As Sara was trying to complete reading a book every week for a year, I thought her project was a nice little fit into my goal this year (to read sixteen or more books). I didn't feel Sara's project had to be very intricate or in-depth to be interesting, nor found her grammar/style to be irritating. Her little anecdotes about how books make her think in a different way and/or escape were lighthearted and relatable observations, or as some has said, book reports. (I'm not a mother or a wife, just a graduated college student but still found her perspectives enjoyable.) I can't put my finger on it, but by the end, I'll admit, the book didn't feel entirely fulfilling but not unsatisfying either. Overall, I thought this was a lovely book about reading. The common love of reading and books between reader and author was enough to keep me interested/entertained.

I hadn't heard of Yoga Girl but during the holiday season last year, I was in a quick rush of inspiration and popped this book into my cart at Target. I was expecting a little more considering it's status on the New York Times bestseller list and the high ratings here on goodreads. Rachel wonderfully shares her story of how yoga has transformed her and how she's become best known for her instagram moniker. However, I don't think it's a very in-depth, or even basic, informative book necessarily about yoga and/or meditation. The book, in all, with it's collection of photos from her social media, has a wonderful layout and splits between her life story so far, some recipes, and various yoga posers. Like the retreats she leads where Rachel admits playing the lessons by ear, I didn't feel everything in the book connected - the poses, especially - to the inner thoughts and stories she was telling. Overall, the book is lovely but I believe I have a few other yoga-based self-love books collecting dust and will get a little bit more fulfillment for my buck. :)

To be honest, it's just an easy and fun read. In a breezy conversational style, Mindy shares her experiences from her childhood and her love of comedy formed at a young age/pursuit to be a comedy writer. She also offers observations about relationships, making it in Hollywood, and general things she notices in the differences between women and men. Most of the chapters are like a simple essay of various experiences she's had. Plenty of them are funny and insightful. There were a few that I just couldn't connect with and sorta zoned out of. But maybe that's me. Ultimately, she feels truly relatable and I enjoyed her positive outlook on everything - she just has a very fresh personality and isn't afraid to share her quirks and genuine interests. The book left me wanting to read more from her and to check out the Mindy Project (which I haven't done yet since I mostly knew her from the Office).

I didn't even realize I had this on my bookshelves until I was clearing it out. So, along with most of the non-fiction I've read this year, I decided to give this a-go. Honestly, since I am a big coffee drinker especially with Starbucks, the title is what intrigued me the most when I initially bought it and reading it now.

I thought the book was fair. I mean, what do you expect to get from a book that is about a business except a fairly subjective book about said business practices? That said, I've read similar books, and the angle of this one made me appreciate Starbucks more but also feel like I was reading some sort of Inception-centric marketing campaign.

There was just so many layers unearthed about Starbucks' practices, the genuine commitment of hardworking baristas, and it's branding, at certain chapters it would strike me (in an alarming way) just how much the book fell into the same tone of the company's commitment of it's image. While like I said what could be expected about a book selling the ideals of such a successful company, but I just wish it had a more of an objective perspective.

Be welcoming, be genuine, be considerate, be knowledgeable, and be involved are some of the main principles partners/managers have within the company, and after a while you really feel like that is how Starbucks genuinely operates. Every chapter reflects those principles, but it's almost so-on-the-nose, that I wondered if this was written by someone at the top of the ladder by Starbucks (even if I read the author's bio). The book could've been an inspirational manual while still being more balanced and a lot less sugar-coated in repeating just how much and why Starbucks is such a success.

Yes, readers will understand how Starbucks sets itself apart and embedded itself into the world community. I will also have a new appreciation to Starbucks, especially their employees, and I don't think I'll walk into a store the same way. The book definitely gave me a lot to think about in terms 'branding', as a blogger, etc. I'll probably look at the media/pop culture figures/other companies through a sharpened lens from some of the nuggets I learned about Starbucks (though I felt those were few and far between).

Set nineteen years after Deathly Hallows, young sons Albus Potter and Scorpius Malfoy form an unlikely friendship as they struggle to handle life at Hogwarts under their family's influence.

The duo goes to great lengths to step out of the shadow of their father's legacies. Potter, who is sorted into Slytherin instead of the favored Gryffindor house, contends with being overshadowed while Malfoy is bullied by swirling rumors as an illegitimate heir to Voldemort. By gaining access to one of the last Time Turners, they try to change the past by preventing Cedric Diggory's death. Their choices set off a domino effect, edging this adventure to enchant but also wonder if less is better than more.

