The Devil in Pew Number Seven by Rebecca Nichols Alonzo

Overview: Rebecca tells the true tale of her life growing up under the terror of a man whom time and time again attacks her family. Her father moves his family to the little town Whiteville, North Carolina. Willie Sellers is a man that has the whole town in debt to him and pretty much runs everything, including the little church. When Rebecca's father becomes the new pastor and refuses to let Willie run the church, he sets off a series of events that forever haunt the whole family and tests their faith in God to the extreme limits.

The Writing and The Words: Rebecca is an amazing and brave person for telling this story. She reminds the audience in the very beginning that everything in this book is true and you will need to remember this as you read the story. She tells the story very clearly and does a great job of describing events and surroundings. She doesn't go into such details that you grow bored, (which is something I tend to have a major problem with most authors). She shares her faith in God without ramming it down your throat so even if you are not a fan of religion, the book doesn't make you roll your eyes. There's nothing flashy about her writing and she doesn't need to as the story in itself is incredible and nail biting.

My Opinion: This is certainly an amazing story. The horrors this family endured from a man of such hatred is amazing and you really do have to remind yourself this is a true story. I like that she takes it all the way from her parents meeting to her as a grown up and, well, I don't want to spoil a good part of the book by telling you how far into her life she goes. One thing that can be said about Rebecca is that her faith in God and her ability to forgive is beyond what any normal person could ever do. And it all comes together nicely in the end and that her father's work was not in vain. This is a book that can be read by a Christian that needs a reminder in how to forgive or by a person that wants an amazing story of how far a person is willing to torment a family just because they do not accept his evil ways.
By far, this book is well worth the read. Rebecca and her family are truly amazing and you are left with a very satisfied feeling at the end. 

Where The Hell Have I Been?

The new book review is below if you want to skip this post and head straight to the goods. Don't blame you. JUST  TELL US WHAT TO READ GODDAMNIT!!!!

For those interested, however, where I have been, I will share with you. Been quite the time my friends. Times that are coming to an end and I never want to see them again. I'll break down what's been going on but keep in mind they aren't chronological and some happened at the same time as others. Fun!

-I moved! I was living with my stepmother. That's right: I was 27 years old and back at home. But it wasn't the same home I grew up in, (and by "grew up", I mean I moved in the first time when I was 18 and moved out when I was 24). My dad and step mom divorced a very nasty divorce and she kept the house. Was strange to be staying in the same room that my dad use to lock himself away in for hours and hours. The Former Monster Room. It was a room full of monster models, painted black, and had his desk with his always up to date computer. And God forbid you ever went in there without his knowledge, especially on his computer. Of course, after finding out he cheated on my stepmom, I can guess why. She smashed the place good and the lone survivor was a mold of Boris Korlof as Frankenstein my dad had hanging on his wall. I rescued him and he now hangs in my new place.
The room was repainted purple and I moved in after the lease to my apartment was up and I was going through my own divorce and health issues. I lived with her for over a year. I am now in a condo with my boyfriend. It doesn't quite feel like home and I doubt we stay another year.

-I got transferred from the Scottsdale store to a store much, much closer to home. I will say that regionalism is true. Scottsdale people are, by far, the worst people I have ever encountered. Entitled, rich, angry, and full of shit. Someone literally complained that I didn't "look professional" because they saw my arm tattoo. My arm tattoo is for my mom and step mom and has the pink ribbon for cancer on it. Are they saying they are for breast cancer? Someone also claimed I made a joke about "using a gun" there. So, HR had to get involved and I would never joke about guns to a customer. The customer blew out of proportion my joke about how women without their hormones is how serial killers are born. Which HR said was worse than me joking about a gun. So, I couldn't be there any longer. Especially since my lead technician hated my guts and even after I transferred to my new store was still trying to throw me under the bus.
My new store is amazing. The customers all like me, they are all laid back, and love to joke about everything. My co workers are easy to get along with and my manager is great.

-And then there's the health issues. I have Stage IV Endometriosis and it's bad. My second surgery they removed 6 cm of endo, had to unstick my colon from my uterus and my lower intestines where glued to the back of my uterus and it was growing up my intestines. I've been in extreme pain and no one wants to touch my case because there's too much work and liability involved. I did finally find a wonderful doctor that put me on a shot that no one else wanted to do because of my bi polar. There are details I can't talk about, but something happened at work and now I'm on short term disability. Depression and anger are at their worst. But the pain is getting better. Slowly, oh so slowly.

So, that's where I've been. Hoping for a very uneventful second half of 2013. Fucking sick of this shit! Thank God for books.

Hope you guys come back and thanks always for reading! 

Review: Why Your Presciption Takes So Damn Long To Fill by Drugmonkey, Master Of Pharmacy

                                                             
                                                      

Overview: For over twenty years, Drugmonkey has been fighting the battles that a typical pharmacist in retails fights everyday: customers whom are impatient, ignorant, and just plain dumb. This behind the scenes look of pharmacy isn't limited to just the retail: he exposes all the nasty tricks that your insurance company and Big Pharma are playing on you. Sprinkled in with some stories about politics and many entries about a typical day in the drug room.

