Hello, Sunshine, by Laura Dave

 

Sunshine Stevens made a grave mistake when she sacrificed her true identity and values in order to gain the fame and fortune of a cooking show. When she is hacked and all her dirty laundry is revealed, Sunshine loses her husband, her apartment, and her career in one night. The ex-cook must re-evaluate the values she pushed away and the long term effects her actions had on her attitude and relationships. Was it worth it?

This book was a relatively easy read and I would recommend it to people who just want a beach read. However, the plot is nothing more than surface level, and Dave left the ending very open to interpretation. I did not enjoy the ending of Hello, Sunshine, by Laura Dave, as the plot was built up so much, and it did not feel like there was any sort of resolution. Sunshine is a very lovable character, but she undergoes very little growth. I would have liked to see more changes in the main characters, rather than the world changing to accommodate their quirks. Overall, this book deserves a 2 out of 5 stars.

Reviewed by AL, Grade 12

Glendale Central Library 

Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning, by Cathy Park-Hong

Minor Feelings: An AsianAmerican Reckoning is a collection of essays detailing Cathy Park Hong's life, and what she calls 'minor feelings': sustainable, uncomfortable, and at their core, racialized feelings. Recollecting her family history and experience growing up in America, Hong looks back on her relationship with English as a language, depression, poetry, and friendship all to recount what it is like to be an Asian American growing up in the United States. It also emphasizes racial consciousness, cultural criticism, and the importance of remembering

As an Asian American myself, Minor Feelings felt like a collection of essays written by my own consciousness: for other readers, these ideas may seem radical or eye-opening, but Hong's memoir reminds me that this is a reality and realization I've had to come to since I was young. It's comforting in a way to see that there are others out there who feel the exact same as I do, and could put a name to the feelings I felt towards microaggressions and casual racism: minor feelings.

Reading Hong's story felt like reading mine in a sense, and I am grateful that as an Asian-American (more specifically a Korean-American), I was able to have similar insight as Hong did. I think for those that wish to explore the Asian-American experience, Hong's book is a great place to start. It is a book that humanizes a community that for so long had been dehumanized, sexualized, and treated as a monolith. It is a revolutionary book that for many minorities are lived concepts that are normalized, and understanding these truths brings us one step closer to understanding all minority community's experiences in an empathetic way.

Reviewed by M.L., Grade 12

Montrose Library 

TimeRiders: Day of the Predator, by Alex Scarrow

This book follows Liam, Sal, and Maddy who are part of a time travel agency. Liam is accidentally sent back sixty-five million years and marooned there. He is in the same environment as big predators and an undiscovered species. Liam must figure out how to make contact with Sal and Maddy before it is too late, but also has to take care to make sure he does not endanger history with any major changes that would create a new reality.

I really enjoyed TimeRiders: Day of the Predator, by Alex Scarrow, because of the furthering of the characters and their jobs within the agency from the first book in the series as well as the exploration of dinosaurs and what could possibly have existed during that time period. I enjoyed the mystery of how Liam was supposed to communicate with people sixty-five million years ahead in the future. I had lots of fun reading the suspenseful scenes and learning along side Maddy and Sal as they gradually got closer and closer to finding Liam's communication. Overall the dive deeper into this world of time travel was really enjoyable.

Reviewed by TB, Grade 12

Glendale Central Library