Hey You Guys!
HOW is it March already? February came and went in a flash, and it was such a wonderful month. I am so happy that March is here though, because it just means we are only SIX weeks away from Mexico! My boyfriend’s sister Danielle is getting married in Mexico in April, and we are going down for two whole weeks <3 I can’t wait to swim in the ocean, go snorkeling, take hundreds and hundreds of photos, spam Instagram & to maybe possibly get a tan for once in my life, haha. I am going to bring a huge stack of books with me as well, so if you guys have any great “Beach Reading” suggestions, leave them in the comments, xo!
Here are some of my personal favorite things from the past two weeks <3
1.) TV Shows/ This past week we watched the Netflix show “The OA” and we absolutely LOVED it. It was such an interesting, complex, and fantastic show. So many incredible ideas, and the acting was phenomenal. This show definitely isn’t for everyone, but if you are into the “Stranger Things” vaguely sci-fi vibe, with a bit of mystery.. then you will probably love this. The star of this show Britt Marling, also wrote and produced this show, which I loved as well. I would give this a hands down 10/10. I don’t want to give any information at ALL about what this show is about, because I honestly think going in blind is the way to go. The whole show unfolds almost like being told a story, and it’s better to just let the show tell it.
2.) Movies/ The Oscars were this past week, and Ryan and I managed to marathon as many of the “Best Picture” movies as we could. Also a few others. First we watched “Fences”, which was stunning. Denzel Washington was just riveting in this role. 10/10/ . We also watched two movies starring Amy Adams, who was amazing in both. First up was “Nocturnal Animals” (which was based on a bool I’ve read) which was so SO good, and the cinematography was so beautiful. It was directed by the fashion icon Tom Ford as well, which was cool. 9/10. Next up was “Arrival” which has to be one of the BEST alien movies I’ve seen in years. The concept, the acting, the visual effects.. all of it was just executed so well, and felt so chilling. I really liked this one. 10/10.
3.) Music/ I’ve been obsessed lately with the band “Seafret”, mainly with their two songs “Oceans” and “Wildfire”. Such beautiful vocals. Very Ed-Sheeran like, but different as well. I’ve also been loving James Arthur’s song “Say You Won’t Let Go”.
<3
The past two weeks were very busy, and I only managed to read two books. These two books were part of my “2017 Reading Challenge, 52 Books, 1 Book A Week” challenge, and the two challenges were
#1.) A Book Written By A Female Author
#2.) A Book By Someone Who Isn’t A Writer
1.) A Book Written By A Female Author
” How To Murder Your Life”
by, Cat Marnell
My Rating: 10/10
Cat Marnell is a fantastic writer, who has written a column for Vice, as well as SELF, Nylon & Glamour Magazine. This book “How To Murder Your Life” is her personal memoir, and I couldn’t be happier to have chosen this one to read for the challenge. I decided to get the book in E-Book form, and reading it on my iPhone and iPad, while I’m on the go. I have never really liked reading on a Kindle, and I’ve always said over and over how I prefer the real thing. I still stand behind that, and I prefer having the physical copy of the book more obviously.. but reading on my phone didn’t turn out to be as bad as I thought. The app iBooks is actually pretty cool, and you can change the font size and background colors and all that, so it’s kind of neat. Also I felt like I could just pull this book out and read it anywhere, anytime.. which was great because this book is very long (almost 630 pages). All that being said I LOVED this book so much, that first thing tomorrow I’m actually going to go buy the physical copy as well, because I just need it on my shelf. You know that feeling when you love something so much, you need to own it <3
Cat Marnell’s memoir is largely about her drug addiction, and about how she lived her life in New York City, working for various popular magazines…while battling severe addiction. This is also the story of her life, her childhood, high-school, college, and so on. Her writing style is immediately captivating, and she is so hilarious and real-seeming. You will find yourself relating to her incredibly self aware observations on youth, school, first love, etc. It’s just so spot on, it’s almost eerie.. you just find yourself almost cringing, because it brings back all those awkward high-school moments, and just makes them feel so real again. The same goes for all her adult mishaps as well.. from everything to friends, boyfriends, rehab, being fired, being hired.. and anything else in between.
She manages to write about her incredibly interesting career in great deal, without it being boring or repetitive. I might be biased because she worked for many magazines/websites that I worshiped as a teenager & currently.. like NYLON, and VICE. I found it so interesting to hear the in’s and out’s of all the magazine offices, Conde Nast parties, meeting celebrities, etc. Her life is seriously so interesting, and I love reading anything set in New York City as well. She describes the city in such detail as well, that you can almost picture all the streets and places she describes. The way she writes makes you feel like you are reading her diary. She is completely authentic, and so refreshing to read about.
