This book has been on pretty much every blogger’s must list for about a year now, and I have to say I am not the exception. All In Good Taste is gorgeous on display, and is full of amazing entertainment tips. I even included it in my Gift Guide last Christmas!
While I’ll admit the cover is initially what sold me on this book (yes, I judged it by its cover), it has some great information as well. It’s divided into several categories, all centered around entertaining. There’s a section on hostessing, style, and food. There’s also a section on manners, which even goes into modern day etiquette of texting and emailing, which I love (and think is hilarious). A lot of the content is centered around throwing parties and get togethers in larger cities, like New York. This makes sense, based on the history of the Kate Spade brand, but it’s also really easy to adapt everything to your own city or hometown.
One of the strongest aspects of the book is its layout and design. There are some gorgeous full spreads of type, and the photography is stunning. It’s the perfect coffee table book. Leave it open to one of your favorite spreads, or just add it to the top of your stack-the cheeky wine stain on the front is slightly disheveled while remaining chic.
A contemporary etiquette guide for the modern host, this book is full of dos and don’ts, how-tos and recipes. I definitely recommend this book if you love Kate Spade, entertaining, and all things pink. And of course, like all things Kate Spade, it’s as beautiful as it is useful–put a vase of peonies next to this on your coffee table, and you’ve got the perfect Instagram post. Which is always a bonus!
Have you checked out All in Good Taste or any of Kate Spade’s other books?
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I'll admit, I've fallen a little behind in my reading recently. But I'm still here with a few recommendations of the books I have read, and hopefully I can pick back up soon. As always, I've linked the titles on Amazon, but search for them in a local bookstore first!
This is a trilogy that is basically just one long book. I read all three in a day, so they're very easy to get through! The story is essentially The Bachelor, with the man being the prince in a post-apocalyptic world. It also reminds me a bit of The Hunger Games, in that there's a very distinct class system in place, and there's a love struggle between the prince (Maxon) and the man she left back home (Aspen). I liked this series, but I do think it could have functioned well as just one novel. She also recently came out with The Heir, which is a sequel to the final book (that seems to be the first of a second trilogy!), but I haven't picked that one up yet.
This book was such a pageturner for me. I love Impressionists, and I have a little bit of a soft spot for Degas (probably because of all his dancers), so The Art Forger grabbed my attention right away. Claire Roth works as a painter producing copies of famous works. She wants to be known for her own paintings, and she makes a Faustian bargain with a well-known gallery owner who says he'll produce her first show. The plot follows a (fictionalized) version of the unsolved 1990 Gardner Heist, and goes deep into the world of art forgery. It also brings up a lot of interesting questions about authenticity and notoriety in the art world, something that I always think is important to explore.
Don Tillman decides it's time to find a wife. As a brilliant but socially inept geneticist, he creates the Wife Project–a 16-page survey designed to weed out those who are chronically late, the smokers, the drinkers, and more. He soon meets Rosie, a woman who is essentially the opposite of everything Don is looking for. As the pair collaborates to find Rosie's biological father, he struggles with the whirlwind he finds himself in with Rosie, soon realizing that "despite your best scientific efforts, you don't find love, it finds you." This book is so endearing; it provides an unconventional perspective of those with Asperger's, and you can't help but think about the characters after you've put it down. I just got the sequel, The Rosie Effect, and I'm looking forward to reading it too.
I know I'm late to the party with this one–it's been on my to-read list forever, and I finally got around to it. I wish I had picked it up sooner! Tina Fey is hilarious, and reading about her experiences from her amateur improv days to SNL to 30 Rock is super enjoyable. This book is definitely a quick, light read. I love Tina Fey's sarcastic, self-deprecating humor, and her writing feels very honest. One of the funniest parts is when she's simultaneously balancing rehearsals for her Sarah Palin impression, convincing Oprah to appear on 30 Rock, and planning her daughter's Peter Pan themed birthday party (all of equal importance). If you're one of the ten people who haven't read this yet, I definitely recommend it.
If reading more books this year is on your list of resolutions, this post is for you! This is a short list of what I've been reading recently that hopefully inspires you to pick a book up yourself. I've linked all the titles on Amazon, but if you can find them in your local bookstore, that's even better!
The Martian | Andy Weir
If you saw the movie with Matt Damon, then you already know what this is about. Astronaut (and engineer and botanist) Mark Watney goes through a dust storm that nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate, leaving him with no way to contact Earth and not enough resources to survive long enough for anyone to reach him. Despite the seemingly serious subject matter, this book is hilarious. I was totally not expecting it to be as enjoyable a read as it turned out to be! And of course, the book is always better than the movie, so I highly recommend picking this one up. Side note: As I was reading it, I found the whole thing vaguely plausible–mostly because I know next to nothing about space travel/engineering/etc. But I looked up Andy Weir and found out he's been working as a programmer and software engineer since age 15, as well as being a lifelong 'space nerd' and lover of subjects like relativistic physics, so I felt a little more justified in finding it believable. And knowing it was written by a legitimate nerd like me made me love it even more!
