- The 100 best affordable vacations by: Jane Wooldridge and Larry Bleiberg – Great book if you love to travel but have a tight budget! I found quite a few I cannot wait to try! There are also tons of weekend ideas! I am a fan of the weekend trips! Who does not love a little mini vacation? A few of my bucket list “must do items” were in here at great rates! Gotta love that 🙂 Each “trip” is only a few pages so it was a great book to cart back and forth to Ivy’s appointments with me too.
- Fast Food Nation – The Dark Side of the All-American Meal By:Eric Schlosser You will NEVER look at food the same way ever again! I was entranced by this book. I could not put it down even when it turned my stomach to keep reading it! This is not yet more writing about how fast food is bad for you. This book is about how fast food has affected society and every aspect of American life. It also walks you through a slaughter-house in detail. I can honestly say some of the facts in this book will never leave me. I highly suggest this book to anyone who does not wish to live in denial about their food any longer!
- The World Wine Encyclopedia-A Complete Guide to the World’s Great Wine-Making Regions by: Christy Grosz – This was a very informative book for people interesting in learning more about wine and its origins. It includes wines of note for many countries. It also teaches you the lingo of the wine world. I like wine but I would consider myself a novice in its history and making. Also I would like to point out that this book has some beautiful photos in it! They alone are worth picking it up.
- FREAKIN’ FABULOUS – How to Dress, Speak, Behave, Eat, Drink, Entertain, Decorate, And generally be better then everyone else. By: Clinton Kelly ~ Really fun book! I suggest this to everyone. Had me laughing all the way through. I even learned a couple of things 🙂
- Absolutely Organized – A Mom’s guide to a No-Stress Schedule and Clutter-Free Home by: Debbie Lillard – This book was OK. The first section was all about scheduling. I don’t need any help figuring out basic family schedules so that was useless but the rest was OK. There were some good tips in the household organization part. I honestly didn’t realise how much UN-needed paper our family was harboring until I got it all out to do her “Paper Purge.” There was tons! It made a little extra space. Then I did the “CPR method” on my closets which had some results. The book wasn’t a total wash but it wasn’t great either. If I had stars it would get a 1 1/2 out of 4. It could easily be a 3 out of 4 for somebody that is messy or has scheduling problems. But honestly do those people read books about organizing? Maybe they should, lol.
- Mini Shopaholic by: Sophie Kinsella – I’m a huge fan of this series and I’m happy to report this book was not a let down! Kinsella was just as funny as ever! That Becky is really something! I can’t help it, she makes me laugh hysterically! She’s the kind of character you wish you could meet in real life. Always up to something with style that would make anyone a little jealous, lol. Kinsella is the kind-of writer that keeps you guessing and laughing all the way through! I highly suggest this book to anyone who has read the previous books in this series. If you haven’t, You’ll never know what you’re missing out on!! A Great book!
- Bobbi Brown Makeup Manual – For everyone from beginner to pro. This is a cool book. It has directions for makeup application and lots of tips. It has some great photos! You can follow along with the step by step guides for how to apply each product and on how to achieve the different looks. A neat read for anyone interested in learning to apply their makeup or learning how to use a new product. I’ve been a huge makeup fan since I was young and even I learned a few things!
- Shopaholic & Sister by: Sophie Kinsella – This was the only book I had missed in the series so when I came across it I just had to read it. It was Fab! As I knew it would be, lol. Becky being, well…all becky, in a small town is so funny! Kinsella has come up with such an endearing character. It’s hard not to love Becky. I think maybe I love these books so much simply because I get her. She reminds me of myself in her thought processes…Hmmmm…..Wonder if that’s a bad thing, lol. Totally makes you want to hug your sister, Hubby and your Bestie! Here’s hoping that they will love me through all my craziness too!
