Friday, September 10, 2010

Friday Finds


Did you come across any good books this week? I've been eying these (3).

Oh No, She Didn't; Clinton Kelly
(Oct. 12, 2010)

When I was home during the day, I use to love to watch Clinton and Staci and their fashion makeovers on What Not to Wear on TLC. So I was thrilled to see this book coming out soon. Here's what it's about.....

Muffin tops. Scrunchies. Suntan hose. Slut shoes. Visible panty line.
Who hasn’t had the unfortunate experience of witnessing—or (gasp!) actually wearing—one of these fashion disasters?

The atrocities Clinton Kelly has seen—it’s a surprise he hasn’t gouged out his own eyes. Mom jeans? Fancy fingernails? Tracksuits? In the same straight-talking style that has made TLC’s What Not to Wear a smash hit for eight seasons, the cheeky media personality and author of Freakin’ Fabulous shows women how to outfit themselves with confidence and style as he pokes fun at fashion "don’ts." From the most obvious faux pas (Texas tuxedos) to borderline offenses (peekaboo boobies), Clinton offers detailed and entertaining critiques of our top one hundred sartorial slip-ups. He turns his keen eye to wardrobe, color, cut, cleanliness, hairstyle, accessories, and even posture. And because he loves you, he presents easy alternatives and practical suggestions for creating fabulous outfits that will make you forget you ever wore socks with clogs.

Clinton also explains how to use trends to your advantage at any age, from deciding which ones work for you to understanding how to wear them to keep your look relevant. Because if you’re not comfortable in the sequined mini, everyone around you will know it.

A delightful mix of hilarious dish and expert fashion advice, Oh No She Didn’t will turn anyone from fashion victim to fashionista in no time.

 Botchan; Natsume Soseki

Botchan, like The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn or The Catcher in the Rye, is a classic of its kind, a sly, funny, poignant tale about a young mans rebellion against the system. Since its original publication 100 years ago, it has enjoyed a timeless popularity among Japanese readers both young and old, making it, according to Donald Keene, probably the most widely read novel in modern Japan.

The setting is Japan's deep south, where the author himself spent four years teaching English in a middle school. Into this conservative world, with its social proprieties and established pecking order, breezes Botchan, down from the big city, with scant respect for either his elders or his noisy young charges; and the result is a chain of collisions large and small.

Most of the story seems to occur in summer, against the drone of cicadas and the sting of mosquitoes. And in every way this is a summer book--light, sunny, and fun to read. Here, in a lively new translation much better suited to the American reader, Botchan should continue to entertain even those who have never been near the sunlit island on which these calamitous episodes take place. 
 
Anya, Fromberg Schaeffer

Anya Karinsky's beautiful life seemed like one long and perfect dream that would spin on forever.
But her wonderful world of dances, travel, medical school, and her beloved family ended one day late in the summer of 1939, when Hitler invaded Poland. The bombs that leveled her Warsaw home that day marked the beginning of her soul-stirring odyssey of endurance and escape, through years of horror and Holocaust. Strong when others grew weak, selfless in pursuit of freedom, Anya, once the beautiful, pampered daughter of privilege, turned herself into a survivor whom nothing and no one could destroy.

16 comments:

  1. Oh, I used to love to secretly watch What Not To Wear! What sarcasm, what wit!!

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  2. OK, I am really looking forward to Anya and to Clinton's book! I love him. I want him and Tim Gunn to get married and throw dinner parties and unite their forces to make the world a more stylish place. :)

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  3. I love What Not to Wear. I didn't realize that Clinton wrote a book but I bet there are some good tips in there.

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  4. OMG, I really like all the 3 books this time! I WANT!
    -Veens

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  5. I "veg out" by watching What Not to Wear from time to time - Clinton's book sounds like a good resource to me :)

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  6. My daughters and I love Clinton! You can be sure that book will make its way into our house.

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  7. Not so sure about the other two, but Botchan looks wonderful! I will be interested to hear what you think about all three of these if you get the chance to read them!!

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  8. Botchan sounds like a really enjoyable book. For some reason, I really like books set in Japan. Good finds, Diane. Thanks for the heads-up. Have a great weekend!

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  9. The Clinton Kelly book makes me think of the People of Wal-Mart site. Great finds today.

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  10. I have got to snag me a copy of Clinton's Book! I loved him and stacy in What not to Wear; harsh but fashionable advice..lol This is definitely a great find.

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  11. Ooh Anya looks incredible. If you get it let me know what you think!
    -Alayne

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  12. Ooh, very tempting finds! I'm eying the Anya book, as I have read this author...in fact, I have another of her books on my stacks—Poison, which I have now moved to my office stacks, thanks to your reminder about this author!

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  13. I love What Not to Wear and adore Clinton and Stacy!

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  14. Ha! I might be in that What Not to Wear!! Good picks!

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  15. I just dream of having the What Not To Wear people work with me ... off camera though!

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  16. I am a huge fan of What Not to Wear so I will definitely look for that book!

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