not today
h e l l o t h e o
this week’s style inspo:
Marsha P. Johnson
what I’m clicking:
MY HUSBAND WAS IN THE NEW YORK FUCKING TIMES | The stolen kids of Sarah Lawrence | Why men have no friends | I find these old ladies responsible for a Hong Kong crime ring to be quite inspiring | The youths have outsmarted the spelling bee | Books: the comeback of the century | The challenge of going off psychiatric drugs | Caity Weaver takes a train to nowhere | As somebody who deals with hundreds of stock photos every week, I love this gender inclusive stock photography project | MY BOOK IS ON SALE TODAY!
what I’m wanderlusting:
Bulgaria’s Rila Monastery.
what I’m listening to:
Do I talk about cults too much? I love cults. Do you love cults too? Then listen to the Nxivm podcast and Teal Swan: The Gateway.
what I’m coveting:
I really feel like I need a mini ostrich feather bag in my life. Do you need one too?
what I’m watching:
Always Be My Maybe. This is hands down the best rom-com I have ever seen in my life. It’s nearly perfect. Please tell me your criticism of this movie because I cannot find a flaw in it (except that I don’t think celebrity chefs are rich enough to afford that kind of real estate...?)
what I’m writing about:
How to be fancy when you’re not.
what I’m reading:
Chad Harbach
I’m not sure what possessed me to read this book. It’s 500-ish pages about baseball but I actually sort of enjoyed it? Overall, I would say it’s quite pointless and the cutest bits were all pretty contrived, but I didn’t get too sick of it. Even though it’s sports! I hate sports!
Did it make me cry: No.
Did it make me laugh: No.
Did it make me miss a subway stop: No.
Would I recommend it: No.
Would I read it again: No.
Would it be a good movie: No.
Oyinkan Braithwaite
This book has a lot of potential but it just didn’t *quite* do it for me. I think it’s just a bit too trashy. Although it’s very juicy and very fun to read, it’s just not the kind of book you think about or talk about even five minutes after you’ve finished it.
Did it make me cry: No.
Did it make me laugh: No.
Did it make me miss a subway stop: No.
Would I recommend it: No.
Would I read it again: No.
Would it be a good movie: Ooooh this would be a fun one, I think!
Elizabeth Gilbert
Holy shit I *LOVED* reading this book. Every day at work I would just think about the day being over so I could go back home to my new friends that lived between the pages of this book. It's fabulous and sweet and funny and just such a vivid picture of a time and a place—arguably the BEST time in the BEST place. I don’t care how you feel about Elizabeth Gilbert—if you love New York City, you should read this book.
Did it make me cry: No comment.
Did it make me laugh: Yes!
Did it make me miss a subway stop: I would have ridden all the way to Coney Island with this book.
Would I recommend it: It is nothing like Eat, Pray, Love, I promise!
Would I read it again: Probably not.
Would it be a good movie: If somebody doesn’t Baz Luhrmann the fuck out of this thing, I’m giving up on pop culture.
Candice Carty-Williams
I honestly try really hard not to read the backs of books, but sometimes the blurbs are unavoidable and somewhere (probably on the cover?) I read that this book was like a British version of Americanah (one of my top ten favorite books of all time) but I assure you: It is not. Comparing it to Americanah does it a disservice because it’s it’s own kind of book, heartbreaking and raunchy in equal measure. But the disturbing thing is that the sex scenes are so so explicit in this breezy way that I think is meant to be sexy (it’s horrifying) and the entire book is so depressing that it just made me feel... yucky. It’s like an X-rated YA book, if that makes sense. But I wanted to hug Queenie and tell her everything is going to be ok. Even though I didn’t love the book, you can’t help but love the main character.
Did it make me cry: No, but it’s really, really, really depressing.
Did it make me laugh: No.
Did it make me miss a subway stop: No.
Would I recommend it: Probably not.
Would I read it again: No.
Would it be a good movie: I think you could take the storyline and hire a whole new writer to add some lightness to it (and make the sex scenes more of a drunken fumble than a hard-core date rape situation) and it would work.
Kathleen Alcott
This book is pure nonsense but in a way that I very much appreciate. The entire novel is based on a series of ever more improbable facts and situations (Cheap rent in Brooklyn Heights? A landlord that takes paintings instead of cash as payment? Neighbors that legitimately care about each other???) but it’s one of those cute books about a group of strangers that end up as family. There are perfectly lovable characters that are flawed in just the right way and perfectly hateable villains that are insidious in just the right way. The ending is bonkers and the whole thing might be an unrealistic fantasy, but it’s still a great read.
Did it make me cry: Yes.
Did it make me laugh: No.
Did it make me miss a subway stop: No.
Would I recommend it: To some.
Would I read it again: No, but I’d love to read anything else by this author and she just came out with a new book I’m very interested in—America Was Hard to Find.
Would it be a good movie: I think it would have been a good movie if it came out in the era of Garden State. But alas, I'm afraid it's time has passed.
Andrea Bartz
The unreliable female protagonist is definitely a money maker and this book is a testament to that fact. Even with it’s possible plot holes, it is SUCH a fun read—not just because it’s a juicy thriller with a twist ending, but because it so vividly takes you to a specific part of Brooklyn during a specific time period. It’s a love letter to post-recession Bushwick and it’s done so well that I felt like I knew these characters and attended these parties.
Did it make me cry: No.
Did it make me laugh: No.
Did it make me miss a subway stop: I finished this book so quickly.
Would I recommend it: To anybody who has lived and loved in Bushwick and anybody looking for their next thriller.
Would I read it again: No.
Would it be a good movie: Limited series TV show (which is what it’s becoming, thankfully)!
Elizabeth Strout
I’m not into this book and I’m very confused about the Pulitzer Prize and the extensive accolades this book received. It was SUCH a chore to read.
Did it make me cry: No.
Did it make me laugh: No.
Did it make me miss a subway stop: No.
Would I recommend it: I’m not the audience for this book, but maybe you are. I’d like you to read it and then explain to me why it’s a good book.
Would I read it again: No.
Would it be a good movie: No.
Taylor Jenkins Reid
READ THIS BOOK—or better yet, listen to it on audio. Part Almost Famous, part A Star is Born, it’s a fictionalized oral history of the biggest made-up band of the 70s (with some drama reminiscent of Fleetwood Mac). I read it in less than 24 hours and it brought so much joy into my life. It made me want to be a rockstar (or at least throw a wild party in my bungalow at the Chateau Marmont).
Did it make me cry: No.
Did it make me laugh: No.
Did it make me miss a subway stop: Could not put it down.
Would I recommend it: It’s a bit tricky to get into at first because of the format, but it’s so worth reading.
Would I read it again: I would listen to it on audio if I had a road trip coming up.
Would it be a good movie: Fuck yes.
what I’m bookclubbing: We’ll be discussing Disappearing Earth on June 12 (tomorrow) in Brooklyn!