Showing posts with label Sally Rooney. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sally Rooney. Show all posts
1/06/2019
My Top 10 Reads of 2018
2018 was the year of reading. A lot. I read 74 books-including literary magazines. After a bit of tweaking I've managed to come up with a list of my ten favourite books read in 2018. It's not ranked by preference but these are all titles I read and loved during the year...
Everything I Know About Love x Dolly Alderton: How incredibly unexpected is this inclusion? Ahem. This hardback tome of Dolly's tales and wisdom was read and read with such joy. I laughed loudly in public reading excerpts, I cried. I wanted to wallpaper my walls and notebooks with Dolly's prose. This is such a special, charming, brilliant book and I look forward to reading it again soon.
M Train x Patti Smith: I read and reread a few of Patti Smith's writings this year. It was M Train, her love letter to writers, writing, coffee and contemplation that has stuck with me. I read this in Spring and it made me want to plan a writerly holiday and left me yearning for more of the beauteous thing that is solo travel. Patti Smith's writing is potic and whimsical and hums with quiet, understated charm.
Normal People* x Sally Rooney: Ahem, again how unexpected. Sally Rooney's writing makes my mind turn into the heart reaction emojis on Facebook+Instagram. She dissects every nuance of character and relationships with such finesse. The way in which her stories evolve and travel forward by dialect is just brilliant. Normal People resonates because Connell and Marianne are so believable. I see fragments of them all around me in people I know. Rooney's writing is so alluring and it's not surprising to me that this tile has been flying off the shelves.
My Year of Rest and Relaxation x Ottessa Moshfegh: A darkly brilliant novel about twenty-somethings. Existential crises swirl around unlikeable characters. This book about a faceless protagonist who sleeps for a year, occasionally surfacing for the odd shopping spree and Whoopi Goldberg film session, is dark but hilarious. The ways in which it commentates on loneliness and life unravelling are so poignant. While the novel is satirical, if you are feeling a little vulnerable, perhaps venture in to this one with caution.
The Cost of Living x Deborah Levy: An introduction to Levy for me. A book of loss, relationships spanning generations, writing sheds and contemplation. It all unfolds so seamlessly and Levy's writing is intricately detailed.
Tinderbox x Megan Dunn: A recommendation from Kiran's blog feature last year. A book about the art of adapting Farenheit 451. Also a book waxing lyrical on Megan Dunn's days as a bookseller for Borders. Addicting, hilarious reading. I loved it.
How To Be Both x Ali Smith: 2018 was the year I also read a lot of Ali Smith's words. Rather than fill this list with her books, I've gone for the one that has stayed with me. A novel that plays with the concept of fresco painting. It is multifaceted. A story set across two time periods; the present day and renaissance Italy. It looks at two teenager's perspectives on love, art, loss, the passage of time. It's cleverly done.
Bluets x Maggie Nelson: So this is a reread but it's another book I think on often. Nelson's meditations and musings on the colour blue. How she sees it in her life and the world around her. Its presence in art. Beautifully written and a book I've scribbled annotations throughout.
Call Me By Your Name x Andre Aciman: Read last Summer in frenzied bursts on my commute to and from work. Conjuring memories of Italy and its gorgeous scenery and architecture. First loves, exquisite dialogue, peaches and Summer frivolity. Every bit as rich and lush as the film.
Crudo x Olivia Laing: This book is short and punchy. Written during 2017 through the lens of Kathy Acker as a narrator. It draws parallels with events from Laing's own life. Crudo is raw and a times I found myself needing to escape the heavy all too real prose. At the same time I love the truth and timeliness contained within its pages.
/ What did you read and love in 2018?
*Review copy
11/07/2018
October Favourites
Hello, long time no blog. Whoops. I'm sorry my blogging is all over the shop but at the same time I enjoy my (almost) total lack of schedule these days. Today we have some of my favourite things during October. It was a good month for favourites, I actually edited this list down a tad because it was going to be too long. There's books, that TV show I'm a bit behind on and more...
normal people* x sally rooney: This. Book. Though. I know it's everywhere and it's getting a lot of praise but it's valid. Normal People is the story of Connell and Marianne, two teenagers who come from very different worlds. Marianne is well-off yet alienated and Connell comes from an underprivileged background, yet is well-liked and respected by his peers. We follow them from high school through to their early twenties as they navigate adulthood and university. Normal People contained some aspects which really resonated with me personally and I guess subsequently I feel more enthusiastic about this novel as a result. Sally Rooney really finetunes her characters like nobody else and I'm rather obsessed with the way she develops her characters throughout her novels. It's so brilliantly done. I highly recommend this book-I cannot stop thinking about it and I kinda regret lending my copy out because I already want to revisit it.
sweetener x ariana grande: I'm sure this inclusion will perhaps raise some eyebrows but y'know what, I spent too long listening to music I didn't actually like and now I just embrace what I like to listen to. Life is so much better #sophiesrevelations. In seriousness, this album is a bop and I love it. It's my car soundtrack, commute soundtrack, applying makeup soundtrack. I listen to it a lot ok. Side note: thank u next is an anthem. Anyway, sweetener is a good time and I'll probably have it on high rotation for a while.
stila magnificent metals liquid eyeshadows: These eyeshadows have made their way into a few favourites posts now so I will keep this brief. Liquid, glittery goodness that lasts and looks stunning. I always receive compliments when I wear these. I'm not gonna lie-they're a bit of a mood raiser. Glitter eyeshadow just makes my heart happy y'know.
pretty little liars: Ok so I'm a bit behind everybody else and only really discovered PLL a couple of months ago but I am hooked. So much drama, that 00's fashion, the whole thread of mystery and intrigue. Who even is A!? Don't tell me...
this really isn't about you x jean hannah edelstein: I love personal essays so much and whilst I'm still reading this volume, I had to include it here. I love books like this that I am able to immerse myself in and zone out. Free from the distractions of the world. Actually I just love reading as escapism in general but more on that another time. Anyway, if you like biographical essays as much as I do, get ahold of this.
yu ling roller: It was this blog post by Tara that reminded me I had a jade roller I'd shoved to the side of my bathroom cabinet. It's now become one of my favourite things. One-It's a massage for my face and after a hectic day, I am all about that unwinding time. I also love using it to apply serums as well.
-What have you loved recently?
*Review Copy
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