Unfollow: A Journey from Hatred to Hope by Megan Phelps-Roper
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This memoir gave me the shivers and spoke to my heart and soul in ways that will forever cement it in a place of honor on my reading list. Megan Phelps-Roper grew up in the most notorious and hated religious sect in the nation - Westboro Baptist Church. Known for picketing soldiers' funerals and outrageous signs spouting homophobic and anti-Semitic slogans, church members also rejoiced at the AIDS epidemic, celebrity deaths, natural disasters, and all other manner of tragedy as proof that the rest of the country and world is doomed for a fate of Hell-fire and damnation simply for not being a Westboro believer. Megan left the church at the age of 27 in 2012, and was forced to sever ties with her family and the only life she ever knew. A seed of doubt grew slowly inside her until she couldn't rationalize the church's beliefs and intolerance any more. She grew to be incredibly brave, intelligent, and independent in thought. She's also remorseful for the ways in which her church's hatred has altered people's lives and hurt them in immeasurable ways. One of the most surprising things I learned about her grandfather and Westboro founder, Fred Phelps, was that before he started his crusade against gays, he was a highly respected and successful civil rights leader. In addition, the entire Phelps family is highly intelligent and many of them are lawyers. This part of the family history was fascinating to me. How can these intelligent people so blindly follow a religion so steeped in hatred? There's a certain type of child, very often female, who grows up to believe that she just has to be good and follow the rules. Even when logic defies this need, the desire to be good and tow the line trumps everything. When you combine that personality and the indoctrination of following orders and religious belief without question, you find a dangerous brew of power struggle and judgment. Megan does not look back with reciprocal hatred for the family and community that now shuns her. While her parents may not have been perfect, the family's love for one another was soft and authentic. She reveres those memories as they were comforting, special, and made her who she is. The other special part of this book is how the kindness of others is a part of what eventually lit the tiniest flames of doubt within Megan's mind. Megan was big into social media and arguing with non-Westboro people around the world. It was people who respectfully disagreed with her but still treated her with love online who made her question her church's vision. After leaving, she quickly discovers there are good people everywhere, and their religion doesn't define whether or not they deserve kindness and respect. People of all religions, or none at all, can and do have goodness and light. This theme reminded me of another big emotional book, Rising Out of Hatred by Saslow, where a white nationalist learns the error of his upbringing through the kindness of a Jewish college student and South American immigrant. The feel of Unfollow is also prevalent in Hillbilly Elegy and Educated. The quote Phelps-Roper used at the beginning is really the best way to end this review as it covers all of this book's vibe so perfectly. "Reserving judgment is a matter of infinite hope." F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby.

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Sick Kids in Love by Hannah Moskowitz
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Based on the tons of glowing reviews for this book, mine is going to be highly unpopular. I like the simplicity of the title. I love how Isabel writes a column where she asks people questions but offers no advice. I like how the characters are two teens living with chronic illness. Isabel tries hard to repel her feelings for the gorgeous, funny, and completely loyal Sasha but ultimately grows to appreciate finding someone who can relate to the world of illness and chronic pain. I like the message that everyone's pain or problems are relevant no matter how big or small they may seem. They're important and life-altering for that person, and that's all that matters. I can see how high school kids would love this, but I just couldn't get into it. In fairness, I read a lot of YA and am fairly critical. It's not your typical YA romance fluff; there's substance to it. I just didn't really like Isabel, and she carries the story. She's terrible at letting people know her feelings, and it often makes her interact poorly with others. She gets upset when friends and family don't know how to respond to her battle with rheumatoid arthritis but doesn't try to explain what she needs or wants to anyone either. While it's certainly unfair she has to deal with this debilitating condition, it's also unfair that she has set expectations for how others should treat her but doesn't communicate those to the people that care about her. The romance is sweet and slow, a little weird, but lovely and realistic at the same time. I wanted to like this more.

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The Family Next Door: The Heartbreaking Imprisonment of the Thirteen Turpin Siblings and Their Extraordinary Rescue by John Glatt
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The story of the Turpin family is bizarre and outrageously awful. Louise and David Turpin are selfish, sadistic, and despicable people. They chose to have tons of children and reveled in the facade of a happy family in staged photos and social media posts. Initially touting a pious devotion to religion and later just due to sheer self-interest, David and Louise subject their children to torture, starvation, extreme neglect, physical and mental abuse, humiliation, and various other forms of abuse. They deprived the children of an education under the guise of running a homeschool facility. Severe malnutrition would cause many serious lifelong effects for all of the Turpin children. Louise herself suffered childhood trauma that clearly had an impact on her mental health. One of the older girls eventually escapes and calls 911 leading to their rescue. The author explains many instance where neighbors or family could have tried harder to help the hidden Turpin children. There were lots of signs but no one wanted to interfere and try a little harder to figure out why the Turpin children were so thin and so pale. Their imprisonment could have been shortened if someone had just gotten involved. It's a terribly sad story but hopeful as the Turpin children - both adult and minor - are moving forward with their lives. The one thing that really bothers me about the writing in this book is the author's detailed explanations of what everyone is wearing. There are times when its vital to establish characterization or the scene in general and is fully appropriate, but other times when the descriptions are so tedious, they just become a distraction.

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The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Guys - THIS BOOK!! This has been high on my reading list for a while but I just couldn't get a copy anywhere. Finally got one, and I read it in a day. It's a psychological thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat, and let's face it; right now in the time of COVID-19, there's a lot of couch time. Theo Faber is a psychotherapist who narrates the story of how he came to treat a patient named Alicia Berenson at the Grove, a mental health facility. Alicia is a talented painter, and after she shoots and kills her husband, she refuses to speak again for years. Theo makes it his mission to help her and get her to tell her story. The chapters are short and each leaves you dying to find out why Alicia won't talk. It's agonizing to not know her full story. She's mysterious, and Michaelides' writing makes you crave answers. Theo delves into her story and begins to become more of an investigator than therapist. The ending threw me for a loop and was not what I was expecting, yet it was so so good. Get this book and devour it.

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One False Note by Gordon Korman
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I really didn't think I could handle another one of these books, but my kids love them. As much as I dislike the characters and dialogue, I can appreciate the adventure. They forced me to listen to another one, and it was slightly more tolerable than the last. This time Amy and Dan Cahill travel with their au pair to Vienna and Venice to continue tracking the clues leading to their family's powerful secret. All of their adventurous locations revolve around the famed composer, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The interesting thing about this series is that each book is written by a different author. I was hoping they'd get bored with it, but they already begged to start number three. Clearly the series holds major appeal to the younger set.

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