As hard as it is to believe, September has come and gone, so it’s time to recap the books I read last month and what I thought about them.
Beautiful Ruins – I read Beautiful Ruins at the very end of the summer and its setting definitely had a summer vacation feel to it. The story starts off in the early 1960s when a young Italian innkeeper falls in love with a young American actress in the country to film her first major film who tells him she is dying. Decades later, the Italian man now elderly goes to America searching for the woman he met years before. I enjoyed the combination of modern day story paired with the story from the past that featured Old Hollywood era stars like Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. Pack this book on your next vacation for a good holiday read.
Give and Take: Why Helping Others Drives Our Success – Many times we think of what people can do for us in professional situations, but the premise of Give and Take is that people who are givers do not necessarily finish last in professional settings. I enjoyed this book and it definitely had me viewing whether my actions and the actions of others around me were giving or taking behaviors. If you like books in the same vein of Malcolm Gladwell, you will enjoy reading this book.
#Girlboss – So I’ve seen this book all over social media, so I had to read #Girlboss myself to form my own opinion on this book by the CEO of the online retailer, Nastygal. #Girlboss was a quick but enjoyable read for any aspiring professional who hopes to play by their own rules. Sophia didn’t fit the typical mold you think of for a driven businesswoman. She doesn’t have a college degree and had a spotty work track record until she started her company. Nastygal was originally a small time eBay vintage selling website she evolved into a multimillion dollar operation. What makes this book interesting, is Sophia’s quirky personal story and great “tweetable” quotes. Outside of the great “tweetable” quotes the book had, I think a younger audience (teens or early twenties) would benefit more from this book than a seasoned professional, but it’s definitely a good, quick read.
What have you read lately?
