Books I’ve read: Spring 2014
This was supposed to be a ‘new books’ feature, but I’ afraid what with Fashion Week and so on I have only just got around to loading this when you have all probably finished these books by now! Anyhow, here are my thoughts on these (no longer that) new books.
GIRLBOSS by Sofia Amoruso
Founder and CEO of Nasty Gal, Sofia Amoruso, gives a brutally honest account of her rise to fame and fortune to owner of the incredibly sucessful multi-million dollar empire that is the fashion e-tailer, Nasty Gal. Much has been written about GIRLBOSS on blogs this year, but what did I take away from it personally? The belief that success needs not only vision and luck, but a lot of hard work. I trust this will inspire many younger people to have a good work ethic and lose some of that sense of entitlement that they are owed success. She made sandwiches, worked retail, and worked around the clock to start her online clothes store and I found a wealth of common sense and practical tips amongst her amusing anecdotes. GIRLBOSS is $35 from Penguin.
Dress Memory by Lorelei Vashti
I love the concept and the execution of this embellished memoir based loosely around the real life facts of Australian Lorelei Vashti. She tells her story from leaving home and through growing up and falling in and out of love while wearing her favourite dresses which become imbued with memory, hence the title. I have long agreed with her that clothes embody memories so I was very taken with this book. I haven’t finished it yet but I am really enjoying it. I especially liked that she had an Instagram hashtag event where the public could post photos of ourselves in dresses that have a memory and I did one of my mother’s dress from Hong Kong which I remember her wearing when I was a child and Lorelei took the time to reply to me- that’s so nice and interactive. Dress Memory is published by Allen & Unwin.
Queen of the Tearling by Erica Johansen
I was lucky enough to be sent one of the uncorrected book proofs of Queen of the Tearling before its release date and I was impressed with what I’d heard: already having your book land a major film deal is just incredible. Harry Potter star Emma Watson is to take the lead role, with the Harry Potter producer at the helm too. I haven’t had much experience with fantasy fiction but those who do, loved this book telling the tale of Kelsea Glynn, a young woman raised by a mysterious couple on the woods of a medieval kingdom who wears a jewel around her neck and has a scar on her arm and is lead away to be queen when she came of age. I found it pretty violent so be warned you will need a thick skin/stomach for some of the scenes. I couldn’t finish reading it. Bear in mind I can’t watch Game of Thrones or The Hunting Games, either. It is distributed in NZ by Random House.
A Long Way Down by Nick Hornby
This next book is now a film and has the film cover with actors Pierce Brosnan, Toni Collette, Aaron Paul and Imogen Poots. It’s such an original story: four strangers meet on New Years Eve on the roof of a London building they’ve all climbed to put an end to their misery via suicide. The story is very well-written; from each character’s perspective in their own voice. Whilst I didn’t engage with any of the characters, it was a page-turner as I was interested to see how it turned out for them all in this unlikely band of unfriends. Published by Penguin.
Next up, two non-fiction titles about healthy eating. I’ve been attending the Ecostore monthly media breakfasts and hearing from different speakers about reducing our toxic chemical load, environmental stresses, and refined sugar intake. Thus, I thought these next two books would assist me in my path – but I have to admit getting sent a box of Butlers chocolates this week has undone most of the good intentions with continued bad habits. I AM going to try oil pulling, though.
Books for better living? Sounds great to me.
An Auckland publishing house I have recently become aware of is Exisle Publishing, with their admirable commitment to publishing books for better living. They’re also really affordable with most titles only $19.99.
Sugar Detox for Beginners- Your Guide to Starting a 21 Day Sugar Detox
I’m sure the ills of a society built around dependence on a diet of refined sugar needs no explanation to readers of Thread. This book from Hayward Press goes through the fundamentals of the sugar detox diet so you can beat your sugar addiction using 77 delicious sugar detox recipes without a feeling of deprivation. I liked that it had a 3 day diet plan and a 21 gradual diet plan and then actual recipes listed in detail. I would have liked pictures of each food though so I could see what to make as I am quite a visual person and food needs to look good to entice me, as well as be good for you. In summary: pretty sweet – without being sugary sweet.
Sugar Detox for Beginners is available from www.exsilepublishing.co.nz and wherever good books are sold. RRP $19.99
The Paleo Cookbook – 300 Delicious Paleo Diet Recipes
This book is aimed at those who already know they want to follow a Paleo diet, as it skims over in a 3-page introduction what the Paleo way of life means, and gets straight into the practical stuff: 300 recipes. This is no pretty cookbook; it is a handy reference guide book for those on a Paleo journey. isn’t a fad or another weight-loss gimmick. It’s the way humans were meant to eat. I like that it covers the whole day: from breakfasts, dinners, and desserts, as well as recipes from around the world to cater for all tastes and nationalities. The Paleo Cookbook is available from www.exsilepublishing.co.nz and wherever good books are sold. RRP $19.99
Megan Robinson 12 September 2014
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