Review of Alexa Chung's It and Reading List

I'm an English major, so naturally I love to read. Every year I ask for a number of books for Christmas. And spend the weeks following just completely immersed in new reading material. I finished the first book I asked for today, Alexa Chung's It. 

It is a compilation of model, style icon, TV personality and contributing writer for British Vogue Alexa Chung's thoughts and inspirations. The book features a number of photographs of Chung and the things she loves, which make it read sort of like a series of photo essays.

It is so excellent. I love Chung's writing- it is witty, honest and conversational. By the end of the book I felt like I knew her- or at least some part of her. Filled with personal anecdotes and unfiltered musings, It is more of a journal than an autobiography. 

On a fashion level, Alexa Chung's inspirations are diverse, ranging from Mick Jagger to Jane Birkin to Wednesday Addams. Her eclectic style has gained a steady following- it seems as if whatever she wears (say, peter pan collars), are instantly in style. 

"It" seems like an appropriate title for her book given that Chung is certainly an "it girl"- Karl Lagerfeld and Marc Jacobs sing her praises, Mulberry named a bag after her, she's collaborated with Madewell and been hailed as "the Kate Moss of the new generation."

A glimpse into Chung's world shows the reader that fashion is a complex form of self expression. Living in a world where we are often judged on how we dress, fashion gives us the opportunity to tell people who we are and where we come from without even having to speak. And that is something unexpectedly profound.

I highly recommend this book.

In addition to It, I received many new fiction books I had been eyeing on various bestseller lists. 

Here they are:

Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P by Adelle Waldman

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Happy reading!

xoxo

Words That Freak Me Out

It's no secret that I love to read and write, I mean I'm an English Major. I also love words themselves. I've taken a couple of classes simply to understand what words are on a more fundamental level as well including a few wonderful years of latin (latin for life!) and linguistics. There are some words I will always hate the sound of. For whatever combination of their meaning- both implied and definition- and sound, I flinch a little bit when I hear any of the following and I absolutely do not use any of these words in my writing/speech:

Treat

Supple

Yolk

Chunk

Moist

Ointment

Pus

Placenta

Suffice

Paltry

Loaf

Tasty

Mayonnaise

Sliver

Slurp

What words freak you out?

xoxo

Book Review: The Marriage Plot

I just finished Jeffrey Eugenides' The Marriage Plot. It took me less than 36 hours as the book was a fluid, absorbing read (also, I was out of town with minimal cell service/no wifi). This book has definitely made it to my favorites list! I'd been sort of stuck in a rut for awhile reading more nuanced, complex pieces that were honestly a little mentally draining. This book is nuanced and complex, but with a plot line that sucks the reader in. Filled with literary references (namely Hemingway and Tolstoy), this book is every English major's dream! 

A brief synopsis: English major Madeleine Hanna works to complete her senior honors thesis at Brown University in the early 80s, examining the traditional Victorian marriage plot featured in Jane Austen's and George Eliot's novels in the context of the divorce and prenup-ridden modern world. She finds herself caught in a love triangle of her own, between her loyal, uncomplicated friend Mitchell and the mysterious and unpredictable Leonard. In order to reach her own happy ending, Madeleine must choose between the two- which proves to be a much harder decision than she initially thought. 

Happy reading!!

xoxo

Six Articles About Grammar & Style

If we're being honest here, I don't have perfect grammar. Especially in my informal writing. But when it comes time to write those final papers, I bring out the big guns. That being said, I am obsessed with editing. I know this is a bizarre and probably unhealthy obsession, but I love carving away unnecessary words, refining punctuation and allowing a polished final piece to emerge from a cluttered first draft. Maybe all of this slashing and deleting gets some pent up emotion out. Regardless, I've read a lot about grammar and style which has helped me craft my own unique voice when I write. I tend to be a minimalist, preferring to break up sentences with periods or dashes than add modifiers and the passive voice. The following articles are some of my favorites about grammar & style:

1. This Buzzfeed Quiz is hilarious and confusing and a great way to figure out exactly what you need to brush up on.
2. Here, the Washington Post discusses the word 'literally.' It's literally really helpful.
3. This NYTimes Opinion Piece on the dash warms my heart. I love dashes- they're so zippy!
4. I often struggle when deciding how to write about music in a grammatically correct way. Thankfully, the Wall Street Journal has me covered.
5. Grammar fanatic Geoffrey Pullum actually hates the passive voice. According to the Associated Press handbook, journalists aren't supposed to like it either. Reading Mr. Pullum's articles always remind me why writing in the passive often doesn't work. 
6. Finally, these hilarious blank-walks-into-a-bar jokes from McSweeney's help me easily remember grammar rules.

