Even if you’re still finishing up finals, there’s no harm in daydreaming about the 4 fabulous months to come. So put down that Econ 101 textbook, grab a towel, and layer on the sunscreen.

Summer’s almost here, and it’s time to celebrate!

To help pump you up, we’ve put together a list of the 35 greatest things about summer. Here are our top picks: Read More »

Hopefully you are enjoying the sun in your part of the world (my part of Canada, however, is still not sunny) and getting outside! There is nothing I love more in the summer than curling up on a comfy lawn chair or towel and just reading away the afternoon. What I don’t love, though, is strange book-shaped tan line I often end up with on my belly.

For everyone else who enjoys a good book on a hot summer afternoon, I’ve definitely got a doozy for you.

“White Oleander” by Janet Fitch is an older novel and made into a movie in 2002 starring Michelle Pfieffer. But PLEASE, for your own good, read the book first! My boyfriend’s sister lent me her tattered and well-read copy (thanks Danielle!) and assured me that it was her absolute favorite book. And I have to say, Danielle didn’t let me down. “White Oleander” has quickly shot up my list of favorite books as well.

The story centers around Astrid Magnussen. Without giving away too much plot, Astrid’s mother ends up in jail when Astrid is 15 and she is bounced around from foster home to foster home. The book chronicles her experiences at each home, but also, her experiences becoming a women. Without an solid role model, Astrid drifts along and discovers herself.

The book is dramatic and enthralling, but also so emotional and real – a perfect combination. It’s not exactly a light-chick-lit kind of read, but it is a book that you can easily lose yourself in and before you know it, an hour has passed, you’re halfway through, and you have a very unfortunate tan line!

Even though I’m a writer, and an avid fan of art, in general, I’ll admit that I have always been an on and off reader. Raised without television, I read religiously up until the day that I packed my bags and headed off to college. College, however, was a different story. I was always flustered between classes and two jobs and simply couldn’t make the time to read anything other than what I HAD to read.

Now that college is a thing of the past for me, I’ve luckily been able to set aside more time these days for reading, but – sometimes – I need a little inspiration.

Needless to say, I was psyched when Spin Magazine invited me to be a member of their book club. I took up the offer gladly and now I’m thrilled each month to read and discuss the books that the selected members choose. The first book that I read was Milan Kundera’s, ‘The Unbearable Lightness of Being‘. And I loved it.

Each sentence is painted artistically and poetically as the stories surrounding several lovers’ intertwined lives unravels. Infidelity is a leading motif in this piece, but the book neither encourages nor discourages it. Instead, the book plants you into a place of perspective. It allows you to see deeply into the lives of those who cheat and break hearts and those who are faithful and get their hearts broken. And every possible variable in between. Read More »