J.K. Rowling with Jack Thorne and John Tiffany choosing Cedric's death as the moment the boys try to fix is both a great starting point but also completely random.

For many fans, Diggory's death was the pivotal moment in realizing nobody was safe. From then on, the books became a bloodbath. If we ever wondered what life would've been like, we get the lowdown in several different ways. It's fun to explore what mysteries lurked under the surface had events gone down differently - like Hermione and Ron not getting married, Voldemort rising to power after the Battle of Hogwarts, among others.

However, Lil Potter and Lil Malfoy using the Time Turners kinda comes out of nowhere. Potter seems to be angry at his dad for so long, and then overhearing one piece of information, takes matters into his own hands because he can. There isn't really an emphatic context on why the story has to fall down this rabbit hole, except that it just does.

Their adventures succeeds in subtly moving the differences between parents and teenagers along, and making us feel engaged with their detachment and misunderstandings. At first it feels wondrous and exciting, but the continuous returns jumps backwards also grows repetitive; like someone scratched a Prisoner of Azkaban dvd when Harry and Hermione try to save Buckbeak, and we continue to see that part of the story two more times with slight variations of how the characters make amends and reach understandings.

As the famous Dumbledore saying goes, “It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities", what the young boys decide to become is the heart of the eighth the story. As Harry and Draco echo the same dichotomy of bleeding Gryffindor versus Slytherin as always, Albus' bond with Scorpius is touching, funny, and endearing. Moving beyond the close-mindedness the 'elder' generation held onto throughout their teens, Cursed Child hones in on breaking the cycle of compartmentalizing ideas of evil and raising the next generation differently.

This is also reflected with another new character, Delphi, who is a fascinating addition but also the biggest and most frustrating issue. She is a raw and fierce element; an untamed force of nature without parental guidance as she strives to take her place as the rightful heiress next to the Dark Lord. She's a cool villain, however, the revelation of her being Bellatrix and Voldemort's child feels forced rather than adding something substantial to the long-term worldbuilding.

Similar to new info shared on Pottermore and by Rowling on twitter, a string of post-series' details has varied in its ability to please. Rowling's collaboration with Thorne and Tiffany isn't perfect, but is fun, weird, confusing, beautiful and adventurous. Like trying to separate a book from it's film adaptation, a new challenge emerges in accepting or denying how and if this eighth story fits into the wizarding world as we know it. Rather like the alternate universes explored here or even as some are saying with other pieces of fanfiction, Cursed Child works as a likable standalone but doesn't match its kin.


Things I Loved / Additional Thoughts:

"Hogwarts will be the making of you, Albus. I promise you, there is nothing to be frightened of there."
"...look you've got a nose."
Petunia kept Harry's baby blanket and Dudley sent it to him when she passed away.
Absolutely would love to see Platform 9 3/4, the wand fights, and the bookshelves/Ministry scene on stage
"I'm paint and memory, Harry, paint and memory."
Harry's vitriol attitude towards McGonagall = UNACCEPTABLE, DUDE.
Apparently, not getting the boy or girl you love turns you into a grumpypants no matter who you are. Hello, Snape-mione.
Draco's character development is the best.
Of course, it all goes back to Neville.
But where were other characters like Neville. Maybe not Arthur/Molly/George needed to be featured, but the play does take place at Hogwarts where Neville is a teacher....sooo....
Will Voldemort Day become a thing?
Snape grows a sense of humor.
[ALBUS] You just saw me two minutes, ago. [SCORPIUS] A lot has happened since then.
Only Hermione could cancel a meeting with the Goblins.
Act Four. Scene 15. Favorite scene of the whole play.

Treasure Yourself was something that I picked up at the library because I had planned on participating in an Oprah lifeclass - which was advertised as a free and then end up costing almost $100. Being bummed out I was looking for a spirituality book to tie me over, and I found Miranda Kerr's book on the shelves.

Known as a Victoria's Secret Angel and international model, Miranda Kerr teamed up with Louise Hay (of Hay House Radio, Books, etc.) to create her own book of affirmations and how they have played a role in her life ever since she was a young girl. Kerr's writing is very simple; almost a bit too much.

