Hippie Staff Summer Reads

Kierstynn's Picks:

As much as I love being connected on social media, I love moments where I get to I get to unplug and let my mind wander. I love being able to do that with books, so I decided to share with you some books that I have been interested in lately! All of them are linked so you can get them for yourselves if you find them interesting as well! :) 

Park Avenue Summer:  I haven’t started reading this book yet, but I heard about it on a podcast and it definitely caught my interest.

Park Avenue Summer takes place in New York in the 1960’s where a photographer named Alice lands a job working for the first female editor and chief of Cosmopolitan Magazine, Helen Gurley Brown. Someone is out to sabotage Helen by leaking edits of the magazine before the go to print and Alice is determined to help Helen succeed.

When Life Gives You Lululemons: Once again, I heard about this book through a podcast and decided I had to read it. I’ve started to read it and I’ve loved it so far.

When Life Gives You Lululemons is the sequel to The Devil Wears Prada. This time however the book follows Emily Charlton, (Miranda Priestly’s ex assistant) who is now an image consultant. A supermodel now turned socialite named Karolina Hartwell is arrested for a DUI, and Emily sees her comeback opportunity to become the top image consultant once again.

The Program: This book is technically in the young adult section, and I keep trying to break away from this section completely but they keep coming out with super interesting finds. Like this book for example, it’s crazy good. It keeps you on the edge of your seat and is a page turner. It’s also a full series, so if you like this book, I recommend picking up the others.

The Program takes place in Oregon, where suicide is now considered an international epidemic. Sloane Barstow and her friends are under constant surveillance at home and school. Sloane and her friends have to keep their emotions in check otherwise they’ll end up in the program and return with their depression and memories completely gone.

These are all the books I loved reading so far, or I want to start reading at least, if you end up reading any of these let me know what you think. 

Bethany's Picks:  

Becoming, by Michelle Obama.  We've all heard a lot about this one by now.  I was actually gifted it for Christmas, and it's still on my mind.  I loved how authentic Michelle Obama was, and is, and it really comes through in this book.  I really admired her recollection of what it was like struggling to fit in as an educated black woman both as a child and as the First Lady of the United States, and I loved learning about the softer, more intellectual and philosophical side of President Obama.  He reminded me a lot of my hubby, actually!  If you're looking to feel some inspiration and connection in a real way - this book is a great pick!

You Are a Badass by Jen Sincero  YOU ARE A BADASS IS THE SELF-HELP BOOK FOR PEOPLE WHO DESPERATELY WANT TO IMPROVE THEIR LIVES BUT DON'T WANT TO GET BUSTED DOING IT.

Okay, so I'm really not into self-help books.  I feel like they're repetitive and oftentimes really boring.  My friend lent me this one and I reluctantly read it.  I'll be honest - I didn't read the whole thing, because like I said, self-help books are kind of boring to me.  However, I will say that I found this one pretty entertaining.  The author talks in a real way, and she swears a lot.  My kind of gal.  Plus, like ALL of my friends love it and are talking about it, so that's gotta count for something, right?  

The Tenth Island, by Diana Marcum.  When I was a kid I lived in the San Joaquin Valley in California.  To me, it was a boring, hot place with fields as far as the eye could see.  I used to look out the car window down into the orchards as we drove past, the lines between mesmerizing me and putting me into a meditation.  I think part of the reason I loved this book is because the author is also from the San Joaquin Valley, and she paints a completely different picture than what I remember, but at the same time, it's familiar and nostalgic.  The book isn't so much about the valley as her trips to the Azores and the people and experiences she came to love in her travels as a journalist during the California drought at the height of the Internet and the fall of traditional journalism. 

Erin's Picks:

Vertical Marriage, by Dave & Anne Wilson. For anyone who is married, preparing for marriage, or desperate to save a relationship teetering on the edge of disaster, Dave and Ann offer hope and strategies that really work. Vertical Marriage will give you the insight, applications, and inspiration to reconnect with God together and to transform your marriage to everything you hoped it would be.

Moody Bitches: The Truth About the Drugs You're Taking, the Sleep You're Missing, the Sex You're Not Having, and What's Really Making You Crazy by Julie Holland, MD.  A groundbreaking guide for women of all ages that shows their natural moodiness is a strength, not a weakness

As women, we learn from an early age that our moods are a problem, an annoyance to be stuffed away. But our bodies are wiser than we imagine. Moods are a finely tuned feedback system that allows us to be more empathic, intuitive, and aware of our own capabilities. If we deny our emotionality, we deny the breadth of our talents. 

What books have you been reading this summer? Let us know in the comments!