Short Review of Many Books

I don't like doing this because I feel I owe a full review to those who sent me books to review but I read these all months ago and got behind on reviews and I just don't remember enough about them to write full length reviews. That's part of why it's taken me so long to get to them. If I don't write some short reviews, I'll never catch up.

Understand that just because I'm putting a bunch of short reviews in one post, doesn't mean these books weren't good or weren't memorable.

Confessions of a Former Child: A Therapist's Memoir by Daniel J. Tomasulo
Stars: ****

This book is exactly what it sounds like, a memoir of a therapist's life from thinking eating seeds will make him pregnant to accidentally locking himself in a psych ward rubber room. Hilarious!

You can read a small excerpt of the book at the author's website.


Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter
Stars: ****

I think most people have heard of this book by now. You can read all about the most famous library cat and all his adventures in the book. You can also check out the webpage. I really enjoyed the book although I didn't like it quite as much as I thought I would because it's not only about Dewey but about the library and the people who run the library too and I guess I felt it should be only about the cat.

Not Remembered Never Forgotten: An adoptee's search for his birth family by Robert Hafetz
Stars: ****

This is a true story, not too long at only about 130 pages. I enjoyed reading it though. The idea behind the title is that although he doesn't remember his birth parents, he's never forgotten them. I think it's quite a poignant title.
A quote from the introduction about why he wrote the book:

"One pictures the smiling baby held by his adopted mother, hugged, nurtured, cherished and kept safe from harm. My adopted family loved me as their own. I coudln't have asked for better parents. What more could a human being ever want? Their love and affection sustains me, and gives me what I need to grow and survive but it doesn't replace what has been lost. I want what others have; a name given at birth, a heritage, and a memory of my mother's face. " - pg. 8

I've read quite a few adoption books, from all different points of view (the adopter, the adoptee, the birth parents) but this is the first one that really made it clear why an adoptee may not be content with not knowing his or her birth parents, no matter how much he or she loves the adopted parents.


Outside the Lavender Closet by Martha A. Taylor
Stars: ***1/2

This is a collection of stories about homosexual women (I don't really like that term but not sure what is the preferred term, hope I haven't offended anyone.) It's really more than that though. The author wanted to get some answers to the age old questions such as "What is it that makes us straight or gay? and Are relationships between two women really all that different than heterosexual ones?"

The stories were mostly quite interesting. One was a bit too long but for the most part, I learned a lot about women to women relationships and it was very interesting. I realize this book is not for everyone but I feel like it helped me to understand these women more.