Reading.....for fun!

With finals over, my summer vacation has finally begun (albeit a little late and a little short - I'm back in in 2 weeks). That means I can finally finish my summer book, "The Happiness Project" by Gretchen Rubin. And on August 26th, I'll be at Blogs & Books book club to discuss the book, hangout, and meet some new people. I'm excited to see what Colleen from Inspired to Share dreams up for decor and goodies. She's so great at that kind of stuff. I hear that summer lemonades will be served. Yum!

Meet me there!

See the new Blogs & Books Facebook page here
Sunday August 26th at 1pm at the Pabst Theater Pub
144 E. Wells St.
Milwaukee, WI

Reading: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Last month my book club read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by author Rebecca Skloot. The story is a little known and fascinating tale in the world of modern science. I remember learning about HeLa cells in Biochemistry freshman year of college; they are the test cells used in almost all medical research from studying the life cycles to testing pharmaceuticals. I, like many people I assume, never asked where these magical cells came from. Amazingly, they came from one little lady name Henrietta Lacks. The story is about the discovery of the "immortal" cell line after a routine biopsy. The life Henrietta and her children led after she was sent home never being what happened to her cells. And the lives of the scientists and the advancement of medicine because of the discovery of Henrietta's cell line. The book raises many questions about medical ethics, our right to our own bodies, and the luck that all of us have being born into a certain cell line, certain race, and certain social class. For any science lover, this book is a page-turner. The scientific jargon can become a little thick, but when the reader becomes lost in the scientific shuffle, one must imagine that so did Henrietta. The characters and setting develop over the course of the book as you slowly unravel the layers of each character. Because it is a true story you fight the pages until the end just to see what happened to everyone. The story is truly fascinating.

Read the New York Times book review HERE

Everyone in my book club really enjoyed the book. Our discussion lasted almost two hours. Overall, I gave it an 8.5/10, but the pickiest reader in our group gave it the coveted 10/10 rating. This was unprecedented. She said the story was well-written and held her attention, it taught her something new, and it forced her to brain to think. So there you have it. If you are looking for a good read, I would definitely recommend this one.

Reading: The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach

Eventhough I am not the target audience (aka white literary nerds in fantasy baseball leagues) for this book, I cannot wait to read it. And coming off the heels of the Brewers division championship, my fanaticism had leaked into my leisurely reading (and my attire). The book, written by a Wisco-native about a fictional Div. III Wisco college on Lake Michigan (Carthage, anyone?), follows short-stop and baseball prodigy Henry Skrimshander through the long path of self actualization and the pressure of perfecting each and every catch, hit, and throw. The New York Times Book Review raves about author Chad Harbach's debut novel. Bill Littlefield of the Boston Globe compares the piece to a modern day Moby Dick here. It's not surprising. Harbach, a Racine native, studied English Lit. at Harvard and University of Virginia and draws heavily from Melville, Whitman, and Dickinson. The novel is a cautious, precise read with every sentence exact, much like the main character's untamed habit of stressing, overthinking, and trying to harness the details of life. Not unlike most of us at the crux of adulthood.

I have a feeling this would be a great birthday/holiday present for the men in your life and a great read for the fall baseball season.


Any good books you girls are reading? Do tell...

MKE Style: Book Club Classy

1. Splendid Blouse, 2. Penguin Books travel pouch, 3. The Help by Kathryn Stockett, 4. Green pants (I'm seeing a lot of hunter greens this season, right?), 5. Zara Plaited Shopper, 6. Zara Velvet Moccasin (ZARA's online store is now OPEN! - hide your credit cards), 7. MAC lipstick in Ruby Woo (often seen on Sydney from The Daybook


I'm off to my first book club meeting tomorrow morning in Chicago. I figured since I'm going to be in Chi-town two days a week this semester, I better start networking. After all, I'm gonna need a place to stay. My friend's book club is reading The Help by Kathryn Stockett and then going to see the movie. I'm going to skip the movie and head back to MKE for a wedding at Best Place, but I'm excited about a.) meeting some new people b.) talking about what I liked about this book and c.) eating some brunch! I enjoyed The Help but must confess that some parts had me yawning. I liked how the narrators alternated throughout the book and how well their characters were developed. I liked the writing style - it was a fairly easy and effortless read so I highly recommend it for beach reading and the chapter set up makes it easy to set it down and pick it up a few days later without skipping a beat. And there were parts that made me laugh out loud, too.

