Ponder: Year of YES

Year of YES by Shonda Rhimes ©2015 was recommended to my Weight Watchers group by our leader. She suggested if people were interested, that after we read it she would host a short Zoom discussion group for whoever wanted to attend. I thought the reason for suggesting this book was that the author had lost 127 lbs. But there was more to it than that. I learned that Shonda Rhimes per Wikipedia

is an American television producer, screenwriter, and author. She is best known as the showrunner—creator, head writer, and executive producer—of the television medical drama Grey's Anatomy, its spin-off Private Practice, and the political thriller series Scandal. Rhimes has also served as the executive producer of the ABC television series Off the Map, How to Get Away with Murder, The Catch, and Station 19.

The subtitle of the book is How to Dance it Out, Stand in the Sun and Be Your Own Person so it addresses more than weight loss. The concepts in the book were worth pondering. The premise was that the author, an introvert by her own admission, challenged herself to go outside her comfort zone in the areas of public speaking, dress, new friendships, culling unhealthy "friends",  balancing the dual role of motherhood versus career, accepting compliments, and more.  There is even a chapter on saying yes to "saying no" to demands on your time, your money, or your resources. There is one chapter on accepting compliments that hit home. At a dinner celebrating women in TV Shonda Rhimes noted each woman respond in one of three ways to an acknowledgement of her achievements. Do any of these sound familiar? Just. Say. Thank you!

1. She shook her head and looked away
2. She ducked her head, an embarrassed look on her face
3. She laughed, mortified and embarrassed 

In principal I liked what this book had to offer but initially I had difficulty adapting to the author's writing style. I think it was intended to be friendly, personal, and self-revealing but instead I found it cloying and trite and repetitious. In the early season of the show Grey's Anatomy, I was a fan but there are only so many times when you can hear the  word "seriously?" before it gets old.  Her language style is better heard than read. One women in the Zoom discussion said Year of Yes was more enjoyable as an audio book read in the author's own voice. It is true I got much more out of listening to her commencement address to the 2014 graduation class from Dartmouth, her alma mater, than I did from reading the text in the book. It is worth listing to the address on YouTube. I may consider saying yes to giving an audio book a try.

So how do I rate this book? It is strange because when I dislike a book while reading it, it often provokes a lot of thought and discussion with my husband as I plough through it. So is a book that bad, if it makes me think? Isn't a book good if it lures me outside my comfort zone? The content of this book was very valuable but the delivery method left me cold. I did however enjoy the book discussion with others on Zoom. That interaction made me rethink joining a book club. I have been reluctant to do so because I have such a large number of books that I want to read (theoretically, admittedly that interest often fades as other books push to the top of the stack), I do not want to be obligated or constrained to spending my reading moments on a book of someone else's choosing. But this book entices me to say yes to joining a book club. It is another experience worth exploring.

I will waffle and rate Year of Yes a middle of the road three stars Better than average; not a waste of time. The book had great food for thought but was rather mediocre in preparation and lacking pizazz in delivery. Yes, I know Shonda Rhimes is an award winning writer. Yes, I am entitled to my own opinion.