BBBC September - I Was Here

September's book was chosen by the lovely Stephanie from The Wonky Brow. She chose I Was Here by Gayle Forman.  I had never read anything by this author, but I'd heard a lot about her, so I was excited.

Cody is devastated when her best friend Meg commits suicide without warning. She soon discovers there was a lot more going on with Meg than she thought. When she goes to her college town to pack up Meg's belongings, she finds an encrypted file on Meg's computer that leaves here with so many questions.  She sets out on a mission to figure out why Meg saw no way out - or was it even suicide at all?

I had never read anything by Gayle Forman before, so I wasn't sure what to expect.  I could sum this book up with one word..."Meh".  It was fine, but I wanted more.  I think the romance between Cody and Ben could've been left out.  It was too cliche' and predictable.  

I should add that I listened to this book via the Audible app.  I enjoyed the narrator, which always is a good thing!

Check out what other members of our BBBC Members thought!

Michelyn: Brains, Beauty & Basketball
Ashley: If You Give A Girl A Ring
Heather: Love To Be Busy
Lisa: Uncommon Wife Life
Stephanie: The Wonky Brow

October's book is Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave and was chosen by Michelyn.  It looks like a great light read!  Feel free to join along.  :)

BBBC August - Orphan Train

So as of this past Monday morning, I am officially the mom of a FIRST GRADER!  This summer really flew by for some reason...Anyway - here's what I thought about this month's book club pick.

It was my turn to choose our book, so I wanted to pick something a little different than what I normally read (which is YA or Chick Lit).  Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline caught my eye on Amazon; mainly because it was on the best sellers list and had great reviews.  I'm not normally one to go for historical fiction, but I figured with over 15,000 positive reviews, it had to be somewhat good. 

Molly Ayer is a seventeen year-old foster child close to "aging out" of the system.  She agrees to help ninety-one year old Vivian Daly clean out her attic to aquire some community service hours and stay out of trouble.  As they get to know each other, Vivan shares her memories of abruptly immigrating to New York from Ireland, then ending up on a train with hundreds of other orphaned children bound for the Midwest to start a new (not always better) life with adoptive families.  Molly soon learns that as different as she thought she and Vivian were, they shared many similarities.  

I had no idea this part of American history existed - these trains carried children to adoptive families for 75 years!  To think that these children's lives were at the mercy of luck and chance blew me away.  I flew through this book in about 3 days (which is unusual for me).  I had to know what happened to Vivian and how she ended up from Ireland, to New York, to the Mid-West, and ultimately in Maine. 

This is a great book and I highly recommend it - even if Historical Fiction isn't your "thing".  

Have you read this? What did you think? Check out what the other BBBC members thought too!

Michelyn: Brains, Beauty & Basketball
Ashley: If You Give A Girl A Ring
Heather: Love To Be Busy
Lisa: Uncommon Wife Life
Stephanie: The Wonky Brow

Stephanie from The Wonky Brow chose September's book - I Was Here by Gayle Forman.  This is the first book I've read from this author, but I've heard great things about her.  Her most popular novel is If I Stay, which has been made into a movie, and is also on my to-read list.

BBBC - Paper Towns

What happened to summer?  It's August already?!  July's book was Paper Towns by John Green, chosen by Lisa of Uncommon Wife Life.  I read John Green's The Fault in Our Stars last summer and liked it, but it didn't blow me away.

The book begins when Quentin Jacobsen and Margo Roth Spiegelman were nine years old.  They find a dead body of a man up against a tree in a park.  Fast forward to their senior year in high school when Margo re-enters Quentin's life by showing up at his bedroom window and recruiting him to help her on a very detailed revenge plan.  The next day, Margo has vanished, but left a cryptic string of clues for Quentin to find her.

I really enjoyed this book, mostly because of John Green's quirky writing style.  It had a very conversational tone and lots of funny parts that had me literally LOL-ing.   Many of Margo's clues led Quentin to abandoned buildings and neighborhoods, which was really intriguing and fascinating to me.  

I finished this one in about a week, which is saying something.  Usually it takes me much longer!  I had to know what happened to Margo!  You also find out specifically what the term "Paper Towns" means, and it's pretty cool!  I'm also excited to see the movie, which is in theaters now.

