves (for example, a cordless drill) and 15 must-knows (for example, how to fall in love without losing yourself) for women age 30 and beyond, and maybe before.

It's an interesting list and easy to read. I don't think it's a book you need to own, so just check it out from the library when you have the chance.

The Vanishing Point by Val McDermid

I don't usually check out books from the Mystery section, but I like to keep myself on my toes sometimes, so I checked this one out.

It starts out with a child being kidnapped at an airport security checkpoint as his guardian, Stephanie, watches on (she's in the security inspection box thing so she can't do anything except watch). As the guardian is interviewed, we find out the story behind the kid and why he's with her. The kid is the son of a celebrity who died from cancer, and leaves the kid to Stephanie, her closest friend who is also the ghost writer behind her biography.

This was a fast read, but it's really not that well-written. SKIP!

Cruising Attitude: Tales of Crashpads, Crew Drama, and Crazy Passengers at 35,000 Feet by Heather Poole

Heather Poole was a flight attendant for 15+ years, and she shares what the training, lifestyle, scheduling, and passengers (including celebrity ones) are really like.

A fun, mildly entertaining book. I'm not gonna read anymore about flight attendants though. I don't think I need to know more about what really goes on in the kitchens and restrooms of planes. It seems germy enough to fly, I don't want to add more knowledge to an already uncomfortable situation.

Library Love

Have you visited your local library lately?

Snow Angels by Stewart O'Nan

This is the story of the unraveling of two different families in a small Pennsylvania town. The stories intersect and it's a beautiful, deceptively simple book.

Arthur is in high school when his parents divorce, and Annie, his old babysitter dies. Each story unfolds, and it's quite the gripping read.

I actually stayed up late reading this book so that I could finish it. This is not fun, beach reading. But it's autumn now, and this book would read well on a cold, blustery afternoon.

Yes, Chef: A Memoir by Marcus Samuelsson

If you've been reading this blog for some time, you know that I like cooking memoirs. There's quite a range of what kind of chef the writer is though. With this memoir, we are talking about a serious, trained, award-winning chef, and his memoir definitely falls into a different class of cooking memoirs.

Marcus Samuelsson was born in Ethiopia. His mom died, and he, along with his sister, was adopted by a couple in Sweden. He dreamed of being a soccer star, but was not big enough, so he went to cooking school. He completes internships in cities around Europe before moving to New York City.

I really liked this memoir. Samuelsson has a remarkable story, and really admirable parents. There is depth to this memoir which sets it apart from some of the other cooking memoirs I've read.