Sydney Reads and Reads: March

This sunny little book corner, with the disco ball and many of my recent reads, has become my favorite part of my apartment. The disco ball brings a cheerfulness to the whole room, casting bits of light across my yoga mat and couch, almost like fairies. The books are a comfort to me. They remind me of adventures past and inspire me to look forward toward those to come.

March's reads were excellent and wide-ranging, and I'm excited to share them with you today!

I have to say, my favorite part about reading The Godfather, by Mario Puzo, was getting the full backstory on "go to the mattresses." Seriously, ask anyone who talked to me in the last month and it's all I can talk about.  Otherwise, the Godfather was everything I expected it to be and more. Nostalgic, fierce, and cinematic.  It's impossible to read it without hearing that very specific New York Italian accent with every word. It's pictured here with my morning coffee, but I can definitely see myself curling up with The Godfather and a bottle of red wine on a cold winter weekend.  That'd be perfect.

For months, each time I finished a book I'd think, "Ooo time for China Rich Girlfriend!" and then end up picking something from my existing TBR pile instead.  But once I'd finished The Godfather I marched right over to Downtown Book & Toy and used the last of my Christmas gift card to purchased Kevin Qwan's sequel to Crazy Rich Asains. Crazy Rich Asians was one of the books that brought me out of my reading slump last fall, and I devoured China Rich Girlfriend with just as much enthusiasm. I liked getting to see a bit more of the interpersonal lives of some of the more minor characters from the first book, Kitty Pong, Collin and Araminta, Astrid and others.  I also enjoyed watching (or reading) as Nick and Rachel negotiated his families big, rich world as a married couple, how Nick supported Rachel through the revelations that the book unfolds for us. I can't imagine what happens in Rich People Problems! As soon as I was done reading I packed up both books and sent them to MelRob in New York.  They're just positively too good not to share!

At its heart, Queenie, by Candice Carty-Williams is the story of a girl overcoming her selfishness and learning to value herself. Her voice is one any modern woman will recognize either emanating from your own head or that of a close friend.  Her boy problems, work problems, and family problems all get to the heart of the late 20s quarter life crisis so many millennials are experiencing. A time where your personal beliefs and values start to deviate from those of your family and learning to navigate that divide that can feel almost impossible. With great skill, Candice Carty-Williams weaves in issues like the Black Lives Matter movement throughout Queenie's story, from the unique perspective of a Brittish citizen, requiring me, as an American reader, to shift my perspective. I also love how Queenie calls her girl gang the Corgies because "every queen needs her corgies."  Savage, but hilarious!

You all know by now that I'm part of a book club focused on personal development (which I call the Soul Blazers Book Club and they call the Sydney Book Club, but that's neither here nor there) so I read a fair amount within that genre.  No matter the specific topic, or the lifestyle concept I can always find at least one positive takeaway.  Then there are books like The Desire Map, by Danielle LaPorte, and Braving the Wilderness, by Brene Brown, that comes into your life at the right time and fundamentally shifts how you look at the world.  Dark Horse, by Tidd Rose and Ogi Ogas, is one such book. In a nutshell, the Dark Horse mindset sets aside the linear, standardized path put upon us by society in favor of a path that leverages your strengths to help you gain fulfillment.  It believes happiness is not something you reach after completing a set list of achievements, but rather a feeling to be attained through spending your time on things that utilize your individuality to gain fulfillment. As always, I was skeptical about this book going in. Especially when I saw the cover was so bro-y. But the voice was very gender balanced, allowing me to really let down my walls and open my mind to this idea that felt SO right to me.  The deeper I got into the book, the more it made me reflect back on my life and career in New York through a much kinder lens. I see now, every decision I made there was based on some standardized checklist of steps I'd decided would get me what I wanted.  Take voice lessons, take X hours of dance a week, get in an acting class, go to X number of auditions each week = Broadway! FALSE.  Now, as I embark on another creative path I'm looking ever inward, using the tools I learned from Dark Horse, to find my unique jagged path to fulfillment, and I'm so excited about it.

I wasn't quite ready to let go of my love for both New York and The Dakota Apartments after The Dakota Winters from last month, so I sought out The Address, by Fiona Davis. The novel dives into the early days of The Dakota at the close of the 19th Century as Sara Smythe emigrates from London to become its head housekeeper.  She soon forms a close relationship with one of the architects of the building, Theodore Camden, the man who convinced her to come to America in the first place.  Theodore lives in The Dakota, along with the other staff, and his wife and three children.  Things definitely get interesting quickly in Sara's story. The Address also gives us a peek at The Dakota Apartments in the 1980s as decedent's of Camden's squabble over the rights to his, now historic, apartment, and try to uncover what really brought on his sudden death. Neither of these accounts leading you where you think you'll go. The twist and turns of the mystery kept me guessing until the very end! The Address shares many similarities with Carnegie's Maid from December. So if you liked one, you're sure to like the other.  History, mystery, intrigue, what's not to love?! This title would be perfect for a long weekend or vacation read.

Reading Daisy Jones and the Six, by Taylor Jenkins Reid, was almost like an addiction.  Once I picked it up a truly couldn't stop myself from continuing. The novel, written in the style of a VH1 Behind the Music special follows the 70s rock band The Six, and enigmatic singer/songwriter Daisy Jones as they rise to the top.  This book is sexy, deep, and will have you mainlining Fleetwood Mac in no time! Daisy Jones and Six has made it into my top books of the year by far, both for its originality and emotional intensity.  I can't wait to dig into Taylor Jenkins Reid's back catalog!

Something I've noticed in my reading lately is the strong throughline of female strength.  Daisy Jones, standing up for her work and creativity, Rachel Chu holding her own in the crazy world of her in-laws, Queenie rising from the ashes of her mistakes to finally come into her own.  I can't say I chose any of these books because of these themes but I'm so happy to see them pervading across contemporary literature in the way that they are! -xo Sydney