Happy editing!
xoxo

My Favorite Poems

It might be strange for me to talk about poems on a blog that's called Prose, Pearls & Polka Dots, but just because I love a good novel or short story doesn't mean I can't appreciate the depth and creativity of poems. For a long time I was almost afraid of poems. The unusual structures, formats and punctuation confused me. I felt like I had to read into every character to unlock some hidden meaning that only poets understood. Prose has always been easy and straight forward to me. But my senior year of high school, things changed when my AP English teacher shared a poem with our class. I realized poetry isn't harder than prose, it's just different. Poetry is inspirational and can capture a particular feeling or setting with both it's words and format. So today, I share my favorite poems and favorite lines:

Desiderata by Max Ehrmann

"And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should"

This poem is what made me love poetry. I took a copy of it to college for whenever I needed some inspiration. It is my favorite poem.

Fog by Carl Sandburg

"On silent haunches"

Every night when I'm at home, I watch the fog roll in over the hills near my house. At school, I turned to this poem when I felt homesick and it reminded me of the peace I felt seeing the blanket of fog envelop the mountains every evening.

i carry your heart with me by ee cummings

"whatever a sun will sing is always you"

This is just the sweetest poem about loving someone. I am a huge ee cummings fan and love the unconventional punctuation in this poem.

Happiness by Raymond Carver

"I'm in the window with coffee and the usual morning stuff that passes for thought"

I'm always happiest when I wake up early in the morning after a good night's rest. This poem captures that feeling perfectly.

Newspaper Blackout Poems

"The clever part is knowing which words to leave"

These are the coolest things ever! Newspaper Blackout poets scribble out words in newspaper articles and leave random words that make up a poem. Google "Newspaper Blackout" for more cool poems!

Happy reading!

xoxo

5 Great Literary Meals

A friend of mine inspired this post when she asked me which literary characters I would want to have dinner with. I ended up thinking about the best scenes involving food in literature. Here are my favorites.

ONE: Breakfast (or Second Breakfast) with Bilbo Baggins of The Hobbit

"I am a good cook myself, and cook better than I cook, if you see what I mean. I'll cook beautifully for you, a perfectly beautiful breakfast for you, if you won't have me for supper"

TWO: Lunch with Pooh from Winnie the Pooh 

"It's more fun to talk with someone who doesn't use long, difficult words but rather short, easy words like, 'What about lunch?'"

THREE: Dinner with the Finches from To Kill a Mockingbird

"The kitchen table was loaded with enough food to bury the family: hunks of salt pork, tomatoes, beans, even scuppernongs"

FOUR: Dessert with Laura, Mary, Ma & Pa from Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder

"Laura and Mary each had a pan, and Pa and Ma showed them how to pour the dark syrup in little streams onto the snow"

FIVE: Drinks with Jay Gatsby of The Great Gatsby

"Here's to alcohol, the rose colored glasses of life"

Bon appetit!

xoxo

Review of The Happiness Project & Keeping it Neat: Three Rules that Will Change Your Stress Level

First, a review:

I'm kind of cheating with this review here because I recently re-read The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. One part personal narrative, one part examination of happiness, this book makes me smile and cringe all at the same time. I love this book because it is hilarious and has amazing ideas for having more fun and stressing less (tips I sometimes really need). At the end of the book I felt like Rubin and I were friends, her writing style is conversational and charming. But at the same time, this book reminds me of, well, me. Rubin starts off (and stays) a Type A perfectionist- trying to manage everything and remain in control. Her ultimate goal is perfection, which doesn't always lead to happiness. This book is a great reminder, though, that I can make little changes and let go of the little things. That finding happiness doesn't mean losing everything, just some things. This book is a really great read if you're looking to reflect.