Have you read this? What did you think? Check out what the other BBBC members thought too!

Michelyn: Brains, Beauty & Basketball
Ashley: If You Give A Girl A Ring
Heather: Love To Be Busy
Lisa: Uncommon Wife Life
Stephanie: The Wonky Brow

It was my turn to pick, so I chose Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline.  I've heard a lot about this book and it got great reviews.  Feel free to read along!

BBBC June - The Year We Left Home

So I feel like I just wrote my review for May's book!  Summer really is flying by!  For June, Heather, from Love To Be Busy, chose The Year We Left Home by Jean Thompson.  It is the story of a family in a small Iowa town that spans 30 years in their lives.  

To be totally honest, I just didn't "get" this book.  It was very underwhelming and hard to follow.  There were a lot of characters, but it was very hard to keep track of who was who.  There was no real climax or plot; just lots of specific everyday life events tangled up into a book.  I was just waiting for something to happen, but it never did.  

Go check out what the other BBBC Members thought about the book:
Michelyn: Brains, Beauty & Basketball
Ashley: If You Give A Girl A Ring
Heather: Love To Be Busy
Lisa: Uncommon Wife Life

Stephanie: The Wonky Brow

July's book was chosen by Lisa, from Uncommon Wife Life.  She chose Paper Towns by John Green.  I've read The Fault in Our Stars and enjoyed that, so I am excited to read this one.  It's also being made into a movie, so that's always fun!  

I get to pick August's book, so stay tuned for my choice!

BBBC Review - "Where'd You Go Bernadette" by Maria Semple

This is my first month as a member of the Beauty Blogger Book Club. We read "Where'd You Go Bernadette" by Maria Semple, chosen by Ashley of If You Give A Girl A Ring. 

This very unique story is told through a multitude of faxes, email messages, and other documents. Bernadette is an ex-star architect with extreme anxiety issues and is married to a Microsoft-guru, Elgin. They have a 15 year old daughter Bee, who wants to take a trip to Antarctica (of all places). The trip was a promised reward for an aced report card. Bee and Bernadette have a very close relationship, more like best friends than mother/daughter. So when Bernadette disappears without a trace days before they're about to leave for their trip, Bee is devastated and is determined to find her mom! 

I will be honest, I struggled to get through this. I did listen to it instead of reading it, so in all fairness, it could've been the narrator's voice that didn't draw me in. The narrator has a huge impact on my opinion of a book, as trivial as it sounds. Most of the book was from Bee's point of view, so the narrator tried to portray a 15 year old girl, yet it came off whiny and annoying. I had a hard time connecting and relating to the characters too. It was almost a little too "quirky" of a story for me. There were some funny parts though. I will say once Bernadette went missing, I really wanted to know what happened to her for the sake of Bee.  It did all come together in the end, but it just took a long time to get there.  In hindsight, the story format may have made mores sense to me in print rather than audio.  

Go check out what the other BBBC Members thought about the book:
Michelyn: Brains, Beauty & Basketball
Ashley: If You Give A Girl A Ring
Heather: Love To Be Busy
Lisa: Uncommon Wife Life

We also have a new member this month! I'm so excited Stephanie from The Wonky Brow has joined us and will be starting with June's book!

For the month of June, Heather from Love to Be Busy chose The Year We Left Home by Jean Thompson.  I've never read anything by this author, so I am excited to dive into something totally new!

What books are on your to-read list this summer?  

The Target Beauty Box - my thoughts...

I was finally lucky enough to snag the Spring 2015 Target Beauty Box - thanks to all the gals who posted a heads up on Instagram!  It became available ONE DAY after I started my no-buy...but someone was watching over me because I remembered I had a Target gift card in my wallet with juuuuust enough on it to cover the cost!  Here are my thoughts:

Maybelline Color Elixir in Rose Redefined -  Value $5.95

This is a full size (yay!).  I have another one of these in Glistening Amber and I like it, but I really like this shade.  The formula is great - more pigmented than a regular gloss, just the right amount of stickiness, and it smells good too!  It lasts slightly longer than a standard lip gloss, but not as long as a long-wear lipstick or stain.  It's easy to apply and doesn't need lip liner or a lipstick underneath.  I am happy with this!

