After quite a few YA parallel world books, I wanted to find some more adult ones.  Here, There and Everywhere was quite different from the YA ones I’d been reading, and Maybe in Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid is also about adults…even if it’s another love triangle (sort of).

Twenty-nine year old Hannah Martin moves back to her hometown of LA to stay with her best friend Gabby, hoping to get her life on track after ending an affair with a married man and quitting another dead-end job.  On her first night back in town, she and Gabby meet Hannah’s high school boyfriend Ethan at a bar.  Hannah has a choice—go home with Gabby, or stay with Ethan.  In alternating chapters, we watch how Hannah’s life unfolds based on each decision, going in very different directions–and pursuing two different guys.

So, this is very much like Sliding Doors, down to the alternative romances, secrets that come out in one path but not another, and questions about how a split-second moment can change everything that follows.  I like the contrasting stories quite a bit, and I liked how insights in one life could explain what was happening in the other life…but of course, Hannah isn’t privy to that knowledge. Continue reading “Book Review: Maybe in Another Life” →

I try to be pretty light on my possessions, but I can always use more inspiration to clear more stuff out.  So I was curious to read The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo–though not so eager that I couldn’t handle waiting when 400 other people were in line at the library before me!  The book got to me eventually, and it was interesting…though a little odd too.

A fairly slim book, Kondo lays out her method for clearing out possessions, and why her views are different than some of the conventional wisdom.  She advocates for one massive tidying-up, and promises you will then be so inspired to keep things tidy that you will never have to do this again.  It starts with discarding–but rather than choosing what to throw out, she recommends going through your possessions by category (clothes, books, papers, kitchen items, etc), picking up each item, and keeping only those that give you “a thrill of joy.”  Naturally this means a radical reduction in what you keep.  At that point, find a place for everything, and keep it that way.

At the root, I think she has some good ideas, though she gets rather hyperbolic about the universal and absolute success rate of her methods.  Still, certainly cutting down possessions is key to keeping a home neat, and I absolutely believe in a neat home for inner serenity (or, as Gretchen Rubin says, “Outer order contributes to inner calm.”)  I like the idea of only owning things you love…except Kondo doesn’t make much allowance for things like, say, a cutting board.  I don’t love it, but that doesn’t mean I don’t need it.

But maybe Kondo loves all her practical belongings too.  Which leads me to where it gets a little odd.  Some of this may be cultural differences or translation problems, as the book was originally written in Japanese.  Kondo waxes very enthusiastic about loving all your possessions, and also waxes enthusiastic about the way they love you back.  Right down to your socks wanting to serve you, and you should place them properly in the drawer so they can rest when you’re not wearing them. Continue reading “Book Review: The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up” →