So not living in a democracy means that you, as an ordinary person, aren’t worth protecting?

Yes. I felt really guilty after reading it because it didn't feel like it was appropriate to "rate" due to the content. But I straight-up despised the book? And I don't think that it's fair for me to feel weird about disliking it for its "theme" when I felt that the choices made in that book completely counteracted/undermined its message. It felt like an odd choice to me that the book (that's advertised as being about ending the cycle of DV) ended on this spoon-fed excitement towards the potential of a rekindled relationship with another man and not an epilogue or moment solely centered around this woman and her daughter living a life free from an abuser. And the fact that there is a whole ass sequel about their rekindled romance kind of fortifies that point that it was disrespectful and irresponsible. I had many (MANY) more issues with that book, but that one really irked me.

Yes I have seen some of those, and of course watched very thing I can of him on you tube. I have a tremendous regard for hitchens and Dawkins intellect. Teed give the old Jesuits a run for their money🥰

Yeah, he’s really great. I recommend his books on George Orwell, Mother Theresa, On Mortality, Henry Kissinger, and his autobiography Hitch-22. I also loved his columns when he was a contributing editor for Vanity Fair.

You can also try nonfiction that reads more like fiction — for example, The Johnstown Flood, Turn Right at Machu Picchu, Into Thin Air, Unbroken, In the Heart of the Sea. All fantastic books that “feel” like novels.

Ok I’ll look at that. Thanks. This Genre has taken my interest at the moment. I really like C Hitchens wit!

Check out the Aubrey Maturin series by Patrick O’Brian, starting with Master and Commander. It’s set in the early 1800s, focusing on the Napoleonic War from the British perspective and all the battles are historically accurate while the author provides a wealth of detail on the technical aspects of the Age of Sail. And the language is simply gorgeous

Check out Daniel Dennett,too. Breaking the Spell is really good.

I actively hated that book. As a DV survivor, it managed to both trivialize and glamorize violence, made all sorts of excuses for the abuser, and the ending was just bad freaking information. It literally fits the definition of…

trauma porn: When a writer glorifies trauma in their writing, exaggerating aspects for the sake of angst. Usually a writer thinks they are being deep and edgy when in actuality they are just disrespecting and glorifying trauma.

I read a book about rocks and other solids. It was hard.

I just Google the definitions as I read and write them straight into the book.

Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward just slapped you in the face over and over with highly emotional and upsetting things. And yet it’s absolutely beautiful writing and an amazing read (as are her other books that also get difficult, but this was the hardest for me).

Pick a story with a setting or profession that you want to learn about. Rumpole of the Bailey is funny but about an attorney in London and his cases. John Grisham wrote novels about lawyers in the US. The Call of the Wild is set in the Yukon Gold Rush. Graham's Sulee is about a young basketball player and has a lot of information about college basketball. My Name is Asher Lev is about the education of a young painter and contains a lot of art history. Pillars of the Earth is about building a cathedral.

I've read this several times, too! Love this book. First read it in 7th grade and I've had an obsession with it ever since.

When I stepped out into the bright sunlight from the darkness of the movie house, I had only two things on my mind: Paul Newman and a ride home.

Centennial

For my part, other than science fiction my big bridge between fiction and nonfiction was alternate history stories about events and periods that interested me.

One fish two fish red fish blue fish, such big words

Yup. It feels awful to say because the book really badly want to be serious and “say” important stuff or whatever. But everything is so over the top and unrealistic that it was hard to take it seriously. Lily Blossom Bloom and her flowershop for people who don’t like flowers should be considered a crime. Not to mention the rich best friend who wants to work anyway and those are the best workers

The only characters that I found interesting was Atlas, Ryle and Lily’s mom. I also don’t think the family dynamic with Ryle and the sister’s parents made any sense at all or was explained in any way that connected to the backstory we got later.

The scene where she asks for a divorce in the end was pretty emotional tho, I will give Colleen that. It messed me up for a couple hours

Oh where the red fern grows EASILY

Game of thrones. It's just politics with 1000 characters you have a really hard time keeping up with. I'm almost done with the series and I had to put it down.

No need to apologise. You were perfectly clear. A few replies are from people who read your OP in too much haste, and that's hardly your fault.

A quick google tells me much of the trauma and abuse is drawn from Hoover's real life relationship with her mother.

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Being and Nothingness probably because I was reading it during my daily commute to/from work.

I once read an article about how “The Velveteen Rabbit”, a beloved children’s book hits people left behind from suicide extremely hard. If you’ve ever been close to sufferers of depression it can be extremely difficult as well.