Shea Moisture Superfruit Complex 10-in-1 Renewal System Shampoo - 3.2 oz Value $3.99

This does smell amazing, but I am not sure if I'd purchase a full size.  It's a little heavy for my fine hair, so I can't use it every time I wash my hair.  It is sulfate free, and my hair needs the sulfates.  But I will use this up and consider buying a different formula from this brand.  I have some bath oil and bath salts from Shea Moisture and LOVE them!

Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel Facial Moisturizer - Value $2.65

I was really excited to try this, but was a little underwhelmed.  It is a little sticky when you first apply it, so for that reason, I will just use this at night.  I did like the way my skin felt the next morning.  This might be a good night cream in the summertime when I don't need my First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream.  

TRESemme Tre Two Spray - 1.5 oz Value $1.47

This is my go-to drugstore hairspray, so of course I was happy to receive a small size for travel!  It doesn't flake, it's not too stiff, and it smells nice!  

L'Oreal Infallible Pro Spray & Set Makeup Extender Setting Spray - Value $13.99

This is the full size people!  I really like this.  It is just as good as the Urban Decay All-Nighter, in my opinion, and is much cheaper.  I work out in the afternoon, and this helps my makeup look presentable afterwards! (Unless I'm really sweating, in which case there isn't a setting spray made that would help!)  I wish the spray was as fine as the UD, but I have an empty UD bottle that I may pour this into.  Problem solved!

The Verdict

I am really happy with this box.  The combined value of the products is a little over $28, and they also included a $3.00 off a $15 beauty purchase coupon.  The advertised value is $38, but I can't figure out where they got that number.  Still, it's an amazing value and I will definitely jump on the next one!  I wish they would offer it as a subscription box like Walmart does though.  Did you get one of these boxes?  What did you think?

Book Review - "Big Little Lies" by Liane Moriarty...oh and I joined a book club!

Earlier this spring, I decided to join Audible.com, again....I went on a "cut unnecessary expenses rampage" a few years ago and Audible didn't make the cut.  I love audiobooks because it makes my time in the car so much more bearable.  I can't stand mindlessly flicking through radio stations!  

Anyway....back to this book.  It is set in a suburb in Australia and revolves around a death that occurred at a Parents' Trivia Night event at the elementary school.  The three main characters are moms of kindergarten students (hey, that's me!).  Madeline is the outspoken mom that is having trouble with the fact that she is turning 40.  Plus, her ex husband and his new yoga instructor wife just moved back into town and their daughters are in the same class!  Celeste is the stunningly gorgeous mom of twin boys who lives in a monstrous house on the beach and "seems" to have the perfect life.  Jane is the single mom of Ziggy who moves into town just before the school year begins.  Early in the book, Ziggy is accused of bullying a little girl.  Ziggy swears it wasn't him, but Jane starts to have her doubts.  

Without giving too much away, it all hinges on Jane and Ziggy's past.  This book clearly shows that while people's lives may look picture perfect on the outside, they live in an entangled web of secrets and lies that they even start believing themselves.  It deals with bullying, domestic violence, adultery, and other suburbia scandal.  While there is a lot of serious subject matter, the author manages to keep things light too. 

I highly recommend this book.  I found myself sitting in my car when I got somewhere to listen just a little longer!  It's captivating and you won't know what really happened until the very end...and trust me - you will be shocked!

Also - I joined the Beauty Blogger Book Club!  I found out about it on my Instabestie Heather's blog - Love To Be Busy.  Each month a member chooses a book and we write a review on our blogs and link the other members' reviews too.   This month we are reading "Where'd You Go Bernadette" by Maria Sample.  I'd never heard of this book, but the reviews on Amazon are great! 

If you are a blogger, and are interested in joining our book club, please comment below to learn more. If you do not write a blog that is ok, because you can still join in on the fun!  Each month, one of the Beauty Blogger Book Club (BBBC) members will choose a book for the Club to read. At the beginning of the following month, we each write a book report/summary for our readers to enjoy and share the book for the following month!!