New year, new books

Happy new year! I hope you've had a peaceful and restful Christmas and are looking forward to all that 2016 may bring. After a few months of being in a bit of a reading slump, I was very happy to receive some lovely books from friends and family, which look tempting enough to tear me away from Mad Men (Season 4, I'm obsessed!). Last year's Christmas Reads post was pretty popular so I thought I would share with you a few words about which books I was lucky enough to be given this year. The only problem now is which to read first!

Public Library by Ali Smith

I've had this on my wish list since before it was published but somehow managed to hold off buying before Christmas. I've really got into Ali Smith over the past year after first falling in love with How to Be Both followed by Artful and then The Accidental. I can't wait to dig into this collection of short stories, all about the wonderful places that are public libraries.  I owe a lot to my local library which has provided me with copious amounts of fashion books, recipes and the classics over the years. Hopefully, there will still be some left to visit in the future!

The Little Friend by Donna Tartt

Not much really needs to be said about Donna Tartt, she is a literary genius. Ever since reading The Goldfinch and then wolfing down The Secret History (whilst simultaneously trying to savour ever word) Donna Tartt has quickly become one of my favourite authors. I knew I had to get my hands on her other novels and was so pleased to discover this one on Christmas Day.

M Train by Patti Smith

Ah, Patti! If I could fan-girl about anyone it would be her, she is such a legend. Just Kids is one of my favourite books, it is so beautifully and poetically written, and Patti's sheer drive and creative nature shines through in every word. I cannot wait to be swept into her world again with M Train.

Women in this Town by Giuseppe Santamaria

My friend Grace surprise me with this gorgeous street style book. Based on the blog Women in this Town it captures women from across the world, documenting their personal style. Each section is divided by city, be it London, New York, Tokyo etc. and it's fascinating to see how each metropolis has its own unique style. I'm looking forward to flicking through this and hopefully gaining some inspiration and perhaps the impetus to be a little braver with my style choices in 2016.

VOGUE Colouring Book by Iain R Webb

Last but not least, a fun one to end with. Colouring books for grown ups have been inescapable this year and I was secret hoping I might receive one for Christmas. Low and behold: The Vogue Colouring Book - perhaps the chicest of them all?! My lovely mum scouting this one out and I had the best afternoon spent colouring in whilst watching It's A Wonderful Life! What I love about this book is that it's so beautifully produced with drawings straight from the pages of 1950s Vogue magazines, complete with captions describing each item of clothing in glorious detail. Once I got over the fact that I had to DRAW ON A BOOK(!) I had loads of fun deciding which colour gown each model should wear. Hardly the worst dilemma to have!

I hope you all had the loveliest festive season and have loads of good books and mulled wine to keep you company during winter! Let me know if you have any recommendations in the comments, I would loving to hear them!

Xx

My Favourite Books of 2014

I know I'm a little bit late in the game to be talking about last year's 'favourites', but I couldn't leave 2014 behind without flicking through my book diary and typing up a list of my most treasured reads from the year.

Looking back, I read a total of 35 books, which I'm quite happy about. I'm not someone who can skip through a list of books at a mile a minute, but I'm hoping this year to meet the 50 mark... we shall see!

Anyway, without further ado, here are my top ten reads of 2014:

1) The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides

The Virgin Suicides is such an escapist book to read in a way and really captures the hazy, magical, boredom-filled days of teenage-hood. 

2) On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan

This is a very short novel about a young couple in the run up to their marriage. Their miscommunications and naivety, along with the pressures put upon them by their families mean that their relationship is put a risk.

3) For Esme with Love and Squalor by J.D. Salinger

This is one of Salinger's short story collections. The title story is my favourite. It's about a young girl's correspondence with a soldier during the war. Their relationship is both charming and heart-breaking. 

4) A Girl is a Half-Formed Thing by Eimear McBride

This book won the Bailey's prize for women's fiction last year and deservedly so. It is written in a stream of consciousness style and so takes a while to get into but the effort is so worth it. Its a story of a girl growing up in desperate circumstances, her brother is ill, she falls in with the wrong people, she spirals into a never-ending cycle of self-destruction and depression. It's not a cheery read but is a book that stays with you.

5) Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche

There was such a buzz around Chimamanda last year and I hope to get round to reading all her books in the future. This book opened my eyes to feminism from a Nigerian woman's perspective and made me think about attitudes to race in both America and the UK that I had never even considered before.

6) The Magic Toyshop by Angela Carter

My first Angela Carter! Unlike anything I have read before this is a magical, disturbing and unsettling modern 'fairytale'. Her writing is incredible and conjures up vivid images, of white wedding dresses, macabre toys, unconventional families, but is ultimately about a girl Melanie who trying to come into her own against this incredibly backdrop of Grimm fairytale, Greek tragedy and British folklore.

7) Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh

I loved the nostalgic atmosphere that this creates, of the country house of Brideshead, of roaming through the colleges of Oxford university, and of course Charles's obsession with Sebastian and his family. It's perfect summer reading.

8) The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

The hype surrounding The Goldfinch has been everywhere. I tried to avoid it seeing as it's such a long book but eventually gave it a go and am so glad I did! It involves art, secrets, mystery, friendships and beautifully created scenes set in New York and Vegas.

9) Not That Kind of Girl by Lena Dunham

I went to Lena's book talk in November where she was interviewed by Caitlin Moran and was completely blown away by her. She is so open with her experiences and I was often found thinking that her experiences were nothing out of the ordinary, similar things have happened to me, and yet that's what's so important about her work. She is making women's experiences important through writing about every aspect of a girl growing up and I'm excited to see what she does next.

10) Everyday Sexism by Laura Bates

This both enraged and motivated me. I don't think anyone could read this without feeling an overwhelming sense of anger but this isn't a book that rants or preaches, Laura explores the power of educating girls and boys in schools and using people power to change things, creating a network of women who are in solidarity with each other.

So that's my top ten books of the year! I'd love to know what yours are in the comments. Here's to lots more reading in 2015.

Christmas reads

I hope you've all had a lovely Christmas and have had some time to snuggle up with a book. I was lucky enough to receive a few gorgeous new books from my family this year. My mum presented me with a big cardboard box filled with these four and I couldn't have been happier. 

1. Vivienne Westwood by Vivienne Westwood & Ian Kelly

I have always had a soft spot for Queen Viv and have read pretty much everything about her I could get my hands on (see here for another Viv book review). So I was over the moon to hear that the definitive autobiography was going to be released a few months ago. This is a very hefty book, with some gorgeous lesser-known images of Vivienne, her family and her fashion designs. I'm looking forward to whiling away these cold winter days by immersing myself in Vivienne's world.

2. Women In Clothes by Sheila Heti

I have to admit, I did have to drop a few hints about this one as it's slightly more unusual. Women in Clothes takes an almost scientific look at the clothes women choose to wear in real life. Sheila Heti's project was to get hundreds of women to answer  a questionnaire about their dressing habits. The result is an almost psychological understanding of why we wear what we do, our insecurities around personal style and how we get dressed every day. I was so intrigued by this concept and have high hopes after reading Heti's 'How Should a Person Be' in 2013.

3. Elsa Schiaparelli: A Biography by Meryle Secrest

This was a complete case of judging a book by it's cover. The bright pink lured me in and I was quickly dropping hints as to how pretty it was. My knowledge of Schiaparelli is fairly limited and after watching a ShowStudio talk earlier last year about the brand's relaunch I really wanted to learn some more about the woman herself. I'm excited to read more non-fiction this year and hopefully keep those brain cells a-moving!

4. The Secret History by Donna Tartt

I was so proud to have read (and finished!) Donna Tartt's the Goldfinch last year. I don't know why but I had got it into my head that I wouldn't be able to finish it and what was the point of reading it etc. etc. but I'm so glad that I gave it a try. Donna Tartt's writing is, put simply, an absolute pleasure to read. Though her subject matter often involves history, art, classics and the like, her books never feel pretentious or inaccessible, they are just completely enjoyable and I feel like I'm learning new things and making connections all the time. I'm about halfway through The Secret History now and can honestly say it's steadily making it's way up the list of my favourite books. I'm trying to savour every word!

So that's it for my little Christmas book 'haul' - ugh how I hate the word haul! This was not an excuse to show off, I genuinely enjoy sharing what I'm reading and welcoming new books into my little book family. If you received any books for Christmas please do share - I'd love to know what your'e reading and am always looking for inspiration!

Xx