The Writing and Words: Drugmonkey does a great job of writing. The beginning of the book, the chapters sag-way into each other, all related and informative as they are amusing. Eventually, the chapters start to stand on their own, every so often still connecting to each other. For someone who isn't a "trained writer", Drugmonkey does an amazing job of story telling and keeping it informative and relevant. The chapters are usually very short and to the point. Not all are true stories and are not always pharmacy related.

Drugmonkey writes with passion of a pharmacist that has been in the game too long and has seen and heard things that need exposed. He is an unbiased liberal and openly calls people out for fucking the working man and the poor. His satire is well written as satire is hard to write, (the chapters about his "Time as a Repiblican" are the ones in specific). He writes in a way that even if you don't work in pharmacy or have no knowledge about it, it's explained well and teachable.

My Opinion: Okay, so I've been following Drugmonkey ever since he was The Drug Nazi. I've been working in pharmacy for close to ten years myself. So, this book was an exciting thing for me to read. And I've read it three times since I've had it. I have bought additional copies and given them to people that I know are going into pharmacy school because they NEED to know what he is exposing. This book isn't just beneficial to pharmacy people, but to everyone. You need to know the tricks drug manufactures are playing on you. You need to know how your insurance company is fucking you over time and time again. And, most importantly, you need to know how to act when dropping off/picking up a prescription at a pharmacy.

Not gonna lie: he also gave me the push on the fence on whether I was a liberal or a republican. There are somethings I wish he had put into this book that are up on his blog, but I didn't edit the book. The last chapters, especially the very last one, will pack a punch. It's a big fuck you to the pro life people and if you're passionate about anti-abortion, do not read the last of the book. But it's something that women need to read, in my opinion. This is, by far, my top five favorite books. I hope everyone reads it and starts to see the health care revolution that needs to happen.

And the answer to the title of the book: Probably you.

Intermission

Dear Fellow Readers and Bloggers,

Sorry I haven't done a review in a week. I meant to, however, my awesome lead technician at work decided to come into work sick as shit all week and spread the love. No, LT (Lead Tech), hand sanitizing everything does NOT prevent the spread of your nasty ass germs when you STILL TOUCH EVERYTHING IN THE PHARMACY! I know in your own head you think the pharmacy will crumble without you there, but I assure, we'd make it through somehow. Afterall, how did the pharmacy survive without you there? Now I feel like Freddy Mercury and David Bowie are doing a dubstep remix in my sinus cavities and I'm wondering if my snot has turned into gold because it is the exact same color as gold.

So, I will return next week when I'm not dieing. Seems to be the only thing I can read lately is stupid websites. However, not to leave you empty handed, here's a peek of what will be reviewed in the next couple of weeks:

Why Your Prescription Takes So Damn Long To Fill by Drugmonkey, Master of Pharmacy

Beyond The Body Farm by Dr. Bill Bass and Jon Jefferson

The Devil in Pew Number Seven by Rebecca Nichols Alonzo

Auschwitz by Miklos Nyiszil

and there will be more but my meds are kicking in so I'm going to go to sleep.

Or die....

Whichever comes first.

-Jess

Review: Death's Acre by Dr. Bill Bass and Jon Jefferson

So, thanks to the people who have been retweeting my page, giving me shout outs on Facebook, and the incredible support. If you read one of the books I review, please leave a comment in the comment section of that book! I'd love to start discussions. Also, if you have a book you want to review and share, by all means, email me at oddlystrangebooks@gmail.com

Death's Acre by Dr. Bill Bass and Jon Jefferson

Overview: Dr. Bill Bass is a world renown forensics anthropologist. He is the creator behind the infamous Body Farm. It's a place where they have tested and observed different stages the human body decomposes. They submerge bodies in water, bury them, leave in the open, etc. to see how different elements affect the body's decomposition. Dr. Bass writes the story of how he started The Body Farm and his students who have gone on the better and greater things, including advancing forensics. He also has stories of cases he has worked on and gives insight on how forensics really do their job, (hint: it's not as glamorous as  CSI).

The Writing and Words: Dr. Bass writes this book in trying to intertwine stories together. Though some authors achieve this flawlessly, Dr. Bass does not. He goes out of order on when events happened and often times the reader is confused on when this is happening and has to go back to remind themselves. Dr. Bass tries to show how human he is by telling stories about his personal life, but fails at making the reader care. He could have left out stories of his life and the reader would have found him very human anyways. He goes into very long and very technical details that can start the grate the readers nerves.

My Opinion: All in all, it wasn't a terrible book. The guy is well into his 70's, so kudos for him for even being alive. This is obviously his first book and the writing shows it. However, one thing I really liked is that he told stories about cases where they were unsolved or the victim didn't get their justice, which shows the other side of the law: the one that doesn't always win. He does a great job, however, of not leaving you feeling let down when the case isn't solved because each case brought a new way for forensics to advance.

He does do a great job on describing bodies and the scenarios, although a bit too descriptive at times which leads to be boring at times. However, he also describes disgusting details without being too disgusting. This book would be a great read for people who are interested in forensics but get squeamish at the blood and guts.

