Book Review: The Reluctant Blogger by Ryan Rapier

****--4 Stars.
August 2013, 430 pages.
Source: received from  Netgalley

Amazon Description: 
Blogging was the last thing Todd Landry expected his psychiatrist to recommend in dealing with his wife’s death. But his aversion to therapy demands drastic measures, and Todd soon finds himself writing about his sometimes-humorous struggles with single parenthood, dating, and shattered expectations. With each blog entry, Todd lets his guard down and discovers that perhaps he can find love once again. 

My Review:
Todd is struggling to deal with the loss of his wife. His therapist gives him an ultimatum (after months)--start blogging to give them something to work with or he's done with therapy. For some reason, this kicks Todd into gear. The rest of the book is what Todd views as important and worth blogging about in his life and the therapy received because of it.

I really enjoyed the story. It made me cry, smile, and feel. I can't imagine the burdens that Todd felt and the things he had to deal with (bratty teenager, dating again, friend drama, family stuff, etc)--his life wasn't easy by any means, yet he seemed to handle things better than most. I loved his wit and way of dealing with his father.

In some ways, I wish the story didn't have holes in it. There were places where it jumped from one time to several weeks later and a lot happened in that amount of time, but...the reader is almost reading it as if s/he was reading the actual blog.

I didn't like the way the story was heading, towards the end, but it ended perfectly. As I said, it really made me feel and drew me in. I love the lessons that Todd learned about himself and those around him and how he became more aware and compassionate.

Great story and I look forward to more by this author!!

Content: religious aspects (LDS), brief mention of homosexuality, bars and drinking. Clean.




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