Have you read The Help or seen the movie? How did you like it?

Design*Sponge Book out soon

Design Sponge at Home (Official Book Trailer) from The Panic Room Videos on Vimeo.

I have started my birthday wish list early now that Design*Sponge at Home book is now available for pre-order. It hits shelves this September and looks great - lots of home tours, projects, and eye candy all in what looks like a 2 1/2 inch thick hardcover book! Design*Sponge is one of my regular reads and one of the main inspirations for starting my own blog. From reading Grace's blog, I realized that there is a whole world of wonderful art, design, projects, spaces and people out there. And working with Grace for the Design*Sponge Milwaukee City Guide was such an even bigger pleasure. Traffic from her site really made my blog grow and gave me motivation to keep posting and keep blogging. So thank you, Grace, and I cannot wait to sit down and read your labor of love, "Design*Sponge at Home".

Ziggy Hanaor's guide to Bay View

I had a heart palpitation when I saw a familiar picture of Bay View in a lovely D*S post a couple days ago. I definitely need this book by Ziggy Hanaor called Graphic USA: An Alternative Guide to 25 Cities. In addition to Milwaukee, there are graphic travel guides to unconventional destinations like Anchorage, Memphis, St. Louis and Kansas City. Too cool. Time to start planning Road Trip 2011.

President Sirleaf

Before the trip, our recommended reading was this memoir, "This Child Will Be Great" written by the current Liberian President, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. She chronicles her life through many struggles, protests, imprisonments, war, and strife to finally becoming Africa's first female president. The story is just inspiring. The book also is a good primer for Liberian politics and what's going on over here. Off to the embassy for another day.

Photos will be coming--I can't find my USB cord. Oh well.

Reading: New Books by Comedians

I started reading an advance copy of Mike Birbiglia's new book a little while ago. Haven't finished it yet, but so far it is hilarious! When I went to search for my next book to read, I saw that there are a bunch of other comedian-authored books coming down the pike. Along with the book, many of them are touring and will making a stop in Milwaukee. Note of advice: bring kleenex, I laughed so hard I cried at Jim Gaffigan.



Are You There Vodka, It's Me Chelsea by Chelsea Handler (out now). At the Milwaukee Theater on November 5th.

Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk: A Modest Bestiary by David Sedaris (out September 28th). See him at the Riverside on October 23rd.

Simple Times: Crafts for Poor People by Amy Sedaris (out November 2nd). 'Strangers With Candy' fans rejoice; she'll be at Turner Hall on November 21st.

Sleep Walk With Me: and Other Painfully True Stories by Mike Birbiglia. Out October 12th. He'll be in Milwaukee on November 13th.

Movie Review: Eat Pray Love

After reading some of the reviews, I didn't have very high expectations for Eat Pray Love, because it's true: when is the movie ever better than the book? Then I was totally shocked, stunned, thrilled with one little scene. In the movie, Liz's "Rome apartment" is the building across from Hotel Portoghesi, the place we stayed last month!!! Here are a few pictures I took from the street and of the rooftop balcony. They were doing renovations on "Liz's apartment" last month. The building itself is pretty blah. Hotel Portoghesi, on the other hand, is absolutely wonderful. Good luck finding it amidst the endless alleys, but once you do, it's in a central location, has comfy rooms, and an awesome rooftop breakfast terrace. I just loved it there.

Reading: Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

I haven't had time to read (and actually finish) a book in I don't know...years? This is my first day off of work in a long time where I can just sit. Usually I take off to travel, move, go to doctor's appts, etc., etc., etc.. And what a perfect book to read during my time off--a book about taking a break from your life to just breathe, reflect, and enjoy life. The Julia Roberts movie remake of this book will be out in August (the 13th to be exact). Let's just hope it will be better than Sex and the City 2.