Overall, it wasn't a terrible book, but not the best thing I've ever read. He wrote another book several years later that I am now reading to see if he improved on his writing and story telling skills. I did enjoy the book but not as much as other forensic books. Average rating at best.

Once again, the guy is well into his 70's, so I'll cut him some slack. 

Review: In Cold Blood by Truman Capote

I promise I don't just read books about murder and gore. I do tend to get "stuck" in one genre at times though. Also, if you have any book recommendations, please let me know! Email me at oddlystrangebooks@gmail.com.

In Cold Blood by Truman Capote

Overview: In 1959, The Clutter family was murdered in their own home. The four family members, Mr. Clutter, Mrs. Clutter, their youngest son and daughter, were all tied up and shot point blank. The small Kansas town was rocked by the murders of such up-standing citizens and the K.B.I. had their hands full trying to solve the murder. Meanwhile, the book follows the lives of two ex-convicts Perry Smith and Dick Hickock as they flee from one place to another. Eventually, the two stories come together and the men are charged and found guilty of the murder of The Clutter family.

The Writing and Words: Though this book is an older book, the writing has held up very well over the years. Truman did an amazing job of telling the two tales and bringing them together. This was one of the first "nonfiction novels", in that it's based on a true story. I usually can't stand authors that go on and on in details but Truman was able to hold my attention.   The book includes a couple of pictures of the family and the two murderers, you really don't need it since Truman does such an amazing job of explaining everything. The book is broken up into three parts: the first focuses mostly on The Clutter family and their lives before they were murdered. The second part focuses on Perry and Dick and their lives after the murder and their lives before the murder. The third brings the two stories together and it follows the trial all the way until the two men are executed.

My Opinion: I couldn't help but compare this book with my last book review "Columbine". "Columbine" is very straight forward, nothing but the facts book, "In Cold Blood" is very much full of emotions and gives the reader what was going on in the minds of the people in the book. The people of Holcomb, Kansas get the closure that the people of Columbine did not. Holcomb got to see the two men go on trial and then executed. Columbine was robbed of that by the two boys killing themselves, leaving many things unanswered.

The two books are also very similar even though they are decades apart. The murderers of Columbine and Holcomb both killed people without having anything to set them off. Perry and Hickock murdered the family after they realized that there was no safe full of money in the house. It's a weak motive, if any at all, because neither murderer felt any remorse or feelings about killing the family. If it wasn't The Clutters, it would have been a different family. Both towns were both filled of people who wouldn't stop talking about the case and the people of the town began to grow very, very tired of hearing about it. They just wanted to move on with their lives and get that sense of normal back.

It's amazing how both stories were so similar but told in two very different ways. Truman was a very talented writer. Even though he goes into details about Perry and Hickock and their tragic and hard childhoods, he does an amazing job of never letting the reader feel sympathy for the two killers. I really saw how much it meant for Holcomb to get the closure that Columbine did not and it made me feel a different kind of sympathy for the people of Columbine. This book was a very, very good read and even though it's an old tale it stands the test of time extremely well. I was very pleased by the writing and the story and probably one of the better books I have ever read.

Review: Columbine by Dave Cullen

I'm in the middle of reading a different book. I'm going to try and review books soon after I read them while they are still fresh in my mind. However, some books stay with you long after you read them. I finished this one about a month and a half ago and I still can't stop thinking about it.

Columbine by Dave Cullens

Overview: It's been over 10 years since the Columbine Massacres. When two students decided to try and bomb their school and shot and killed thirteen people the US changed forever. This book recounts the events leading to, during, and after the killings.

The Writing and Words: The book is a very straight facts, no personal emotion involved telling of the events. It goes back and forward between what happened during the killings, before the killings, and afterwards. It exposes several facts about the town and the police. They tried to hide a lot of paperwork on the two kids that showed that they were warned by one family that they were dangerous. Of course, back then, such threats weren't taken as serious as they are now.
The book is very, very well written. It flawlessly goes back and forward in chapters. It tells events and facts without ever sounding bias.

My Opinion: I honestly think this is one of the best books I have ever read. And I have read well into the hundreds of books. I remember being a little one in 8th grade, listening to my teacher talk about what was happening and even turned on the news for us to watch. That's one of the things about Columbine that made it so different: it was televised WHILE it was happening. It was also one of the first times that SWAT teams were dealing with kids, schools, and the threat of kids with guns.
The book brings to light several things and myths about what happened, although I won't give away all of them. However, the one that is brought to light is very, very chilling: there was nothing that set these kids off. They were not bullied, part of the Trench Coat Mafia, or even liked Marylin Manson. They were, especially Eric, pyschopaths. I told one of my co-workers this and she couldn't accept that that was real. They HAD to have been bullied or something.
I love books where I learn and make me think long after I'm done with the book. Armed with knowledge is an amazing thing. The straight forwardness of the book and no bias makes it that much more emotional for the reader. They are not being led into how to feel: the lack of emotion in the book makes the reader feel raw emotions; their own emotions.
 My hat is off to Mr Cullens. Great, great job.