A book review

The Recorded History of a Girl by Celine Lopez

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I wrote this review on Good Reads upon the request of the Author whom I tagged in Instagram where I gave her book some love.

i kinda rooted for this book even before it came out and before having even read it.  been an avid follower of the author's column for years, so i feel like i know her, her struggles and fears and joy and basically the things that make her an interesting human being. She's a generous writer like that, sharing these intimate things about herself knowing probably that it makes her an open target to people who judge and love to hate.

but it is what makes her relatable as a writer. she gives a voice to my own fears, insecurities and vulnerabilities, even when we don't share a common backstory and social status.

she was for a long time a sad girl, but she has bounced back big time.  i know this of course only from what she writes and tells interviewers. By bounced back i mean less about her new film and book but more about her newfound life perspective and self love. she has embraced happiness, and i feel like this tiny victory is mine as well. i like her more this way.

so even before i read the book i have already decided that i love it.

i got the book the moment it was up on amazon. i wouldn't have minded paying for it, but it came free (told you she's generous)

what can i say? i missed R already right after i clicked 5 stars on my kindle. I enjoyed reading R's letters. Even shed a few bittersweet tears over some of them, particularly those to her kids. I love the adult that she has become, the wisdom and insights she shared.

she had an authentic voice. she sounded natural, and not pretentious at all. there were no cringe parts. really. i savored her every sentence. 

R felt so real, and that's the thing that makes this book a clear winner.





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Amsterdam

I don't have to tell you that Amsterdam is just downright pretty. Quaint, chic, green, design forward, enviable bike culture. Too damn cool, in other words.

No smugness, stores with storekeepers out of sight, super friendly storekeepers, taking photos welcomed everywhere (except in the Anne Frank House, a gem of a museum.),  people on bike stopping to pose for photo, no police asking for train tickets, coke with your name on it, street names with multiple and side-by-side vowels, cheap but good convenient store food, tourists everywhere, boathouse of my dreams, no spectacular local cuisine (no local cuisine is more like it), old churches turned into event venues, cobblestones, very tall people, i now know why they call it Dutch treat, 200 yr old windmills, handcrafted wooden shoes akin to present day engagement rings, too many souvenir shops, paying .50ureo for extra pack of ketchup at a Mcdonald's, cannabis everything, picture perfect houses all around, good beers.

I definitely enjoyed Amsterdam, but I would have enjoyed it infinitely more if Marvin saw it with me. I'm such a dependent like that.