- Oh No She Didn’t – The Top 100 Style Mistakes Women Make and How to Avoid Them By: Clinton Kelly – Not the kind of book that will give you wrinkles but it may give you laugh lines! Omg! Love him!! He’s so funny! This book was a fun read. It was amusing and the photos will make you laugh. I highly suggest it to women everywhere! We all know at least one offender!
- Remember Me? By: Sophie Kinsella – The oddest of love stories! The story centers on Lexi who wakes up in the hospital after an accident with retro-grade amnesia. She looks different(teeth, hair, nails, and weight), is married to a gorgeous, multimillionaire, has an amazing loft, and a new corporate job who used to belong to her boss! But as in most things in life, Things are not as they first appear! It doesn’t take her long to find out that nothing is as perfect as it seems. Her husbands a border-line psycho! She has feelings for another man! Her sister is a troublemaker! Her Mum’s lost it! No Carbs! Her old friends hate her! And her dad’s dead and she can’t remember the funeral. It’s quite a story! I was guessing and kept reading hoping she would end up with the right man in the end! A must read for summer! Perhaps at the pool!
- Instyle-The New Secrets of Style-Your complete guide to dressing your best every day by:The Editors of Instyle – Informative on everything from the types of styles that fit you best to the best way to clean your favorite handbag. There are great photos of clothing and bags. It walks you through how to wear trends with your everyday items, how to pick the best sunglasses for your face, how to get the most bang for your buck, how to shop for vintage clothing, etc. A good easy going read. Informative but in a fun way.
- Twilight By: Stephenie Meyer– People ask if I named my daughter after Bella (I didn’t but after reading them I don’t mind the question as much). I had seen the movies. I had heard all about the books. I finally had to see what the hype was all about. I was pleased to find out it really is a great book. It lived up to my expectations which can be hard when a book has that much hype. I liked it so much I started New Moon immediately!
- New Moon By: Stephenie Meyer – FAB!!! Need I say more? A great book! Loved it! It picked up right where Twilight left off.
- Eclipse By: Stephenie Meyer – OMG!! LOVE IT!!!! Made me love Jacob even more! These are truly such amazing books!
- Breaking Dawn by: Stephenie Meyer – Fab! This book should be two because it is so freaking long! I loved this series and was sad to see it end. It is a wonderful set of books! I highly suggest to anyone who actually haven’t read them 🙂
- The Art of Posing – Techniques For Digital Portrait Photographers By: Lou Jacobs Jr. – This is a very interesting book if you are interested in photography. It has a lot of posing techniques! It is set up for more professional use. It interviews 10 photographers about themselves, their business, their equipment of choice, and techniques they use. I really enjoyed all of the amazing photos that are in the book!
- Instyle Ultimate Beauty Secrets – The Best Tips, Tricks, and Shortcuts to Create Your Perfect Look – Full of great tips! There is over 200! I loved this one! It’s set up so you can read and try out a couple of tips a day. It includes skin care, foundation & concealer, cheeks, eyes, lips, nails, and the best of the rest. I highly suggest this to anyone wanting to try something new with their look or are trying to perfect their everyday look.
- City Chic – the modern girl’s guide to living large on less By:Nina Willdorf – This book was not only entertaining it was educational in a girly kind of way. The basic gist of the book is she was first a struggling student who turned struggling writer for magazines and papers for years. She has found some rather interesting ways to make ends meet and still live a semi-fab lifestyle. She walks you through the pitfalls in the road of money and tells you where it pays off to splurge a little. It’s broken down into many chapters and sections. I liked entertaining for less, make-up myths, snip your hair care budget, saving pantries, and behind the seams. Some of her tips were completely useless to me. Sorry, sad but true. But even stuff I already knew or would not try on a bet (ie. dumpster diving) were still fun to read. This gets a thumbs up for a fun summer read!
- I Just Want You To Know – Letters to my kids on Love, Faith, and Family By: Kate Gosselin – It includes some fun stories and pictures but it’s mainly all about the letters to her 8 amazing kids. It pushes your mommy aww button again and again. At the very end are a couple of the kids favorite recipes for easy fare. I can’t wait to try my hand at all of them!
