Winter Reading List

I've always loved reading. Lucky for me growing up, my version of Christmas morning happened on the first day of every month during the school year, when the teacher would place the Scholastic Book Club catalog underneath our desks. If you were born in the 80s, you know what I'm talkin' about! My parents generously allowed me to order several books a month and I took full advantage. 

I read everything I could get my hands on... Goosebumps, the American Girl series, Babysitters Club, Nancy Drew... then I was onto more serious themes in my early teens... 1984, Of Mice and Men, To Kill a Mockingbird, Lord of the Flies, The Great Gatsby... enter college cheesiness.... Jen Lancaster, Nicholas Sparks, Danielle Steele (I just admitted that, wow)... then onto young adult... David Sedaris, Ernest Hemingway... and now I'm into it all plus a little enlightenment and business related prose.

Despite my love of reading, I don't get around to it as much as I'd like. Take tonight for example: I really wanted to spend a few hours reading. Instead, I spent a few hours researching books that I want to read. I had the best of intentions but I just didn't get around to actually reading anything except book reviews. Counter productive at it's finest. 

Well, at least I got a good reading intentions list out of it. Below are some books on my radar. Do you have any books that you can recommend to me or have you read any of the below? I like it all: fiction, historical, thriller, romance, political, the classics, enlightenment, comedy. Bring it! The book recommendations that is...

Click on any on the books below for a description and link to buy the book yourself

Currently Reading:

Breakfast with Socrates

Lolita

Atlas Shrugged

Fiction

The Fault in Our Stars

Gone Girl

Historical Fiction

The Paris Wife

Historical Thriller

The Devil in the White City

Enlightenment (I will not admit self-help)

How to Train a Wild Elephant

Classics

The Sun Also Rises

In the Kitch

Kitchen Confidential

The Pioneer Woman Cookbook

Reread

The Great Gatsby

P.S. Don't forget to enter my giveaway for an Amy C Nelson Art Print. 

Click HERE to enter!  

Blogger's Fall Reading List

 

When I picture my life in the Fall/Winter, I usually think of myself curled up underneath a big furry blanket, fireplace roaring in the background and a good book in hand. And this Fall/Winter is no exception. I have a ton of reads that I want to get after this Fall/Winter. Most of these reads are geared toward bloggers and creatives so I hope this list is helpful to my bloggers and creative people out there!

 

Got any special reads on your Fall/Winter reading list? Please do share!!!

 

1. The Handmade Marketplace by Kari Chapin // $11

Have you ever thought about starting your own handmade business? This book looks like a good starting point, breaking down and making sense of the handmade business in a global setting. Written by someone who has experience in starting and growing her own business, this book also features the writing of Grace Bonney from Design*Sponge and Holly Becker of Decor8, two fantastic bloggers who turned their blogs into businesses.

 

2. Blog, Inc. by Joy Cho // $12 

This newly published book written by the always fabulous and innovative, Joy Cho, of Oh Joy!, guides you through the process of creating a blog, monetizing your blog and creating a sense of community... and beyond. I'm actually about half-way through this book already and I have found that it is very helpful for a fairly newbie blogger such as myself! Joy also interviews popular bloggers in her book like Naomi Davis from Rockstar Diaries and Emily Schuman from Cupcakes and Cashmere, giving readers a little glimpse into the creative process and background of some of your favoriate bloggers out there!

 

3. New Dress a Day by Marisa Lynch // $14

Based on her always entertaining blog of the same name, New Dress a Day, author and seamstress Marisa Lynch shows you how to easily transform frumpy thrift-store buys into fabulous wardrobe pieces... and she does it on the cheap! Love that! This book, described as "The Ultimate DIY Guide to Creating Fashion Dos from Thrift-Store Don'ts," looks like a light and fun read. I hope that it will inspire me to break out the sewing machine and safety pins and get to work! The author, Marisa, was sweet enough to send me a copy of her new book (out last week) and I can't wait to start reading it! Thanks again Marisa! You R-O-C-K!

 

4. Creative, Inc. by Joy Cho and Meg Mateo Ilasco // $12

This is Joy Cho's first book, cowritten with Meg Mateo Ilasco. It is similar to Blog, Inc. in that it walks you through the basics of starting and running a successful creative business. This book details everythng from creating a top notch portfolio to dealing with the legal issues stemming from starting a business. Though it's a few years old, I think it will be a valuable read.

 

5. PR + Marketing for Bloggers by Kaelah Bee (ebook) // $25
 Kaelah Bee, author of the cutest little blog I ever did see, Little Chief Honeybee, shares tips on how to start your own blog, how to self promote, how to monetize, how to reach out to brands and build a press-kit. Very hands on help here!

6. Blogging for Creatives by Robin Houghton // $11
Another fantastic read! A read for creatives of all kinds on how to create a blog to drive more business to your business. Complete with hundreds of tips, tricks and motivational stories from first time artistic bloggers, Blogging for Creatives is the go-to book in helping a new blogger identify and design the style of blog they want.  

And here's a FREE Bonus Book: How to Make Money Blogging by Crystal Paine (eBook)