Keeping it Neat: Three Rules

I'm big on routines. It's nice to know that there is a set time for something. However, lately I've been making an effort to give myself big chunks of free time to spend with friends and family and myself. There are three rules, partially inspired by The Happiness Project that I've followed for about a year, and I think you should follow them too:

1. Make your bed immediately when you get up: This sounds so lame, but not only does de-cluttering your room help you start your day with a de-cluttered mind, but it also "checks" one thing off your mental to do list. A task completed before brushing your teeth? Yes!

2. If it takes less than one minute, do it now: This one helps me with keeping my closet in order mostly, but I've found it applies to other things too. When I'm in a rush and am trying on outfits, I'm usually just tempted to leave a heaping pile of clothes I decided not to wear on my bed/carpet. When I started following this rule, the pile disappeared. It takes about 10 seconds to hang up a shirt or a dress. It takes about 20 seconds to throw my dirty clothes into the laundry room. These seconds add up to hours of saved time later!

3. Spend fifteen minutes- yes, set a timer- cleaning up before bed: Psychologically this is so helpful. Even if there is a lot I haven't accomplished in a day, I go to sleep knowing that tomorrow I'll start out with a clean environment. I actually set a timer to make sure I don't spend too long or too short on this. I usually tackle my bathroom counter and dressing area (where most of my messes are made) during this time, but sometimes I work on unloading the laundry.

Be happy!
xoxo

The Amazing Homes of Authors

While it is often assumed the lives of many authors are plagued by financial instability that is only resolved post mortem, some are able to reap the fruits of their labor during their lifetime, enjoying comfortable- even luxurious- homes. Here are some of my favorites:

Stephen King

Bangor, Maine

 

Mark Twain 

Hartford, Connecticut

Vladimir Nabokov 

Rozhdestveno, Siverskaya, Gatchinsky District, Leningrad Oblast

Haworth Parsonage, Home of the Brontes 

Keighley, UK

Edith Wharton

Lennox, Massachussetts

Evelyn Waugh

Piers Court, Gloucestershire

Don't give up on writing!
xoxo

10 Things You Should Add to Your Reading List

I obviously love all things literary. As an aspiring journalist, however, magazine and newspaper publications will always hold a special place in my heart. While I can't say I read every newspaper and magazine cover to cover every day, I do try to keep up as best I can. Good reading makes for great writing, especially when it comes to newspaper-style prose which is different from "normal" prose. In fact, I often find that newspaper-style writing can be helpful beyond just in the newsroom- when writing essays, I often use news-paper style in the introduction, as important information is at the forefront, luring a reader in. Anyway, reading the publications listed below will keep you informed and keep your writing top notch- I hope consider picking up one of the following:

1. Newspaper: The New York Times
2. Newspaper: The Wall Street Journal
3. Magazine: The New Yorker
4. Magazine: The Atlantic
5. Magazine: Time
6. Magazine: National Geographic
7. Magazine: The Economist
8. Magazine: Vogue
9. Magazine: Harper's Bazaar
10. Magazine: Vanity Fair

Happy reading! 

xoxo

Literary Spotlight on McSweeney's Internet Tendency

I love a writer with a unique voice. In my journey to discovering my own writing "voice," I have found inspiration by reading pieces written in a distinct style. I'm a longtime fan of the website McSweeney's Internet Tendency. Internet tendency is essentially a collection of works by different writers that range from lists to graphic diagrams to stream-of-consciousness prose. Some of my favorite columns are:

1. Short Imagined Monologues: These witty monologues supposedly given by objects or people give a range of voices to each subject, often times voices that are unexpected.
2. Lists: These random lists highlight the importance of personal voice in short snippets of words.
3. Open Letters to People or Entities Who Are Unlikely to Respond: These letters are great examples of the importance of attention to detail they hit on the fine points of different subjects to create a nuanced tone.
4. Reviews of New Food: This column is sidesplitting as each food is analyzed with ridiculous seriousness. This column inspired me to work on descriptive language by calling on vivid verbs and powerful nouns so writing stays concise writing.
5. Sarah Walker Shows You How: I love this column because after reading it for a long time, I now know what a "Sarah Walker" piece sounds like. No matter what she writes about, I love reading Sarah Walker's work. Hopefully one day people will feel that way about my work!

