A friend of mine, whenever she encounters a problem, reminds herself of the Scale of Aleppo, wherein she compares her misfortunes to those of the people trapped in the vicious civil war in Syria. Husband running late? Barely a one on the Scale of Aleppo. Boss being an asshole? A three, at most. It’s an admirable strategy. It’s also something which, I feel, it would behoove the protagonists of The Royal We to try. Twenty year old Rebecca Porter, on a gap year from studying […]
Well, I got to 52!
Ahern wrote this book when she was 21. The premise is clever, a bitter-sweet gimmick where Holly’s husband dies, but he leaves her a series of letters to help her cope in the first year without him. Each letter has a surprise or a challenge and always ends with “P.S. I love you.” “Their plan had been very simple: to stay together for the rest of their lives. ” The book however does not quite work. Writing about the grief and pain of losing someone […]
My First Hate Post
Save Ugh, this book was gross. It’s just so mean and hateful, like a rabid squirrel. The outside may seem cheerful and harmless, but get to know it and it’ll bite you. It’s the story of a girl named Anna who is fat. Being fat is the worst thing ever, obviously. After her parents divorce, Anna moves away from her home in Ohio to New York. She gets a job with a caterer, who she refers to as MFG (My Fairy Godmother), who helps her […]


