a lot of reading and writing...

So... while I am on a break, one of the things I have included on my immensely long list of things to do is catch up on my reading and writing... since not being able to work with books anymore [sigh] I always start books and then put them down again to collect dust somewhere...
so what i'm doing is trying to compile a relatively long list to work through - when i'm finished - [i should be finished reading all the books on the list by the time i'm ready to start blogging again on a permanent basis....] so here we go... if there are any particular books you think I'd enjoy, just hollah!

into the wild
catch 22
the book thief
breakfast at tiffany's
wonderland avenue
what is the what
a heartbreaking work of staggering genius
conversations with god
the poisonwood bible
prodigal summer
the diving bell and the butterfly
3 cups of tea
dreams from my father
the audacity of hope
rebecca
the princess bride
the host
let the right one in
the secret history
blonde
fingersmith
the little stranger
perfume
1984
the kite runner
world war z
the secret life of marilyn monroe
push
playing with the grown-ups
wolf hall
dear john
shutter island
shakespeare on toast
the white tiger
the other hand
the vampire diaries
the pearl
the reader
the second sex
gone with the wind
obsession

Zadie Smith: Changing My Mind: Occasional Essays

For me, Zadie Smith is one of those rare finds when it comes to intriguing, fictitious literature. Having changed her name from 'Sadie' to 'Zadie' in order to give her more of an exotic edge, Zadie quickly impressed the literary world and blew away her critics with her debut novel 'White Teeth' which was quickly followed on by her sophomore effort 'The Autograph Man', and most recently, her third novel, 'On Beauty', no doubt one of her best yet, with its intricate yet very real, no holds back intimate portrayals of each individual character and their role within the dysfunctional Belsey family.
Having taken a hiatus to pursue lecturing and teaching at prestigious Universities in America, including Columbia and New York Universities, and a quick edit of the book published last year, 'The Book of Other People', Zadie is back with her own collection of essays, called 'Changing My Mind' in which she gives her own, frank view on everything from Middlemarch to Will Smith, calling him 'A waste of space.' And from her own insights into how she views the world as well as highlighting her undulated passion in her love for books, it seems Miss Smith is never sated and satisfied until she tries or makes people aware to her particular way of thinking, and it would seem that in this book, she does so, in such a delectable way that I can't wait to read it.

Changing My Mind: Occasional Essays
Published: 26th November 2009
Publisher: Hamish Hamilton LTD, Hardback, 330 Pages
£20.00
ISBN: 9780241142950

[cle's book list / beautiful awakenings update]

Hey Everyone!
OK, so brand new beautiful awakenings is officially up!! it doesn't look like a lot but i understand its a lot to get through and takes time, unlike looking at a photograph or listening to a song - but if everyone manages to do this for me, words will be unable to express my appreciation - this thing has been like my baby so its very important to me, and i just hope everyone likes it!
the rest of chapter four [the beautiful and the damned] will be on its way very, very soon!

For now, here's a little bit of what I'm reading / on my reading list:

1. eat, pray, love; one woman's search for everything - elizabeth gilbert
2. reading lolita in tehran - azar nafisi
3. a thousand splendid suns - khaled hosseini
4. go ask alice - anonymous
5. delta of venus - anais nin
6. fugitive pieces - anne michaels
7. anna karenina - tolstoy
8. wuthering heights - bronte
9. the duchess - amanda foreman
10. the pirate's daughter - margaret cezair thompson
11. the host - stephenie meyer
12. essays in love - alain de botton
13. outliers - malcolm gladwell
14. the secret - rhonda byrne

P.S for those of you who have not read the twilight saga, go buy the special editions with the lovely new red pages - a must have!