I recommend you check these out! Enjoy!

xoxo

Five Short Stories to Read Right Now

I've hit a speed bump. This doesn't often happen to me, but when it does it seems more like I've hit a mountain, not just a bump. I haven't been able to read a book lately.

It's not that I am too busy or that I'm not interested or that I'm too tired. It's that I'm bored. It's like all of the novels I read are the same. They're long and filled with hardship but then everyone is okay in the end. There almost isn't enough for reflection when you're in the middle of a 400 plus page book. But then there are short stories. 

I love a good short story. They're always provocative. It always amazes me that so few words can hold so much power. So in times when I simply don't want to dive into an ocean of paragraphs and punctuation marks, I wade into a short story. And I think you should too. Because even if you are busy or tired or any other emotion that serves as an excuse not to think a little more, we can all spend 15 or 20 minutes simply reading. I guarantee that you'll want to think after. 

Here are my five favorite short stories:

1. "The Looking Glass" by Anton Chekov- Read this when you need a reality check. A really short story about a marriage-obsessed girl who sees a less than perfect vision of her future when looking at herself in the mirror reminds readers that sometimes you may not want what you thought you've always wanted.

2. "Where are You Going? Where Have You Been?" by Joyce Carole Oates: Read this if you love Bob Dylan or you want a subtle scare. This short story about the stalking of a young girl is based on Dylan's song "It's All Over Now Baby Blue."

3. "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman: Read this chilling tale of a woman who becomes insane if you're into Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar or if you want to read something majorly disturbing.

4. "The Nightingale and the Rose" by Oscar Wilde: Everyone should read this. It is one of the only short stories to ever make me cry because it is so sad and beautiful and real.

5. "Harrison Bergeron" by Kurt Vonnegut: Read this if you like sci-fi or dystopian literature. This short story is about a society that attempts to 'equalize' everybody by forcing the beautiful to wear masks, the strong to carry weights and the smart to be distracted by in-ear sound waves.

Hope you find a story you enjoy!

xoxo

Book Review: Scoop by Evelyn Waugh

Scoop by Evelyn Waugh is a good book for everyone, and a great book for journalists. While I can't say I'm a 'real' journalist, I do write for my university's newspaper so I know a little bit about how publications work. This hilarious, brilliantly-written story of a confused foreign correspondent highlights the importance of journalism and honesty across all facets of life. 

Scoop reminds readers to choose their words carefully. While many of the characters in the book forge scandals and events to create unique stories, the truth always seems to come out. Whether a lie is about something as inconsequential as misreporting a bird's mating habits or as monumental as reporting a freak riot in a foreign city that never happened, journalists have both the power and duty to help shape and direct public opinion. By choosing what to cover and how to cover it, journalists provide readers with a lens for seeing the world and framework for asking questions. What gets left out of a piece is just as important as what gets included. As an aspiring journalist, this hits home for me. But why are we talking about me in this book review? While this blog has often served as a platform for me to share reviews and tips that I think are useful for readers, it is also my space to think and release through writing. To me writing, and therefore journalism, is about honesty. Writing has always seemed so permanent to me. Sometimes I think my written words are the only things that will be left when I'm gone. They are lasting, so I must choose them wisely. In my coming of age quest to define who I am and what I believe in, I take this seriously- sometimes too seriously- but I can't help but place heavy weight on my pencil (or keyboard) that I now hold with confidence as it glides across sheets of paper, materializing my thoughts.

This thoughtful tangent brings me back to just what I love about Scoop and books in general: they make me think. Books push me to think harder, smarter and longer. As I turn pages in a book and turn over ideas in my mind, I turn closer to the possibility of finding another piece of my identity as a writer and a person. While Scoop resonated with me in part due to the nature of the topic, the novel also served as inspiration for who I hope to become. On a surface level, Waugh's writing is flawless, and I hope to achieve a similar level of fluidity one day. Going deeper, however, this novel is about taking risks and moving out of one's comfort zone (okay, maybe becoming a war correspondent with zero previous experience is more than just a little out of my comfort zone), yet I'm inspired to see more, do more and be more after reading Scoop. And I think you will too, if you choose to read this novel.

