Another book round-up! We’ve been super busy handling some work-related drama, so there hasn’t been a lot of time to blog between resting and just all of the other stuff. I have a lot of recent books that I’ve read through and want to share with you all. 🙂 Unfortunately, I got a real hit-or-miss group of books to share this time, so hold on tight…
Jade City by Fonda Lee
Published by Orbit
My rating: 5/5
I need to do a full review of this series because I seriously just got thrown off my other hobbies and immediately got sucked into this story. My cuz and hubs has been raving about this book (and talking about it and spoiling it in front of me, but jokes on them, I forgot what they said), so I finally said FINE. I’ll try it. I don’t really read fiction but I’ll do it.
Absolutely no regrets. I’m a sucker for yakuza/gang stories, and this is right up that alleyway, along with heavy Asian inspiration and fantasy and romance and hnnng. It’s all a hapa lady could hope for. It really had me holding my breath and feeling anxious at some points, so it was a great ride.
I’m now onto Jade War, and really hope to meet Fonda Lee for signatures at some point……..
Exposing the 20 Medical Myths by Arthur Garson Jr and Ryan Holeywell
Published by Rowman & Littlefield
Releases on Sept 15, 2019
My rating: 3/5
My NetGalley review:
I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review through NetGalley.
I’m a healthcare nut — I study healthcare, work in healthcare, and live in the industry. So when I picked this up I was looking for an interesting read on the industry, but found myself quickly skipping through pages.
I found this to be a really dry read. It feels like it’s meant for clinical staff, mainly physicians, to understand the state of the healthcare industry in the United States. There’s a lot of explaining of terminology that I already knew working back end but that someone in the clinical realm often doesn’t know.
While I think this might be a good educational read for someone with little exposure to healthcare, I quickly found myself bored with the content.
The Nani Iro Sewing Studio by Naomi Ito
Published by Zakka Workshop
Released on Jun 25, 2019
My rating: 4/5
My NetGalley review:
*** I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review. ***
As someone getting into sewing, I’ve seen Nani Iro pop up quite a bit. There are some basic clothes to make, but a lot of the clothes are of what’s popular in Japan right now: big and baggy shirts, dresses and pants. There’s nothing wrong with that trend (esp as someone who does follow some parts of that fashion), but not everyone may be interested in these styles.
Thankfully, I was happy to see that they had smaller sizes, which has been a struggle when looking for patterns for some reason.
Each project is laid out in detail. You get finished sizes, the materials needed, and how to lay the patterns on the fabric to cut the pieces. The construction steps are very detailed but easy to understand for even a newer sewer, especially given that they include illustrations on what needs to be done. There’s not a lot of guesswork that needs to happen when putting the clothing together.
I reviewed some cookbooks and craft books within the past few weeks as well, but they’re not coming out for a few months so it’s a tad too early. I’m really excited for some of the things coming out, especially since one has a really good cookie recipe! (Making gluten-free baked goods is an ART y’all.)
I’m open to any suggestions for books similar to Jade City/Jade War. I love yakuza/gang family fiction and manga, so anything up that alley I’d be willing to look at. 🙂
Two Boring Hapas 