- Day Trips from Cincinnati – Get away ideas for the local traveler By: Shifra Stein – We are currently living near Cincinnati and wanted to find some neat places to take the kids. This was the perfect book! A treasure trove of local outings. Many historical and education places mentioned. It’s a fun read about the history of towns and neat things to see there. I even took down a few notes on places I would like to take the kids. There are many inexpensive options within a couple of hours of the city, even a few new hikes!
- Frommer’s Chicago with Kids -by: Laura Tiebert – This guide was great for helping us to navigate all that Chicago has to offer! It has maps, attractions, restaurants, pricing, and interesting information including history. Highly suggest this book to anyone planning to visit this wonderful city!
- The Undomestic Goddess By: Sophie Kinsella – One of my favorite writers! She did not let me down with this fun read. It is funny and endearing! A must read for girls everywhere!
- One Tank Trips – Volume 2 – Fun book if you are trying to find something to do for a day or weekend in Kentucky. I had no idea how many neat things there were in this state!
- Digital Landscape Photography – Step by Step By: Michelle Perkins Great book for learning about artistic landscape photography. I also learned a lot of things about my camera. This book breaks down photography lessons and camera lessons into small tidbits. Each lesson is only 2 pages. There are 52 lessons in the book. Strongly suggest!
- The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner By: Stephenie Meyer – This was a great side story to eclipse. It helps you look at things from another point of view and gives you information that was fuzzy in the main book. Glad I stumbled upon this one.
- Style, Naturally – the savvy shopping guide to sustainable fashion and beauty BY: Summer Rayne Oakes – This book is an amazing guide to ecofriendly clothing and beauty products. It has beautiful photo’s of products, tons of information including brands and websites. I suggest this to any fashionista who cares about this planet.
- Polio: An American Story – The Crusade That Mobilized the Nation Against the 20th Century’s Most Feared Disease By: David M. Oshinsky –This is an interesting book about how American history was directly impacted by polio. A good read if you are a science geek or a history dork 🙂
- This Year’s Model By: Carol Alt -A cute and fun read. It is the perfect fit for a break or a beach read.
- Ohio Oddities By: Neil Zurcher – I found so many amazing things I want to go see! I never knew how many odd things there are in Ohio!
- Everyday You – Create Your Day with Joy and Mindfulness By: Eric Maisel – A few inspiring words and a task for the day is found on each page. My favorite was page 21 – “Pick a subject that fascinates you. Get a pile of books out from the library. Curl up on the sofa and investigate. We avoid exploring new subjects because we fear that there’s too much to learn. Let go of that excuse. Pick a subject -Finnish literature, Chicago jazz, island architecture and expand your horizons!” I loved this! It is advice I would give to somebody 🙂 As I’m sure you can tell I love to learn something new! I’m a fan of non-fiction! This is a cute little book that will give you a little something to think about everyday.
- Thoughts to Share with a Wonderful Daughter– An adorable book to share with your daughters. It is full of poetry, kind thoughts, and quotes.
- The World Is Fat – The fads, Trends, Policies, and Products That Are Fattening The Human Race By: Barry Popkin – This is a very informative book about the sociology of the obesity epidemic. A great book about big food.
- Diamonds By: Vicky Paterson – The history, basic details, uses, implications, and future of diamonds is covered. This book includes amazing pictures!
- Behave Yourself- The essential guide to international etiquette – By Michael Powell -This book is both informative and fun. It covers the basics of Meeting, Conversation, Eating & Drinking, Dress, What to Expect When Out & About, Gifts, and Basic Tips for a multitude of cultures.
- Fun With The Family – Kentucky BY: Teresa Day – A detailed account of the many family friendly places to visit in Kentucky. Many free and inexpensive options.
I did not make my goal of 50 books this year. I did give it a valiant effort and I learned many things. I will try again in 2012!