Happy reading! xoxo

Book Review: Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

Kazuo Ishiguro's novel, Never Let Me Go, is one of those really hyped up books that I read because it was so highly recommended even though I thought I wouldn't like it. However, I was proved wrong. I loved this book. In a sort-of-futuristic, sort-of-parallel-universe England, three best friends Kathy, Ruth and Tommy, attend an exclusive boarding school called Hailsham where they are watched over by guardians. According to the guardians, Hailsham students are 'special,' just what that means is unclear to both the readers and characters. Eventually, these students along with numerous other students across England, donate their vital organs for a 'greater good' (sort of Orwellian, don't you think? side note: happy birthday George Orwell!!).

Anyway, that's more than enough plot summary to both intrigue you and make you think this is some strange sci-fi dystopic novel.  Which it isn't.  Initially, I wanted to categorize this with The Hunger Games, but I realize that's not really what this novel is like. The England described is clearly twisted, but there's something that makes this novel only slightly unbelievable. Think a more mature Harry Potter minus the magic. I appreciated the mystery in this book and I do love a good mystery.  There is so much that the characters don't know and don't notice and that I was trying to piece together along the way. However, the characters are smart.  They don't take a hundred pages to uncover Hailsham's secrets, in fact, they often were able to piece things together before I did which I really loved.  There's a big focus on timing in the book: Hailsham students receive information about their futures at the perfect time- while they're too young to fully comprehend, but old enough to be receptive. I felt that way throughout the book, like Ishiguro was feeding me clues at the right time- after I knew there was a new secret to uncover but before I realized I had the right tools. This book kept me on my toes.

Finally, I loved how everything in the book worked out. The twisting plot left me guessing and expecting the worst, but things turned out perfectly although differently than anticipated.  The writing is also flawless and the narrator's (Kathy's) tone reminded me of observant Nick Caraway's tone in The Great Gatsby. Please do read this book. I highly recommend it.

xoxo 

20 Books to Read Before College

Happy Thursday (or it's Thursday here in Western Europe where I'm currently traveling-more on that later)... As I've been traveling with my family, we've been talking a bit about books, and I began to think about what books I'm really glad I read before college. There are so many lists I've gotten over the years- summer reading, AP lists, class reading lists- but I really wish there was one list that I could use to figure out exactly what I need to read and when.  In an attempt to make my own list, I've come up with what I think is a pretty comprehensive selection of books to read before college (in no particular order). Enjoy!

1. To Kill a Mockingbird- Harper Lee
2. Romeo and Juliet- William Shakespeare
3. The Great Gatsby- F. Scott Fitzgerald
4. The Catcher in the Rye- J.D. Salinger
5. Animal Farm- George Orwell
6. Hamlet- William Shakespeare
7. Frankenstein- Mary Shelley
8. Pride and Prejudice- Jane Austen
9. The Odyssey- Homer
10. Jane Eyre- Charlotte Bronte
11. The Bell Jar- Sylvia Plath
12. The Awakening- Kate Chopin
13. 1984- George Orwell
14. Heart of Darkness- Joseph Conrad
15. The Scarlet Letter- Nathaniel Hawthorne
16. The Adventures of Huck Finn- Mark Twain
17. Brave New World- Aldous Huxley
18. Of Mice and Men- John Steinbeck
19. Oedipus Rex- Sophocles
20. As I Lay Dying- William Faulkner

Hope you enjoyed my list... What's on yours? Happy reading!

xoxo

This Day in Literary History: Remembering Maxwell Perkins

On this day, June 17, in 1947, legendary literary editor Maxwell Perkins passed away. Perkins edited the works of literary greats such as F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway. Born and raised in New York, Perkins went to St. Paul's School in Concord, New Hampshire and then studied economics at Harvard College. I particularly love Perkins as he was a reporter for The New York Times (yay journalism!), yet what I truly admire about him is his ability to help others reach their maximum potential as writers. Perkins often said his toughest job was editing works by prolific and temperamental writer Thomas Wolfe. However, with patience and a skilled eye, Perkins was able to highlight Wolfe's talents as a writer and Wolfe attributes his success to Perkins, his editor and best friend.

