With wanderlust in my heart and sandy beaches on the brain I can tell a vacation is on the horizon! One of my favorite ways to relax on a vacay (or staycay now that I live in San Diego) is to find a cozy place on the beach to curl up with a good book. There are so many amazing reads that have come out recently that finding a good book to read isn’t nearly as hard as finding the time! Perhaps some people should consider visiting Likewise for book recommendations. That should make it easier to find books that you’re interested in.

However, they say variety is the spice of life, so I tend to mix up the genre so I don’t get bored. I tried reading the Fifty Shades of Grey series and only managed to get through half of book two…and if a sordid romance complete with red room can’t keep my interest for more than one book chances are not much else will. That being said, there are some books I could read again and again! Here are a few page-turners I would highly recommend:

The Alchemist by Paulo Coleho

The Alchemist is an incredible book about a boy discovering his Personal Legend aka. his destiny in life. I’m not entirely sure if it is the new year, my move to San Diego, or the fact that I am about to turn the big 3-1, but I have been in a total mode of self reflection. I have a terrible tendency to focus on what else is on my To-Do list rather than slowing down and enjoying the process of it all. Anytime I begin to lose sight of my path in life, I read this book. Here is a little snippet for you (trust me…this book is sooooo good that anytime I find a copy I buy it and give it to a friend):

“What you still need to know is this: before a dream is realized, the Soul of the World tests everything that was learned along the way. It does this not because it is evil, but so that we can, in addition to realizing our dreams, master the lessons we’ve learned as we’ve moved toward that dream.” – The Alchemist

#GIRLBOSS by Sophia Amoruso

Seriously though…#GIRLBOSS is amazing! Sophia Amoruso the CEO and Founder of Nasty Gal combines so many things I love in life from vintage shopping, to guerrilla tactic entrepreneurialism and gives her reader a swift kick in the ass about what is possible. I love Sophia’s voice and blunt honesty about what it takes to create a thriving business built by passion and sweat equity.

I found myself relating to her on so many levels that her book was just what the doctor ordered, as I have been feeling a little shaky about pursuing my passions in life as of late. There are so many good quotes in this book I could practically just copy and paste the whole thing in here, one of my favorites is her take on signature style…

“The last thing I’d ever subscribe to are fashion rules. However, I do think that you should put effort into what you wear. Clothing is ultimately the suit of armor in which we battle the world. When you choose your clothing right, it feels good. And there’s nothing shallow about feeling good. Owning your style, however, is much more about your attitude than it is about what’s on your back. But don’t underestimate the transformational possibilities that getting dressed can afford you.” – Sophia Amoruso

Not That Kind of Girl by Lena Dunham

Not That Kind of Girl is full of laugh out loud hilarious personal accounts on everything from PMS to body image issues, and dating to virginity plus a multitude of topics which you would imagine being unbelievably awkward to talk about. While I liked this book, it fell short of what I had hoped it would be. I have read several of Chelsea Handler’s books (which I loved) and expected the same quality from Dunham considering Girls is ah-mazing. While the humor was there, the writing style was very raw and hard to follow. That being said, there were some diamonds in the rough…

“When someone shows you how little you mean to them and you keep coming back for more, before you know it you start to mean less to yourself. You are not made up of compartments! You are one whole person! What gets said to you gets said to all of you, ditto what gets done. Being treated like shit is not an amusing game or a transgressive intellectual experiment. It’s something you accept, condone, and learn to believe you deserve. This is so simple. But I tried so hard to make it complicated.”- Lena Dunham

NEXT UP…The Woman I Wanted to Be by Diane von Furstenberg

I would love to hear what you thought about these books and any reading suggestions you have that I could add to my list! Happy reading and as always…