February Reads

February is almost over, and I’m not sad….because March is my wedding month!! But before February comes to a close, I want to share my February reads with ya. This month I happened to read a lot of nonfiction. My reading isn’t ever planned out; it’s typically based on whatever becomes available on my library “holds” list (I’m a big fan of the library – super nerd right here!) and I’ll read what I have on hand. As always, if you have any book suggestions, I love hearing about those in the comments section!

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leave your mark by Aliza Licht

The first two books I read this month were from a career advice list on one of my favorite blogs, Camille Styles. I read this beautiful blog nearly every morning – it’s a good one! The first book, Leave Your Mark, is by Aliza Licht, who is known as “fashion’s favorite PR girl.” She talks all about career choices, moving up the corporate ladder, and handling difficult situations gracefully. I mean, who isn’t thinking about their career in their twenties? It was a quick, really fun read that every recent college grad (or not so recent – like me) could benefit from. It’s sassy and helpful in dealing with issues like asking for promotions, landing internships, and behaving on social media, and it’s definitely not just for people who are in the fashion industry.

The corssroads of should and must by elle luna

This book was written as an expansion of an essay that Elle wrote in 2013 titled “The Crossroads of Should and Must,” which was tweeted over 5 million times in a few weeks. Her book discusses the difference between “should” – what we feel we are supposed to be doing (and we often feel guilty if we’re not!) and “must” – that unavoidable calling in life that fills our hearts with joy. I loved how this book put so much into perspective for me with various exercises, like writing your own obituary and filling it with everything you’d want it to say. (I literally sat down at my computer after reading this book and wrote my own obituary, and let me tell ya – it really changed my perspective on how I’m spending my days!)

thrive by arianna huffington

This book is a MUST for those of you who feel you push yourself to the limit, day after day, trying to pursue your career or chase your dreams. If you sacrifice sleep, exercise, health, and sanity in order to get ahead in life, (and I’m guilty of having done those things at multiple points in my life), Thrive needs to be on your bookshelf. While the first book I read this month was about propelling your career, this book was about everything but that. Arianna discusses the things outside of money, power, and status, that lead to a meaningful life like getting adequate sleep, unplugging from your devices, being curious about the spiritual world, and investing in relationships. Since reading it, I committed to four simple ways to unplug from my phone, and I have to share that the one that has made the biggest difference is not picking up my phone at red lights! I used to always reach for it to check texts or Facebook while I waited for the light to change, and since I’ve begun using that time to focus on my breathing instead of scrolling through my phone, I can feel the stress draining from my body. It’s seriously incredible!

i said yes by emily maynard johnson

Hehe…ok, yes, I read the former Bachelorette star’s memoir this month. I don’t watch the show much these days, but I was really into it back in the days of Jillian, Emily, Sean, Ali, Ben, and Juan Pablo (<- OMG! Does anyone remember him?! HA!). I put this book on my 2017 Reading Challenge under the category “A Book You Don’t Want to Admit You’re Dying to Read.” The book is probably just about how you’re imaging it: it’s Emily’s perspective on her childhood and adult years, followed by the inside scoop of her experiences on The Bachelor and The Bachelorette. She went through some pretty tough stuff early on before she was ever a reality TV star, and she definitely incorporates her spirituality into her book. It’s written with a casual prose, almost as if you’re having a chat with her, and if you watched her season of The Bachelorette, this would be a fun book to read on the weekend.

Another brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson

Another Brooklyn, which was up for the National Book Award for Fiction in 2016, was something I listened to as an audiobook during a weekend road trip this month. It’s essentially a series of memories that the protagonist has about growing up in Brooklyn as an African-American in the 1970’s. I found out about it via Anne Bogel’s blog post last May titled 13 books everyone will be talking about this summer (<- which also has a couple other good suggestions on it!).

beatlebone by kevin barry

I tend to steal Nate’s books when he’s done reading them, and this one was no exception. Beatlebone is the fictional account of John Lennon when he’s 37-years old and going through a nervous breakdown. Y’all, this book is weird. It’s super trippy. I’d say it took me at least 50 pages to even make some sort of sense of it! But if you’re a big Beatles fan and would like to read a incredibly original novel written about them, check it out! I will say, though, that if Nate didn’t already have this book on hand, I probably wouldn’t have chosen to read it..

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Aaaand….can it be March now??! Happy Monday, everyone!

Love,

Kelsey

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