In remembering the "most famous editor who ever lived," I would like to take a moment to discuss grammar, something I am extremely passionate about. We all make mistakes when writing- some people skip words or use the passive voice unnecessarily. These mistakes are usually due to poor proofreading. However, grammar is something that everyone should learn, but many people don't learn. Getting grammar rules right shows the world that you know how to express yourself clearly and intelligently. So right now, I’m going to take a few moments to share some the most common mix ups and how to avoid them:

1. Your & You’re
“Your” is a possessive adjective. (i.e. your cup, your house, your friend.)  ”You’re” is a contraction of the noun "you" and the verb "are." (i.e. you’re kind, you’re funny.) On this blog, I use a lot of contractions as I try to make things sound conversational. However in academic writing, I never use contractions which eliminates the whole your/you're dilemma. If you struggle with this, I would recommend asking yourself the question, can I say this with "you are?" If so, use you're, or better yet use both words. 

2. Should Have & Should Of
This grammar mistake is actually really easy to fix because “should of” is not an expression in the English language. What the user is probably trying to say is “should have.” When using an auxiliary verb (should, would, could) in the past tense, you need to add a past tense verb (i.e. have). The word “of” isn’t a verb, people! It’s a preposition. Keep this in mind in your writing and you'll be set!  

3. Their, There & They’re
“Their,” like “your,” is possessive (i.e. their dog). "There" is either a pronoun or an adverb: The dog played there (pronoun), There is a dog (adverb). “They’re” is actually a contraction of two words (note the apostrophe): “they” and “are” (i.e. they’re funny). You can usually avoid misusing “they’re” by simply writing, “they are”.  For the other two, try this: “their” has an “i” because I possess it. For there, ask yourself “there?”, “where?”, “there.”  Hopefully this helps.

4. Pronoun errors
If you really want to impress me, get this right because I occasionally get this incorrect myself.  Pronouns need to agree in both number & gender to the noun they refer to.  For example, “Everyone must bring their own wine” is incorrect because “everyone” is singular and “their” is plural.  However, “Everyone must bring his or her own wine” is correct.  Academic tip: this can be extremely cumbersome, especially in long papers. If you are referencing a character in a book with ambiguous gender, use the same gender as the author of the book.  

5. Misplaced modifiers
An SAT tutor I had called this “leaking oil”, because that’s the example he remembers it by: “Leaking oil, Amy took the car to the repair shop.” This is incorrect because the modifier, “leaking oil”, refers to Amy in this case.  The correct version of this sentence would read, "Leaking oil, the car was taken to the repair shop by Amy."  

These are five of the most common grammar mistakes I hear- If you really want to impress someone, use perfect grammar. Those five extra seconds of thought make you sound infinitely more intelligent.

Have a wonderful day!

Top Ten Literary Quotes

Summer Book Review: Lolita by Vladmir Nabokov

(courtesy of http://flavorwire.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/lolita-mendelsund.jpg)

I don't know if I've ever felt about a book the way I feel about Lolita. Then again, Lolita isn't like any other book I've read. I'm filled with the strangest mix of feelings now that I've finished. And that's just it- I'm filled with these undefined feelings that aren't love or hate or anything in particular.

Lolita has marked a lot of firsts for me, beginning with my not liking a single character in a book for the first time. I disliked Humbert Humbert, the twisted, aging man who fantasizes over young girls that he calls "nymphets;" selfish and manipulative Lolita, who actually initiates the physical relationship with Humbert; and Lolita's equally conniving mother Charlotte.

The way I read Lolita was also different. Usually, I get so deep into a book that I forget I'm even reading it and suddenly it's over. With Lolita, I kept having to come up for air to process what I was reading. And to be honest, I think I'm still processing as there is so much complexity to the story.

Two things about the novel really stood out: Humbert's commentary and the featured book reviews on the back cover. Humbert's commentary was so interesting to me because taken out of context, it didn't seem wrong at all. During part of the book, Humbert says that Lolita will never be allowed to go on dates unless heavily chaperoned. I've heard many parents joke about similar things saying, "you can't date until you're 30." What really got me thinking though was how much context matters. This book isn't twisted because of what is being said, but how it is being said. Humbert is serious about keeping Lolita away from her peers, while most parents wouldn't be.

