17 February 2017

Currently Reading

I have loved reading from a very young age, and usually read a 2-3  books a month.
Lately I have enjoyed reading these types of blog posts, as it can help me to pick out books that I may not have heard of, or necessarily come across whilst browsing Amazon, or Waterstones.

As reading is a big part of my life and something I have a lot of love for, I thought I would start doing one post a month all about the books I am currently reading.

I hope you enjoy :)

books
Sali Hughes Pretty Iconic: I loved, loved the first book from Sali. Pretty Honest: The Straight-Talking Beauty Companion. I sat down, and binge-read it until I finished it. It was so funny from tips to spruce your face up, for the walk of shame home, (all been there) to doing your make-up on the bus. There was parts throughout that really made me laugh out loud. It is also informative, offering tips about make-up application and skincare. It is myth-busting, and a beauty book that I regularly go back to and read again.
So as you can imagine, when her second book hit the shelves I was excited to get my mitts on it.

So onto the book itself: Pretty Iconic is a rundown of the most 200 influential beauty products past, present and future according to Sali. It has 5 chapters from The Gamechangers to The Future Icons.
I tend to dip into this book each night and read a page or two. It evokes feelings of nostalgia, Sali's witty delivery and in-depth run-down of famous products we all know and love brings back some great memories, from the Lancome Juicy Tubes, (90's kids you know what I am talking about) to the iconic Mac Ruby Woo lipstick. An informative, fun and light-hearted read, that is a page turner.
You are just dying to know what product is going to pop up next.
Any beauty lover would absolutely adore this book.


The Conscious Parent by Shefali Tsabary: A book for the parents, or anyone who has little humans in their life. This book offers some really good advice.
The premise of this book is like nothing I have read before. It talks about how we should be mindful of our own behaviour, and to look deeply into this. In turn transforming our relationship with our children.
Usually books like this are chatting about how we should be guiding our children, changing and moulding their behaviour all intertwined with discipline tactics.
Nope this book is all about the parent or care-giver looking at their own behaviour.
It was this unusual angle that had me hooked.

The underlying message that this book puts forward is that we can unconsciously put our unmet "wants" or "dreams"  onto our children. This book chats about opening your mind to the fact your wants and dreams, are not your child's and to be conscious that they very much are their own person, and not an extended version of you. Shefali suggests that children come from a much purer and truer place than us, as they haven't yet been hugely influenced by external factors, every day pressures or societies expectations. By letting them take the lead, and them showing us what they want out of this life, not what we want from them, or pushing our dreams and expectations onto them - ultimately this will help them lead a happy and fulfilled life.

This summary is just the tip of the iceberg, the book delves very deeply into transforming the way you approach parenting.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book it is one of the best parenting books I have read, but with any guidance or self-help books  I never agree with all the literature, exercises or philosophies.
I simply dip in and take snippets that I feel will be beneficial to me, and my family.

Maya Angelou Gather Together In My Name: Maya Angelou has been a huge inspiration to me since my late 20s. Maya Angelou was a civil rights activist, memorist and poet. This book is the second instalment out of the seven autobiographies Maya wrote, this one focuses on Maya's young adult life. Maya (known as Marguerite or Rita) is a 17 year old single mum to baby boy Clyde.

She lives with her mother and step father in San Fransisco. It is post war and there is an air of relief and optimise that surrounds the first chapter. Pre-Civil Rights, the book documents her trials and tribulations of a teenager dealing with racism, sexism, identity and finding a place for her and her son in the world. You can immediately tell this women is feisty and hard-working, she will try her hand at any job she can so she can support herself and son. She gets a job at a local restaurant cooking "creole" she has never cooked in her life and totally wings her way through, becoming well loved by the customers. She meets a young man at the restaurant with whom she has an affair, it doesn't last long as he leaves to return back to his wife.

Leaving San Fransisco behind to start afresh in California, she starts by working in a bar and living with an Elderly women who looks after Clyde. After a series of events, some alcohol and marijuana, overnight she becomes a pimp to a lesbian couple. Yes this book is really something else.
A series of events unravel concerning this dangerous set up, and Maya has to flee California.
She returns to San Fransisco a little shook up, but with a bucket full of confidence, attitude and determination.
She isn't back home long before things take a turn for the worse. Maya has an encounter with a white sales clerk who racially insults her, instead of walking away Maya stands up for her self.
When reading this part of the chapter, well you can't help but yelp with joy.
But news travels fast, and with the news reaching her Grandma, Maya is slapped across the face and banished for bringing such shame, and danger on the family.

Maya's tenacity and bravery is nothing but inspirational. I am only half way through this book and I can not put it down. I admire how open, unashamed and truthful Maya was about her earlier life. She shared all this with the world back in 1974, when a lot of people around her wanted to keep her past a secret. But not Maya no, she wanted her voice to be heard, and most of all wanted her story out there in the hope that it would help others - and that it did.

What are you currently reading at the mo?

                        






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13 comments

  1. Pretty Iconic is such a good book - I love Sali's writing style so much!

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  2. I love reading too although I don't find much time nowadays :( I want to read that Sali Hughes book though!

    Annie xx | www.musingsofamakeupjunkie.com

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  3. Omg I used to love the Juicy Tubes. I really want her book it looks fab xx

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  4. Pretty Iconic is one I really want to read! I love reading, it's my chill out time.

    Amy - http://amyevans.blog

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  5. I'm currently reading Lauren Graham's biography but will definitely start Pretty Honest next as I received that for my birthday too.

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  6. I have pretty iconic too and love it, I have pretty honest and loved that too, both such good books, I am currently reading the new Katie Price autobiography which is so good, I got both pretty iconic and that as christmas gifts, I have read pretty iconic mostly but I have also been slowly flicking through this and it's really good. I used to read so much but don't anymore and really want to get back into it xxx

    Zoe ♥ MammafulZo

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  7. Juicy tubes! these were a staple of my early teens 'so fancy' I really want to read pretty iconic!

    Kenzie x
    Kenzie | LemonaidLies - Beauty, Fashion & Lifestyle

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  8. I am really putting an effort in this year to read more! I would love to be one of these book a week persons as there are already too many to count books on my reading list! If only I could give up sleep and still function!

    I've never read any Maya Angelou books, excerpts, but not the whole thing and I feel like I'm really missing out on something!

    Sarah :)
    Saloca in Wonderland

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  9. Sali's books have been on my wish list for SO long and still yet to order!! A good reminder for me to do so! Great ideas for my reading xx

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  10. Great recommendations - I think I need to get Sali's second book!

    Gemma x | flutterandsparkle.com

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  11. Adore the Sali Hughes book! xx

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  12. I've been eyeing up both the Sali Hughes books for ages so I definitely need to bite the bullet and buy them! The Maya Angelou autobiographies sound interesting too, she was such an amazing and interesting person!

    http://taradaniella.com/

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  13. Pretty Iconic is such a good book!

    Georgia x
    www.georgiahathaway.co.uk

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