It’s safe to say that I’m over winter by this point. I’m daydreaming about taking a vacation to somewhere warm… It felt like a lot of stuff was happening in January and a good deal of the month was spent getting back into my normal routine. I’m happy that February is here though because that means we’re only getting closer to spring. All right, let’s get down to the links I was reading this week:
– By now you’ve probably heard that there’s a new Harper Lee book coming out this year. My immediate reaction was excitement because To Kill a Mockingbird is such an iconic book and it was crazy to find out about this long-lost prequel. Then I read a few articles about her legal troubles and her editor’s thoughts on the new book, and now I’m not so sure. It really seems like there’s more to this than meets the eye and it’s all feeling a bit shady. Thoughts?
– I still feel like I’m such a makeup newb and when Mackenzie talked about her experience of booking a private consultation at Sephora, I thought it was very interesting. Apparently the 90 minute consultation is free if you purchase $125 worth of products and we all know how easy it is to spend that much at Sephora. I’m still on a spending ban for now, but it’s definitely something I’m considering trying in the future. I think it could be really useful/helpful for me to sit down and talk to a professional.
– Keiko’s post has made me want to try more liquid lipsticks.
– Roxane Gay is so cool. If you haven’t read anything she’s written yet, you really should.
– Guys, I was full-on weeping when I watched the Parenthood series finale last week. When you follow these characters for so long, you just get really invested (or at least I do) and everyone knows that Parenthood is famous for it’s ability to induce tears. On that note, Vulture put together a ranking of which characters made us cry the most (this is why I love Vulture).
(image via)
![It's a very belated book haul! These are the four books I picked up on my trip to Australia back in May. Of course I had to check out some bookstores on my first trip to Sydney and I think I ended up visiting 9 in total (check out my stories to see the mini bookstore vlog I made)!
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It was so fun book shopping over there since majority of the covers are different from our US covers. I couldn't resist this pretty edition of PACHINKO, which I've already read. And when I picked up this copy of PEOPLE PERSON, I was so excited to see it because it wasn't out yet in the US at that time. I also bought two books that I hadn't heard of before I discovered them in the bookstore: IDOL and LOVE AND OTHER PUZZLES.
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Do you tend to prefer US or UK book covers?
[P.S. This is an old photo that includes a HarperCollins UK title, but please note that I support the HarperCollins Union.]
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[ID: A stack of the following books sits on top of white bedding in front of a white wall (from top to bottom): PACHINKO, IDOL, LOVE AND OTHER PUZZLES, PEOPLE PERSON.]
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#Pachinko #Idol #LoveAndOtherPuzzles #PeoplePerson #whattoread #beautifulbooks #bookhaul #booksandtravel #travelandbooks #bookishaesthetic #bookstacks #bookstacklove #ukbookcovers #ukbookhaul #newbooks #bookbuying #bookpurchases #coolgirlsread #readerslife #bookishcommunity #australiatrip #stackofbooks #bookwormlife #booksandbooks](https://starcrossedsmile.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed/img/placeholder.png)
I had the exact same reaction to the Harper Lee news as you did. I’m suspicious…
Courtney ~ Sartorial Sidelines
The more I read about it, the more suspicious I become…
aahh..I think Keiko can wear any color and look amazing. Her lips are so…perfect? Weird thing to say? I swear by Stila though. It’s actually a formula that has some staying power (not pure but definitely light years better than others I’ve tried). The pigment is strong and the consistency is pretty good. =D
I too was excited about Harper Lee’s “new” book but knowing about some of the drama has definitely made it feel less exciting. The reality of certain things really changes things up.
xo,
nancy
http://www.adoretoadorn.com
I know exactly what you mean- her lips are the perfect shape! I need to try the Stila version. I think I got a sample in a Birchbox once, but the color was horrible on me, so I need to try again.
I will probably still read the new Harper Lee, but the circumstances definitely leave me wondering what exactly is going on behind the scenes.
The photo here is absolutely gorgeous, Nnenna! I’m also obsessed with all your links. I do a Sunday Notes post every weekend and am definitely feeling inspired after checking out what links you’ve been checking out lately.
Reading the Harper Lee articles definitely made me think twice about the sequel though!
Melanie
Lace and Combat Boots | a life + style blog
Thank you so much Melanie! I’ll definitely need to check out your Sunday notes :)
While I’m 95% happy with the end of parenthood (and that is a really good score considering how frequently writers destroy my favorite shows with horrible endings) I really don’t see why they had to have Zeke die. Stupid. But I’m glad the new Crosby/Amber Lunchentte came to pass and that Joel and Julia got their shit together. I swear, they were the best couple when they were good and the worst couple when they were bad.
I thought Parenthood was a bit uneven in the last couple of seasons and I wasn’t happy with all of the story lines, but I though the last episode was pretty fitting and I’m sad that the series is over.