The first half of the book she is very briefly autobiographical - perhaps wanting to maintain some privacy. She teaches mostly about what keeps her grounded and rooted, her love of nature & organic supplements, and offers advice to women on how they too can feel beautiful if they choose to.

It's not the most complex nor deeply rooted spirituality books I've ever picked up, and I think that was a bit of a point. While I would have liked to have learned more about her childhood and more struggles she faced being a model, this was more of a playful book teaching young women to access their personality, believe in themselves, and see themselves as beautiful, strong women who can lead the lives they want.

The second half of the book was particularly my favorite because she shares with us the original quotes and words of advice that struck a particular chord with her, and also affirmations she created to go along with each one. She also provides advice on how to create your own affirmations and ideas for rooting the ones she created into your own life.

Overall, I think this was a fun breezy read and a nice little guide that I'd like to add to my bookshelf someday. It changed my perception a bit on how fashion is about the exterior world of a person; the style, the trends, the blurring line of models who are photoshopped and look the same. This small glimpse into Miranda's life was a nice break-away into understanding that beauty comes from within.

Over the course of the summer after ten years of separation, I reconnected with an aunt and cousin who I hadn't been able to talk to nor find. During our reunion over the phone and through emails for the past several months, my cousin told me of his ordeal being diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. He is almost twenty years old (having been diagnosed in his teens), and me being on the other end of the country, have had difficulty understanding all that he went through. There are certain experiences that you can listen to with all your heart and support, but not experiencing it first hand somehow makes his condition a little more challenging to understand. Wanting to know more and understand deeper, I thought it was a good idea to seek more information about his condition through books (since it's one of my prime outlets).

I picked 29 Gifts by Cami Walker when I was on a search in my library one evening looking for a book that I could read over the holiday season - self-help and filled with lessons but wasn't overbearing, melodramatic nor gave you ideas but didn't explore any results for having to connect with others or fine-tune compassion. Taking the book home after reading the summary and label, I was struck immediately with Cami's story of being diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in her twenties after she got married and the steps she took to try and manage her condition.

Immediately, I felt like I could better understand what my cousin went through and is going through, as well as connect with Cami's story of awareness and interconnectivity in the world. Given a principle by one of her spiritual teachers to share gifts with people over 29 days - 1 gift per person per day - Walker began a process of seeing how giving helped her condition and illuminated the world around her from strangers, friends, and family.

29 Gifts was an absolute heartfelt read - something I hadn't experienced in a very long time. It's a small book with a lot of profound truths. Walker tells the tale of each one of the gifts that she gave as well as some background on her childhood, her diagnosis, marriage, and personal relationships. She talks openly about how stress and overworking can manage to make people ill, especially with autoimmune disorders (something my cousin experienced growing up as a child that I was there firsthand to witness, monstrous negativity and abuse). And, she also explores how sharing and giving a piece of herself openly through financial donations, gifts of time, stories, and even small objects like a tissue for a grieving friend and a shoulder to cry on helped her focus less on what MS had stolen from her (the ability so far to have children) and more on what she has been gifted with. Having recovered from a previous substance abuse addiction, Walker shares how acupuncture, massages, and other alternatives such as getting off of subscription pills lessened her agony, and through her quest to manage her condition, she was filled with emotional and spiritual resources through her giving that she didn't unearth before.

At the conclusion of the book, I thought it was wonderful for Walker to include not only stories from the once-blossoming 29 gifts community (which was at the time that I checked it out online unavailable to view due to a server error), but also a letter by the spiritual teacher Mbali that inspired Walker on this journey. Her letter and the book give an eye-opening difference between giving in order to receive something in return, and giving from a place of selflessness. I used to favor that - like the Bible proverb - that your left hand should not knowing what your right hand is doing i.e. you should give anonymously and without the knowingness of doing something worthwhile. Walker's approach throughout the book is not to pat herself on the back for helping someone else but becoming more conscientious of her decision and actions, as well as becoming more aware of herself, her body, and the emotional/spiritual changes she experienced.

Overall, I think this is a delightful read for anyone who wishes to experience a look into not only someone who transformed their disease to work in their favor (for the most part) but also how easily gifting someone with something as small as compassion, time, or a few extra cents can have a large impact on the world. Walker's story not only inspired me to try her 29 gift challenge but also helped me understand more of what I had difficulty understanding with my cousin.