gift guide: mother's day

Mom's day is fast approaching. 

What are you planning on getting your favorite moms this year?

ONE | TWO | THREE | FOUR | FIVE | SIX A | SIX B

serenity

I want this so badly right now. I'm really itchin' for warmer weather...

Are you guys reading any good books these days?

No-Obligations Book Club

 I've always been a pretty avid reader but, lately I've been finding myself either re-reading old favorites or long, never-ending series (ie Game of Thrones). I needed to shake things up a bit so in December, I started a book club on Facebook. I didn't really know how to get it started so after some googling I found a lot of "no-obligation" book clubs allowing members the freedom to choose whether they can read that month or not. I liked this idea and ran with it thus creating The No-Obligations Book Club.

The books for February have been chosen:

The Great Gatsby

Between the Lines

Blankets

Best Of Me

Head over to the facebook page to join in on the fun. If anything it's great place to find some new books to read! (click here to go to page)

Monthly Read: The Godfather

I have gone all of my 23 years of life without seeing The Godfather. Trust me, I'm not proud of it. As an Italian, I feel as if that's some sort of sin. Either way, I was browsing through an amazing bookstore in Kansas and came across an old vintage Godfather from 1969 for only $2.00. I immediately snatched that up and decided it was a sign that I should finally get know Don and the rest of the Family. I haven't had much of a chance to read it since buying it last week, but I'm not even a chapter in and already enthralled.



* movie poster found here
** The Dusty Bookshelf, where I bought the book. I'll post some pictures I snapped of it later.

(Also, slightly embarrassing but I noticed once it was too late, that there is a spelling error in that photo...)

To Kindle or Not to Kindle?

source: imgfave.com

You may have read by now that I'm obsessed with books and reading. There is nothing better than getting lost in a different world. While reading a book, my life consumes it. I dream about the characters, I relate my life to the plot, I even get sad (and grieve) when the story is over. I know I can't be the only person who is like this. I love the smell and feel of books. Opening that page and diving into a new story full of emotions and memories. Ah, ok I'm sounding crazy.

ANYWAYS - the main reason for this post is that I've been thinking about the pros and cons of an e-reader. My friend, Calli, owns one and so does my dad. I've read one book (the 2nd book of the Hunger Games trilogy, in fact) on one and still have mixed feelings. 

I recently came across an article talking about the 7 reasons why you SHOULD try out an e-reader. Check it out here

What do you guys think? Are you a book or an e-reader fan

Saturday's Reading Material

Anyone else obsessed with magazines? I seriously live for them. To be honest, I'm probably solely responsible for keeping the magazine industry in business. I have so, so many favorites that I read every month. When I do sit down with my magazines I always bring along a pen and paper. You always find great ideas or things that you want to check out but never remember to. This way, I can ... take notes. I know, it sounds silly. I read so many magazines that I often forget which ones I've read and which ones I haven't. I even buy the UK Edition of some magazines just for some fresh material. (Or accidentally, thinking "Oh! New Cosmo!" and then I realize it's UK once I get home. It's happened on numerous occasions).

What are some of your favorite magazines?

Reading Material

I'm currently reading this book called The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. I ironically stole it from my mom's book shelf the last time I was home. It's about a young girl in Nazi Germany who finds herself encountering something she cannot resist: books. She steals them, learning to read and then sharing them with neighbors including the Jewish man hiding in her basement. The most interesting thing about this story is that it's narrated by Death.

All in all, it's a story about how books can feed your soul. Something I've always been a firm believer of. Now, go read something my pretties!

Reading is Sexy

Reading is Sexy by stellaandcharlie featuring a bowler bag

Reading is Sexy

I have a small obsession with books. Not just simply reading them but even looking at them! Have you seen how creative some people can be? I mean, take a look at this little red wagon that stole my heart:

Or this room! I wanna die just looking at it! But any ways, back to books. I have a whole list (and book shelf) of books that I've been meaning to get around to. The main reason I haven't read most of them is because I went through a 2-3 year phase where I wanted to read nothing but the Harry Potter series in its entirety over and over ... and over and over again. I grew up with the series so it means a great deal to me. So, my book bucket list has grown quite a bit over the past few years.

 

My current book is Lord of the Rings! I'm pretty excited about it. I've seen the "trilogy" (According to the prologue its not a trilogy but actually one book released in three parts. Sorry, nerd tangent) before but never got around to the 1, 137 pages.

One day I'll blog my book bucket list :)