Book Club News!

We Read SLO, Book Club Info...

I've had a lot of people contact me recently to ask if they can "join" our book club.  In case you've been wondering too, I wanted to address this and a few other questions, here for everyone.  

WE READ SLO, is a public book club, open to anyone who may be interested in participating.  You don't need permission to attend, there is no commitment to come every time, and there are no fees. Heck, some of our members don't even finish the books- and still come hang out to discuss the chapters they did read.  And that's totally OK!  If you have an interest in books, reading, and monthly discussion with like-minded peeps, please feel free to check it out.  We always discuss the books we've read, but I've found that the conversations often veer away from a specifically book-centric discussion and lead to some pretty intriguing topics and tangents.  I love that!  It's also been great fun to connect with, and learn more about fellow book clubbers- outside of the usual "Hi, how are you? Yeah, I'm good.  N'kay, bye" sort of conversations we have on the sidewalk.  I love hearing their opinions and ideas, and I especially enjoy the dialog when those opinions differ from my own.  This is juicy stuff, guys!  

So, FYI... our next club meeting will be at Linnaea's on Nov. 27th at 6:30pm.  We've been meeting in the back garden, but it has started to get cooooold- so either dress extra warm and cozy, or we'll take a vote on moving the meeting indoors.  

Our current book is: A Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling (available on SALE at Barnes & Noble).  Have you read it?  I'm still catching up after my whirlwind work schedule these past couple of weeks, but I'm excited to get together for our discussion.  

BOOK NERDS, UNITE!  Hope to see you soon.  :)

We read SLO, TONIGHT!

We're book clubbing tonight, my friends!  Will you be there?

LINNAEA'S CAFE, 6:30pm
Discussing: "How To Be A Woman", by Caitlin Moran

Back garden.  Be there or be square.

Actually, I'm not sure that a bunch of book nerds can really call you "square", but we will anyway.

Speaking of book nerds...  Check out this hilarious Kanye West parody video that Jeff found... 

Can this be our book club theme song?

SEE YOU TONIGHT!

WE READ SLO!

Who wants to join a book club?  I DO!  I DO! 

I'm so excited to announce WE READ SLO, the newest book club in town.

Our first book will be Nothing Serious by Justine Levy - available locally

at Barnes & Noble, or online here.  This thinly-veiled work of fiction was written in 2005, by Justine Levy (daughter of French philosopher, Bernard Henri Levy).  The book depicts Levy's real-life heartache when her husband leaves her for a famous supermodel (the infamous, Carla Bruni).  The whole idea of it is so over-the-top, and yet Levy keeps the book grounded in her own flaws, flashbacks of her fractured marriage, and small doses of everyday Parisian life.  It's an intriguing, and quick-read.  The sort of book you keep by the bath tub.  Is that weird?  I totally read in the bath tub.

We will meet to discuss this book at Linnaea's Cafe on:

 Tuesday, October 2nd at 6:30pm.

Please bring notes on the book, as well as suggestions for our next book- which we'll vote on then.

WOOO HOOOO!!!  Let's get our READ on, SLO!

Nothing Serious, PUBLISHER'S OVERVIEW:

Stylish, intelligent, and often scathingly funny, Nothing Serious is an unblinking portrayal of the search for self amidst the reckless glamorization of love.

Vain about their young love, Louise and her husband Adrien used to laugh about the way he couldn’t pass a mirror without looking. But when he deserts Louise for a famous model she’s devastated, and forced to confront those vanities – his and her own. Meanwhile, life goes on regardless, making Louise feel all the more guilty about the melodrama her life has become.

With her privileged circumstances as the daughter of one of Europe’s most famous writers only complicating things further, she gathers her painkillers around her, unleashes her ruthless sense of honesty, and – with lacerating relish – tries to unravel why her marriage failed...and whether a sane person should try such a thing again.
Nothing Serious won universal praise from critics upon its release in Europe, selling over 200,000 copies and knockingThe Da Vinci Code out of the number one position on bestseller lists.

Periodical love...

I've been thinking a lot about magazines lately.  

I think it drives Jeffrey crazy, but I save them.  Not in the "collector" kind-of way, but in the dog-eared corners, post-it notes on pages, for reals reference library sort of way.  Last week at Ruby Rose, Stephanie and I were waxing poetic about missing Domino, loving Anthology magazine, and our mutual bewilderment of its elusiveness in town.  I mean really, Barnes & Noble, you can carry 40 varieties of "Tattoo Culture" magazines, but not a Made in SF quarterly design bible?  For shame!

Anyway, I thought I'd share a little run-down of my magazine library and how I've come to love the ones I do.

1. Living Etc.

This is a fantastic UK publication which focuses on modern interior design, and features excellent home tours.

2. Dwell

I remember how long-coming and refreshing it felt to open that inaugural issue of Dwell, and even now I rarely skip an issue.  It's such fabulous eye-candy for anyone with a pulse on clean, modern architecture.  Floor plans, home tours, green innovations...  I truly love it.

3. Lucky Peach

The brainchild of Momofuku's David Chang, this magazine is only on its third issue, but an instant favorite.  Amazingly candid interviews with top chefs, specialty recipes, food sourcing and provenance... and editorial by the bad boy himself, Anthony Bourdain!  Super fun reading for foodies.  Not for the squeamish.

4. Marie Claire Idées

I've yet to find an American equivalent to this beautiful French home and craft magazine.  Entirely in French, but guess what... photos translate effortlessly.  Each issue features darling tutorials and excellent DIY's.  Editorials focus on Seasonal decor, DIY fashion, recipes, and entertaining.  Bonus points: Animals from Deyrolle figure prominently and often.  Ahhh... the perks of Paris.  

5. National Geographic

Is this embarrassing to admit?  I feel like maybe this is the nerd who snuck into the bunch- but OH, do I love this magazine.  There's a reason why it's been around for ages, and why people bequeath their entire estates to its preservation.  National Geographic is so full of human interest, exotic locales, and mind-blowing imagery - it makes everything else just seem trivial and slight.  Ok, maybe I just answered my own question...  This may well be the grandad of published cool.

6. Vogue

Say what you will about Anna Wintour, but she and Grace and Andre keep this iconic magazine relevant, ahead of the curve, and honest-to-God glamourous.  More than any other, these are the magazines I flip through for years and years and reference again and again.  Classic.

7. Anthology

New classic.  Can't live without.  Just. So. Good.  Which of course makes me worry for its future.  Somehow the best of the best new start-up magazines in recent years have folded.  I have high hopes for this one, and fingers and toes crossed for its survival.  I love that some of my very favorite bloggers are contributors.  I love the photos, the stories, the design ideas...  now to find a local distributor.  

8. Cookie

FABULOUS.  Functional.  Defunct.  This magazine was an all-time favorite.  I would be giddy with joy when new issues arrived at my doorstep.  Wonderful recipes (including great variations depending upon ingredients on-hand), parenting and relationship advice, real moms, real homes, children's fashions, DIY's...  Even years later, the issues are relevant and wonderful.

What about you?  Are you a magazine fan?  Which are your favorites?

thx thx thx...

"thx thx thx", by Leah Dieterich is so good.

Her author's bio really sums it up well: "Leah Dieterich's mother always told her to write thank you notes. So she does. To everything. thxthxthx is her daily exercise in gratitude."

I knew Jeffrey would love this. I mean, how do you not giggle at: 

"Dear farts, Thanks for being so funny." 

 It's both light, and sweet, but also a deeper lesson in daily gratitude... finding joy in the little things.

This book is perfect for him!

I take a lot of joy in small things, but we can all use a reminder to smile at life sometimes. :)