The book review by Vanity Fair also got me thinking. Vanity Fair praises the novel with, "the only convincing love story of our century." In thinking about this, I'm not really sure whether or not this book is about love. On impact, it seems like it's about Humbert's obsession or infatuation with Lolita. In fact, initially, I thought "well if it was love he wouldn't have done this to her, he would've let Lolita go." But the funny thing is, he does let her go. Which leads me to think this book isn't about love, but about tension. Specifically the tension between selfishness and selflessness that are subcomponents of love. So maybe this is book is about love, but I wouldn't say this love is convincing whatsoever.

Despite my mixed feelings, I am truly happy I read this book. The topic of was definitely out of my comfort zone, but the novel was perfectly written. One critic wrote that the prose was "ecstatic," and I really can't think of a better way to describe Nabokov's writing. There is such energy in every deliberately-chosen word and the reader can actually feel the tension between the characters and their closely held secrets.

The verdict: I do recommend this book and hope you enjoy it.

xoxo

The 7 Books You Should Read in College

As an avid reader, I often find myself thinking that there are just so many great books out there and so little time to read them. Part of the reason I love summer is that there is so much time to get absorbed into a book. However, as I've gotten older, my summers have gotten busier and I'm sure yours have too. So here's my eclectic list of 7 essential books that everyone should make time to read in college (note- I've tried to avoid listing books that most people read in high school, I'll have a list of books you should read before college up soon):

1. Emma by Jane Austen: Emma is an important book as it addresses making plans. And I love plans. In college, we start making our own plans-- whether they are for lunch or for life. However, as I've said in earlier posts, things often do not go according to plan. Nonetheless, there is usually some better, perhaps even greater, plan that we might not immediately see. Emma reminds us that life's surprises can be better than the plans we imagine. In fact, we should plan to be surprised.

2. Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie: Growing up can be exciting and new independence can be liberating. At the same time, it can be scary. The classic children's story Peter Pan allows a reader to escape back into the days when Mom and Dad took care of everything and we could spend all day playing pretend.

3. Sin and Syntax by Constance Hale: This book helps readers and writers "craft wickedly effective prose." I love this book because it is funny, relatable and easy to read. This book reads much less like a writing manual and much more like a novel.

4. Lolita by Vladmir Nabokov: Almost in direct contrast with Peter Pan, Lolita is the haunting story of an old man's romantic obsession with a young girl. A story of corrupted youth and stolen innocence, this is the kind of book high school teachers rarely assign meaning college is the perfect time to dig into this racy book.

5. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fizgerald: Although this is often required reading in high school, you'd be surprised by the nuanced messages you'll discover if you revisit this novel having experienced life a little more. This classic book always reminds me to look beyond superficial glamor to find fulfillment. At the same time, it reminds readers to let loose every once and awhile and party a la Gatsby.

6. Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling: This is a great book when you're having a rough day. It reminds me that the road to success and happiness is filled with funny, frustrating and fear-filled moments. Kaling is hilarious and by the end of the book I just wanted to be her best friend.

7. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath: Plath is one of the best writers I've ever come across. Her novel The Bell Jar tells the story of Esther Greenwood who slowly goes mentally insane. This book really made my doubt myself as I didn't notice Esther's insanity until the end of the book. I think that's really important though- sometimes we need to be reminded that we don't always know everything- I know I do.

Happy reading!

What are your "must read" books?

xoxo

Summer Reading 2013

Happy summer! It's finally my favorite season of the year. To me, summer means floppy hats paired with sundresses and lazy afternoons spent with a good book and a cold glass of lemonade. Every summer I make a list of books I want to read that I've compiled throughout the academic year. My lists are eclectic and include everything from classics to mysteries to newly released books. I usually go through a book every couple of days (expect a book review soon!!), so here are the first 15 books I'll be reading this summer:

1. Lolita by Vladmir Nabokov
2. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
3. Scoop by Evelyn Waugh
4. The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides
5. The Importance of Being Earnest and Other Plays by Oscar Wilde
6. The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
7. Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh
8. This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald
9. The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell
10. Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything by Steven D. Levitt
11. The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner
12. Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple
13. The Undercover Economist by Tim Hartford
14. Save me the Waltz by Zelda Fitzgerald
15. Night and Day by Virginia Woolf

What is on your summer reading list? Have any recommendations? Comment below! 

Happy reading