nonfiction – Page 3 – Kristin Houlihan, Writer

Book Review: American Wolf by Nate Blakeslee

41078131 American Wolf by Nate Blakeslee is the most recent read in my effort to get through all the books I irresponsibly got via NetGalley last year and never read. Essentially, it’s the story of the wolf in America, focusing on “recent” events since the reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone National Park in 1995. The book follows the lives of the wolves, as chronicled by a handful of avid (or obsessed?) wolf-watchers in the park over many years, as well as the political, cultural, and societal factors that impact wolves’ survival in the American West.

The most gripping parts of the book are Blakeslee’s reporting on the life of O-Six, a female wolf born in 2006 in the park. He succeeds in telling a gripping story of life and survival for wolves as they face both natural and man-made threats. It reads almost like a novel, and definitely paints a vivid picture of wolf society. I learned so much about wolves, the evolution of individual wolf packs, and the social interactions of what are clearly very intelligent and emotional animals.

Woven into the story is the political, societal, and legal context in which the wolf reintroduction and population management unfolded. It was interesting to read about the events through the 2000s and to understand how events I lived through (sequestration and the 2011 threat of a government shutdown, followed by an actual shutdown in 2013) impacted things across the country. It’s disturbing and yet unsurprising, especially having lived my entire adult life in the DC area, to read of the political nonsense–riders circumventing legal protections for wolves tacked on last minute to a must-pass spending bill in 2011, for example.

I couldn’t help but root for the wolves as I read the book, while I understand the legitimate concerns of residents of areas surrounding Yellowstone as they coped with rising wolf populations. I’m glad I read the book, and sorry it took me so long to actually pick it up to read. I give the book 4 stars, only subtracting one because I feel it starts out a little slowly and took some effort to get into. Persevere, though! It’s worth it!

4 stars!

A Rock Can Be… – Picture Book review!

We recently checked this book out from the library – I’m not sure who picked it out, because when it comes to my 4-year-old, it’s a big hodge-podge of stuff she likes the covers of and things my husband or I intentionally seek out for her. However we got our hands on it, I’m glad we did!

To be honest, I’m not sure if my kids are nearly as taken with the book as I am, but I have really enjoyed reading it to them a handful of times over the past two weeks. Essentially, the author takes a simple object — a rock — and shows how many diverse ways we see it around us, from the natural (lava!) to the man-made (stepping stones, stone fences for pastures). I might argue she left out “playground” with a picture of a rock climber, but I can let that one go 🙂

The artwork throughout is beautiful and eye-catching, and the text is beautifully simple; it’s easy enough to read to my toddler. At the end of the narrative, there are several pages over which the author explains each iteration of the rock throughout the book, which was wonderful to read/talk about with my 4-year-old. There’s also a glossary of terms at the very end, and I’m working on convincing my almost-7-year-old that she would actually find the book interesting (she’s skeptical of most anything she doesn’t pick out herself).

Also, I just discovered that this is part of a series! So now I’m excited to take a look at the author’s other books, too 🙂

5-stars, highly recommended!

Misplaced Monday – The Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger

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So this is a new meme I learned about from The Cozy Pages, and hosted by Merv Reads. The idea is to review a book you read a long time ago — either before you started blogging or from early in your blogging career, or that you just plain forgot to review (more info here). I’m also going to borrow the bullet-format review from Merv (which I also discovered at The Cozy Pages) this week (with commentary, of course!), because I don’t have a lot of in-depth stuff to say about this book since I read it in January of 2016. Bottom line, though, is that it is phenomenally well-written. I remember thinking, at the time, that it was one of the best-written books I had read in a long, long time. So, without further ado — my bullet review of The Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger:

The Perfect Storm: A True Story of Men Against the Sea

○ i have a physical copy
○ read an e-version, will definitely purchase physical book
○ read an e-version, a physical book will be appreciated
● read an e-version, not interested in its physical book — Mostly because I own waaaaay too many books and I’m trying not to be a hoarder
● a page-turner — I remember reading it in the backseat of my in-laws’ car on my Kindle in the dark on the way home from Disney. I read it any chance I got.
● less than 500 pages
○ diverse in any way
○ something’s lacking
○ took me a long time to finish
○ an LMAO read
○ i laughed more than a few times
○ it’s j u s t awkward
○ gave me goosebumps
● one of the best books I’ve read — Like I said, SO well-written. Also, the story is particularly gripping because it’s true, and it’s incredibly well-researched. I learned so much.
● painful & sad — If you’re not familiar with the story, it’s about a fishing boat that disappeared in a huge storm. Junger recreates what happened, including the rescue efforts. It’s a tragic story by its very nature.
● tear-jerker — Like I said – they disappear at sea, lives are lost. Enough said.
● a roller-coaster of emotions — Junger catalogs the emotions of the crew, the rescuers, and the surviving loved ones, which packs in a lot of ups and downs and varying coping mechanisms.
○ thrilling
○ confusing
○ sooo relatable
○ it is kind of annoying
○ it has a lot of flashbacks
● it moved me
● would recommend!
● great even for a reread
● definitely a YAY
○ i’m sorry it’s a NAY
○ it’s between YAY and NAY

It’s been over two years since I read the book, but I still think of it as one of the best books I’ve ever read. It’s definitely one of the best non-fiction books. I would, at some point, love to see the movie but I know that it’ll be an emotional one…maybe I should wait until I’m not a pregnant emotional mess! Ha!

Five stars!!!