This book does have some very dark subject matter in it as well, and some of it might definitely be upsetting for some readers. Anyone who is struggling with addiction issues might find this book a bit of a trigger, but overall I think the subject of addiction was treated well. It’s a very real story about what actually happened to this girl, and some of the stories might not be pretty, but they are her reality. I really respected that about the story, and I didn’t find myself offended by any of the material.
This book was gripping, and I really recommend it to anyone who enjoys memoirs/ and or the fashion industry.
I’ll attach the Good-Reads Plot as well, in case any of you are interested
GoodReads Plot
(At the age of 15, Cat Marnell unknowingly set out to murder her life. After a privileged yet emotionally-starved childhood in Washington, she became hooked on ADHD medication provided by her psychiatrist father. This led to a dependence on Xanax and other prescription drugs at boarding school, and she experimented with cocaine, ecstasy… whatever came her way. By 26 she was a talented ‘doctor shopper’ who manipulated Upper East Side psychiatrists into giving her never-ending prescriptions; her life had become a twisted merry-go-round of parties and pills at night, and trying to hold down a high profile job at Condé Naste during the day.
With a complete lack of self-pity and an honesty that is almost painful, Cat describes the crazed euphoria, terrifying comedowns and the horrendous guilt she feels lying to those who try to help her. Writing in a voice that is utterly magnetic – prompting comparisons to Brett Easton Ellis and Charles Bukowski – she captures something essential both about her generation and our times. Profoundly divisive and controversial, How to Murder Your Life is a unforgettable, charged account of a young female addict, so close to throwing her entire life away.)
2.) A Book By Someone Who Isn’t A Writer
“My Life As Eva: The Struggle is Real”
by, YouTuber Eva Gutowski
My Rating: 8/10
Ok so first off, I am way too old to be reading this book probably haha. When I saw what the challenge was this week, I thought this would be the perfect choice. Eva Gutowski is the creator of the mega successful You-Tube channel “My Life As Eva” which has over 7 million subscribers, and counting.
I have always known what YouTube is, and up until this past few years, I was mainly only using it to watch weird old-school Spice Girls music videos. Then I discovered the whole BookTube Community, and I was hooked. I absolutely loved seeing this online community that was dedicated to reviewing, and gushing over books. So many book hauls, reviews, rants, etc etc. Through all of that, I ended up randomly getting into YouTuber’s who have beauty channels, photography channels too! There is so much great stuff on YouTube, and literally any time I have a problem with my camera I look up “How to fix ___ on a Canon 7D?”, and I have my solution within minutes. Sometimes even a full video, where I can watch someone else guide me through it step by step. It’s so incredible.
So long story short I came across Eva’s channel “My Life as Eva”, and it was the great video she had made of a recent trip to the Bahamas. I was completely blown away with the filming quality, the photos, them music, her outfit… I ended up subscribing, and even though a lot of her material is geared more towards high-school kinds, I always enjoy her travel vlogs, and DIY’s. I think my favorite of all her social-media platforms, is definitely her Instagram. She is a seriously talented photographer, and she has a very distinct style to her photos, which I greatly admire. I love the tone of them, and just everything.
When I saw she had her own book coming out, I was excited. I knew it was going to be a gorgeous looking coffee-table type book, full of her photography. It is also a full book, all about her life, relationships, and hard things she has been through as well. I don’t really have anything bad to say about this book, the only problem was that it was definitely written for a younger girl haha. High-school age for sure. That being said any fan of her channel will love the inside look, and all the behind the scenes stuff, photos etc. I do wish that she had gone more into detail, about beginning her You-Tube channel, and her rise to You-Tube fame. She doesn’t really go into any of that, which I found a bit disappointing.
I liked this overall though, and I’m happy to have it on my coffee table <3
GoodReads Plot
(From the popular YouTube personality Eva Gutowski comes an amazing book on all the ups and downs of life that everyone goes through, but no one is able to easily push through. From living on a diet of ramen noodles (and the occasional lucky maple poptart), to getting dumped not one- not two, but three times in high school, Eva has truly seen the craziest of times. She wants you to laugh, cry, and resonate with her beyond-embarrassing moments, in the hopes that you too will see that the joy in life is getting through it all with nothing but a smile—because your smile is pretty dang special.)
Thanks for Reading you guys! Be sure to check back March 15th, for my March Wrap Up Pt1.
xo,
Carly