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Book Review: Horrorstor: A Novel (Grady Hendrix)

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Horrorstor : A Novel  is a quick, fun horror comedy that is best likened to a well written fan fiction of a disgruntled Ikea worker. Trinity has no desire to be working at Orsk, “the all-American furniture superstore in Scandinavian drag, offering well-designed lifestyles at below-Ikea prices,” and her biggest plans are to transfer back to her original Orsk when she is given the chance. Even though both stores are identical, she mainly wants to escape management, or more specifically, her overenthusiastic boss Basil, who, according to the management handbook, just needs to give Trinity a nudge in the right direction, and she will be sure to be just as excited to work at Orsk as he is. Trinity is not the only one who believes that her work is more likened to slavery or imprisonment. Matt and Amy are coworkers that find the only silver lining in working at Orsk is each other and the chance of proving it to be haunted. After a few odd instances such as messes created o...

Book Review: Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) (Mindy Kaling)

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I consider Mindy Kaling's Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) to be a success in the fact that after I read it, I want to re-watch some episodes of The Office in order to see them in a different light. Kaling’s biography is a comedic reflection on her past and struggles, and her stories bring depth to her work as a comedian. Kaling’s biography is split into seven parts, chronicling her childhood, move to New York, and her break into show biz and her work with The Offic e. Part 2, “I Forget Nothing: A Sensitive Kid Looks Back,” describes her struggles as a kid being chubby. Humorously, she says the word fat no longer describes Americans, so she gives twelve different categories, ranging from chubby to Jabba the Hut to Whale. When it gets down to it, Kaling loves food, hates sports, and loves how she looks, so she has had to deal with some tough bullies in the past. Her experiences are relatable and likened to her characters on The Office and The Mindy P...

Book Review: Man, Myth, Messiah: Answering History’s Greatest Question (Rice Broocks)

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The Romans Road is to the entire Gospel as Ryan Broocks's Man, Myth, Messiah: Answering History’s Greatest Question is to an entire apologetics course. The book takes something very massive and complex and condenses it into a very readable and understandable crash course for believers on who Jesus is, why we believe it and what we should do with that information. In this book, you will find Scripture, research, personal stories, and resources for further research that answer many questions including the following:      -How can we trust that the Bible is true?        -Why did Jesus have to die?        -Are miracles verifiable?        -If God is the Great Physician, why isn't everyone healed? The book is not meant to be read once and dumped on your dusty bookshelf. It is meant to be studied and shared. The last two chapters of the book are dedicated to evangelism- so if you believe what the Bib...

Book Review: The Only Pirate at the Party (Lindsey Stirling)

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Lindsey Stirling’s biography provides a unique view of an even more unique career as a dancing violinist, and her story is an inspiration to twenty somethings pursuing their own passions. Stirling’s biography is a myriad of short stories starting from childhood on. She wrote the book while on tour, and her sister Brooke helped her edit and gather pictures for the book. Stirling wrote the book for the same reason she records YouTube videos of her in a Zelda costume dancing: Lindsey Stirling is confidently her quirky self, and she hopes to inspire others to enjoy being themselves and pursue their passions. Part one “The Childhood/ Developing Teenager Part” details her uniqueness as an adolescent. She always wanted to fit in, but she always found her crowd with those advocating for the whales or dressing as pirates. Her friends encouraged her to be herself and introduced her to the fun of film-making, and they proudly shared their videos with their school. She fell in love with the...

Book Review: We Crossed a Bridge and It Trembled: Voices from Syria (Wendy Pearlman)

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Wendy Pearlman reshapes what you see as the Syrian War from a war against terrorism to a war fighting for dignity. The Syrian War cannot be ignored: “As of early 2017, more than half of Syria’s prewar population of 22 million had been forced from their homes since 2011.” The media is filled with pictures and opinions of what we should do with Syrian refugees and with the Syrian War- it seems to be the situation that no one wants to touch with a ten foot pole. Pearlman’s collection of over 300 narratives allows Syrians to give their own accounts of their history of the revolution and their desire for freedom that fueled it. Pearlman’s book has a unique voice—it lacks her own narration. She wrote the introduction, detailing how she has had twenty years of experience speaking Arabic and studying Middle Eastern history, and her four year process of documenting interviews with Syrians in Europe, the Middle East, and the United States. The rest of the introduction details the contextual...