The Defining Decade | Meg Jay
I read this entire book during my layover on New Year's Eve, and it was a little stressful, to be honest. I recommend breaking it up into sections (the book is divided into three major ones) and taking a little more time to digest it. It's all about how (and why!) to approach your twenties with intentionality, and not to embrace that "thirty is the new twenty" mindset. The research, counseling sessions, and stories she shares make the content easy to read and understand, and it's motivational as well as a wake up call. It's a great read, and not a perspective I've ever really seen before.
I Suck At Girls | Justin Halpern
Justin Halpern is also the author of Sh*t My Dad Says, a book born from the twitter feed he created when he moved back home. This book is just as hysterical. He takes us through his encounters and misfortunes with girls and women, from his first kiss to getting engaged. Even though the book focuses more on himself than his father, he still weighs in with hilarious and expletive-ridden advice, so don't worry! I Suck At Girls is a great read and really easy to race through. Definitely recommend if you want something funny and light!
The First Husband | Laura Dave
The book opens with Annie watching Roman Holiday, a movie she has a love/hate relationship with–love because it's a great movie, hate because every time she watches it, something horrible happens. True to form, as soon as she finishes the movie, her long-time boyfriend Nick breaks up with her. Three months later finds her married to Griffin, a sweet chef who moves them to Massachusetts to open a restaurant. When Nick asks for a second chance, Annie is torn. It's a great book for asking all those questions we torture ourselves with every day–should I have answered that call? Should I have said yes? Is he/she "the one?" The extremely likable characters in this book make it a pleasant read.
Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear | Elizabeth Gilbert
I'll admit: I didn't read Gilbert's Eat Pray Love. And I'm only part of the way through Big Magic so far, because I've been reading it with a highlighter in hand. But the way she writes about the creative process is inspiring in and of itself. She dismisses the unnecessary drama often surrounding "tormented artists," and encourages all those who are called to create to accept their call and approach it with openness and eagerness, even when there's no immediate reward in sight. She emphasizes that you don't have to quit your day job to instill creativity in your every day. This book has been really inspiring to me so far, and I definitely recommend it to anyone who's been struggling with their creativity or inspiration recently.
Want more? Check out my previous What to Read post!
I’ve been reading some books recently that are all over the genre spectrum. Here are five very different books, one of which is sure to inspire you to pick it up. I’ve linked them all to purchase on Amazon, but if you can, support your local bookstore and pick them up there instead!
Modern Romance | Aziz Ansari
This book is hilarious. Aziz Ansari is known for discussing his navigation of the dating scene in his stand-up, and this book really takes it to the next level. It’s definitely not your typical comedian-wrote-a-book read. The book is filled of extensive research and data (Ansari worked closely with a social scientist), but it never loses his voice or humor. As a 22-year-old fully immersed in this exact dating scene, it’s a fascinating but lightweight read.
Never Have I Ever: My Life (So Far) Without A Date | Katie Heaney
The frustration of having a crush on a cute stranger has never been captured so perfectly. Heaney’s descriptions of her friends, herself, and her ill-fated crushes are intelligent and relatable. This memoir is surprisingly insightful and just tremendously fun to read.
Anna and the French Kiss | Stephanie Perkins
I have to confess, I love cheesy romance novels, and this has all the potential to be just that–except there’s a pleasantly surprising amount of substance to this one. This young adult novel focuses on Anna, an American spending her senior year of high school abroad in Paris, where she meets the perfect guy–who, of course, is already taken. The characters are smart, likeable, and most of all, believable. But the best part is that it’s the first of a trilogy, focused around the same school and the different characters within it, and Anna and St. Clair get to make cameo appearances in the subsequent novels as well.
How Dogs Love Us | Gregory Berns
If you love dogs, you will love this book. Gregory Berns is a neuroscientist who had the idea that in order to figure out what his dog was thinking–a question all dog owners can relate to–he had to scan the dog’s brain with an MRI machine. He and his team face all kinds of technical, legal, and behavioral obstacles in their quest, but find some amazing results.
Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) | Mindy Kaling
One of the best comedic books in my opinion (and one of the best titles), Mindy Kaling’s collection of essays covers everything from what makes the perfect best friend to what is the perfect amount of fame. Kaling’s voice is so honest and conversational and just so great, I want her to be my best friend. And her new book Why Not Me? just came out a few weeks ago, so if you read this and want more Mindy (and you definitely will), it’s a great follow-up.
What are you reading these days? Let me know what I should pick up next!
