Lifelike Drawing with Lee Hammond

Lifelike Drawing with Lee Hammond by Lee Hammond, 3/5

I learned how to draw realistic pencil portraits many years ago from Lee Hammond’s Draw Real Animals!, but pulled this book off the shelf for reference when struggling with the background for a recent project (see below). Realizing afterwards that I likely had never actually read this through before, I decided to do so and did glean a couple of helpful tips that either were not in her other book or I had just forgotten over the years.

Washington State Place Names

Washington State Place Names by James W. Phillips, 5/5

One of my favorite reading experiences is to find myself, thanks to a good book, enthralled with a topic in which I had little previous interest. Washington State history is definitely one of those topics and this is one of those books. Hundreds of entries provide the fascinating and often surprising stories behind the names of Washington’s noteworthy mountains, rivers, islands, counties, cities, and towns.

Why I read it: a fun thrift store find.

Positive Parenting with a Plan

Positive Parenting with a Plan (Grades K-12): FAMILY Rules by Matthew A. Johnson, 2/5

At first, I was put off by the author’s cocksure tone, cringey attempts at humor, and brazen assertion that common sense and anecdotal evidence are perfectly reasonable substitutes for scientific research with regard to his scheme of essentially gamifying family life. However, after reading a few of the aforementioned anecdotes, I learned that there is a level of family dysfunction that I simply was not even aware existed and might credibly justify the extreme approach that this book lays out. Call me naive, but I didn’t know that many children are so out of control that the only threat parents can effectively use is to literally send them away to live with other family members or at one of the numerous long-term treatment facilities that apparently are a thing that exists! In a situation in which, God forbid, my child was physically assaulting me, committing crimes, doing drugs, and causing thousands of dollars of property damage, I guess I would try anything, no matter how contrived, extreme, and unsupported by scientific research it might feel.

Why I read it: it was in a box of hand-me-down books from a friend.

2023 Stats

In 2023, I read thirty-one books, twenty of which were nonfiction and eleven fiction.

I read 1 book written before 1899.
7 books written between 1900-1949.
4 books written between 1950-1999.
19 books written between 2000-2022.

Books that I rated 1 star: 7 (23%)
2 stars: 6 (19%)
3 stars: 9 (29%)
4 stars: 2 (6%)
5 stars: 7 (23%)

Discipline Equals Freedom

Discipline Equals Freedom: Field Manual MK1-MOD1 (expanded edition) by Jocko Willink, 2/5

Reading this book is certainly more convenient than buying 200 motivational posters and sitting in a dark room while someone shouts their slogans in your ear and smacks you with the cardboard tubes they were shipped in.

Why I read it: my husband bought it.

The Code. The Evaluation. The Protocols.

The Code. The Evaluation. The Protocols. Striving to Become an Eminently Qualified Human by Jocko Willink, with Dave Berke and Sarah Armstrong, 1/5

I have a ton of respect for Jocko Willink…BUT…this book is so absolutely ridiculous that I’m not even sure if his advice to “Set physical goals like running a 5K or deadlifting 8000 pounds” (2.4) is a typo or not. Overlooking the trademark typewriter font (which is borderline unbearable), awkward formatting, and repetitive language, I still cannot imagine many scenarios in which a rigorous, score-based method of evaluating one’s progress towards godhood would be necessary or useful. The “Protocols” are a one-size-fits-all series of steps for addressing each of life’s little problems (such as death, trauma, and addiction) in a style that can only be described as bizarrely confident and obliviously motivational.

Why I read it: my husband bought several of Jocko’s books.

Anthology of Japanese Literature

Anthology of Japanese Literature from the Earliest Era to the Mid-Nineteenth Century, compiled and edited by Donald Keene, 5/5

This collection is pleasingly varied and conveniently oriented towards a lay audience; the annotations are minimal and linguistic subtleties are simply acknowledged without being dissected. Most of the short poems are presented in side-by-side rōmaji (romanized Japanese) and English, allowing the reader to absorb a little more of the syllabic patterns, alliteration, and overall flavor of the original writings. Though the imagery, values, and cultural references felt refreshingly unfamiliar, there was an undeniable undercurrent of universal human appeal in the timeless themes of love, loss, death, and spiritual life.

Why I read it: an interesting-looking thrift store find.

Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents

Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents: How to Heal from Distant, Rejecting, or Self-Involved Parents by Lindsay C. Gibson, 2/5

This book is shallow as a parking lot puddle, full of cringey anecdotes and generic advice. The reader is encouraged, regardless of their own psychological state, to assess problematic people in their life using criteria so broad and subjective that a diagnosis of “emotionally immature” is practically guaranteed. Once their problems have predictably been blamed on childhood and upbringing, the inevitable advice to “awaken your True Self” by finding your inner child ensues. If the author is correct that who you were before fourth grade is key, then I guess my True Self is a horse?

Why I read it: Lent to me (but pointedly not recommended) by a family member who evidently knows me extremely well.

History of American Painting

History of American Painting, Volume Two: The Light of Distant Skies (1760-1835) by James Thomas Flexner, 2/5

This second volume is less combative in tone than the first, but is still illustrated by depressingly low-quality, black and white reproductions of historic paintings. Flexner’s writing style is not unpleasant, but an overall lack of cohesiveness makes it difficult to place the info in context and I finished the book feeling that I had absorbed practically nothing (which was also the case with the first book in the series).

Why I read it: an old library sale find.

The Houses We Live In

The Houses We Live In: An Identification Guide to the History and Style of American Domestic Architecture, edited by Jeffery Howe, 3/5

Either architectural styles are not as clear-cut as I expected, or the info in this unwieldy book was not presented in the most logical way. Long blocks of text, multiple writers, and occasionally unhelpful photo captions made for a somewhat overwhelming reading experience, but I did appreciate the thorough glossary and informative line art. Learning to spot some of the historical features characteristic of different time periods and styles was fun and makes every house I drive by that much more interesting.

Why I read it: If my memory is correct, I convinced my parents many years ago to let me buy this book from a thrift store in Hawaii and bring it home in our luggage despite its considerable size.