Waiter Rant

Waiter Rant written by The Waiter. The authors real name is not mentioned but if you search this book on Google you can find a picture of him. This is another book that started from a blog and I find The Waiters insights on sizing up customers and life quite smart. I think the author was born to be a writer and I look forward to hearing more from him.

Reading this book definitely makes me look at waiters and how I tip them much differently. I think a book of the same caliber should be written about the Retail Industry. That is where I spent many years and customers are just as bad.

Middle East Memoirs

Prisoner of Tehran is a memoir by Marina Nemat. I could not believe the conditions in the prison that Marina served in for two years and the conditions of her release. She started as a Christian, a small minority in Tehran, and during her prison stay was forced to become Muslim. I can't help but compare what was happening in my own life while she was struggling to live and keep her faith.

Other memoirs that I highly recommend on this topic:

Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali
My Forbidden Face by Latifa
Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi
Lipstick Jihad by Azadeh Moaveni
Persian Girls by Nahid Rachlin

Polly

Polly is the main character in this book and the chapters are divided by Polly's relationships with men throughout her life. I forgot how fully emotions ruled my life as an adolescent but I clearly remembered so much of it while I was reading this book. I would recommend this book for a mom with a teenage daughter. Even if you think you can remember how you felt growing up I promise that this book will remind you how much you forgot.

The Imposters Daughter

When I was younger I would sometimes read an Archie comic book but I was never too thrilled with having my story mainly comprised of pictures.......until Laurie Sandell drew those pictures. This book is the true story of Laurie and her relationship with her father and how that relationship affected her as an adult. I very much liked this book, it was a quick read so I actually went through it twice in one day. Laurie Sandell is a contributing Editor at Glamour magazine and you can visit her website at LaurieSandell.com

Jen Lancaster

Pretty in Plaid is the latest installment in the memoirs of Jen Lancaster. Her other books include Bitter is the New Black, Bright Lights Big Ass, and Such a Pretty Fat. Jen's wit and sarcasm are like no other I have read. In Pretty in Plaid, Jen goes back to her days before she became a VP at Corp.com, lost her job, sold her belongings, and became a writer.

If you like David Sedaris then you will definitely like Jen Lancaster. Start with Bitter is the New Black and proceed from there. You can visit Jen at her blog Jennsylvania.com

A Long Way Gone

Before reading this book I never would have known what it could possibly be like to live the life of a child soldier. Ishmael Beah brings to light a reality for so many children of war, kill or be killed. This is the war that was taking place in Sierra Leone in the early 1990's. While reading this book I was remembering where I was in my own quiet, safe, comfortable suburban life. It is hard to fathom that at that same time there were children across the world fighting a war.

The Middle Place

"The thing you need to know about me is that I am George Corrigan's daughter..." This is the first line of the book. Kelly idolizes her father and as an adult still sees herself as just that.

This book by Kelly Corrigan is her true story of finding her place in life, from being a child to being a parent. She has a struggle with breast cancer while also dealing with her father's cancer. I promise that the book won't leave you crying all the way through. Kelly Corrigan delivers her story in a way that any one can relate to.