So many books . . .

In Cooked, Jeff Henderson recounts his unlikely rise from a crack dealer in San Diego to a well-respected chef in a prestigious Las Vegas restaurant. His ambitions and inspiration came to him while serving a drug-related sentence in federal prison, and upon his release he put 100% of his efforts into educating himself, gaining experience, and convincing influential people in the restaurant business to take a chance on him.

Jeff’s gritty memoir was fascinating to me, someone to whom most of his life experiences are completely foreign, and I had a difficult time putting it down between sittings. One can’t help but admire his strength and resolve in making his dreams come true despite a past he wasn’t proud of.

Rating: 5/5 Further reading: Henderson's homepage

 

Amir is the privileged boy, living in a large home in a wealthy area of Kabul, Afghanistan. Hassan is his servant and constant companion although, separated by social class and cultural stigma, they can never truly be friends. When the Afghan Civil War begins, it signals tremendous changes – though in very, very different ways, neither of their lives will ever be the same.

I fully expected to be blown away by this book given all the hype surrounding it in the years since publication. The first half was riveting, but it seemed to lose some momentum later on. I’d still heartily recommend it, especially for the presentation of Afghani culture and the fascinating competitive kite-flying events, something I’d never heard of before.

Rating: 4/5 Further reading: Hosseini's homepage Khaled Hosseini (wiki)

After spending several years studying and living a wild lifestyle in Austria, Marjane Satrapi returns to her native Iran, where the effects of the Islamic Revolution are still going strong. Home again, she struggles to find herself, returning to school, falling in love, exploring ideas with new friends, and discovering more about her family’s history, all the while trying to avoid The Guardians of the Revolution.

Persepolis 2 is just as enjoyable as the first, and I look forward to reading more of Satrapi’s work.

Rating: 4/5 Further reading: Marjane Satrapi (wiki)

'Persepolis' was my first graphic novel (or, in this case, graphic autobiography) experience. It is the childhood story of Marjane Satrapi, who was a young girl of liberal parents during the Islamic Revolution in Iran in the 1980s.

Satrapi's drawings are simple yet poignant, and reading about her experiences and culture so foreign to me was at the same time both fascinating and dismaying. I hope to read more of her works.

Rating: 4/5 Further reading: Marjane Satrapi (wiki)

This urban fantasy began with promise. Aspiring Minneapolis rock musician Eddi has found herself chosen as a pawn in the eternal war in the world of faerie, a reality she hadn't even known existed. The otherworldly battle scenes were the weakest part of the story -- it was much more interesting to see Eddi's relationship with her protector develop, as well as that of her band. While it was fun to read a story set in the Twin Cities (where I live), after a while the many, many familiar locations being introduced and described got a little much. Regretfully, I wanted to like this book more than I actually did.

Rating: 3/5 Further reading: Bull's journal: coffeeem Emma Bull (wiki)