Hey guys, it’s been a little while. I’ve been so busy with school, my RA job on campus, and my internship with the marketing team— so it’s been pretty crazy. I also am dating someone and they also live on campus so it’s nice because I get to be with them all the time and I’ve been enjoying that. Classes are finally over. I hope everyone wrapped up this year well. I know some of us are glad for the year to finally be over! So, I want to end this year on some good notes by sharing with you my top 3 books of 2018! First, I would like to mention this super interesting book I received from Design Expert, TV Host and Owner of The WOW Factor! Inc; Martin Amado. It’s called One-Day Room Makeovers. I got to meet him at an Interior Design Expo in Miami when I was working with Barnes & Noble; we actually were working his book signing booth and selling his books and he gave me one! I watched him do a talk at the expo and he is very real and he’s really good at showing that interior design isn’t all that hard and it doesn’t have to be so expensive, there are lots of creative DIY projects that you can do to spice up any room. In his book, he shows pictures of rooms and projects that he’s worked on, he even gives you some DIYs to try out yourself. And it was just so great to meet him, appreciate his work, and then receive this book from him that I’m so obsessed with. I love design and now that I’m getting older and really appreciating having my own space (and looking on Pinterest all the time) I’ve fallen in love with creating my space the way I really want it. So, I’d really recommend this book, you can buy it at Barnes & Noble. And if you’re interested in following Martin, he’s a TV Host for the So Flo Home Projectand I know he’s on Instagram too. The second I want to mention is Florence Welch’s book Useless Magic. If you couldn’t catch by her name— this is the actual Florence from the well-known band Florence and the Machine. This book she created is so incredibly beautiful. It’s filled with her lyrics, poetry, and art. I saw this book in Urban Outfitters for a pricey penny— around 35 dollars? But I fell in love with it (so I got in online from Walmart nearly $10 less). I looked at it and immediately thought if I ever were to create a book (and I do want to publish more of my poetry) then I would want it to look like this as well. To display all forms of my art in one piece that someone could purchase. In here, you’ll find some of her most famous songs like Dogs Days Are Over... Through this book I found so many other songs and poems of hers that I love even more. Especially the song, Howl. It’s one thing to sing a song in the car that you’ve heard a million times so you just memorize the lyrics and I think Dog Days is one of those songs. A song of our generation, a song that we grew up to that’s so fun and nostalgic. But when you sit down and drink some tea maybe and read lyrics that someone wrote about how they felt in one moment of their life. It’s a completely different experience. You analyze the song and you can relate to it more. And the next time you sing that song, it has so much more meaning to it and meaning to you maybe. I read Howland I nearly cried. I know that feeling and it’s become one of my new favorite songs that’s not a “new song” it’s an “old song.” Last, but not least, is the poetry book: Sea of Strangers by Lang Leav. I also saw this book at an Urban Outfitters. Usually when I go to Urban I first hit up the clearance section because that’s what I can actually afford with my RA revenue and the helpful app. I picked up this book because it had an illustration on it that looked like me, a girl who had my haircut. I quickly saw that it was a poetry book and I dove in immediately. Unfortunately there are a lot of poetry books out now that I can’t relate to, they’re very plain and viral right now, no offense. It’s just not really my cup of tea— lol. On the other hand, this book it has some long poetry, some short, some one sentence even, but I relate to it more than almost any book. I’m a writer, that’s why I have this blog and before this I was writing on Facebook and I still constantly write in my notes on my phone before I publish anything to the internet. And when I read this book it looked like what I write in my notes. It’s raw, it’s real, and it’s full of feeling (in that exact moment). And I think it’s important that we write down our feelings so that we can remember exactly how strongly we felt something whether it be at a time of happiness or grief or whatever. We get to know ourselves better and we can grow once we analyze how we feel and how we react to life. This is an internationally best selling book and I can see why. So, I hope you liked what I had to say about these and maybe it will inspire you to pick some of them up at the store. And I’d love to know what your favorite books are this year? This was actually really fun and I totally believe am one that listens to the recommendations of friends, so I’d love to hear what you have to share. Thank you and till next time— I’ll probably see you in the New Year! xx Mad