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The Spring Break Book Report
Looking for a few good page-turners you can dive into during Spring Break? We’ve rounded up a mix of autobiographies, thrillers, and modern fiction that have earned rave reviews from barre3 clients and team members. Whether you’re headed for a tropical getaway or taking a mental vacation right at home, these are the books that have found their way into our beach totes.
1. Not that Kind of Girl by Lena Dunham
Dunham’s witty memoir doubles as an advice book, with some great pointers on how to navigate the occasionally perilous waters of womanhood. Through a series of personal essays, Dunham shares her thoughts on love, career, friendship, and the random epiphanies of a 20-something. A random gem: “Confidence lets you pull anything off, even Tevas with socks.” Despite some of the controversy surrounding Dunham’s book, her candid observations had us alternately laughing out loud and nodding at her wisdom, which is well beyond her years.
2. How to Build a Girl by Caitlin Moran
If you haven’t heard of Caitlin Moran, this fearless little book is the perfect introduction. How to Build a Girl is about an uncool girl who decides to reinvent herself as a rock critic and make her way to London. (Imagine a dirtier, funnier version of “Almost Famous,” and you get the idea.) The title character Johanna gains entry into to the mostly male world of rock n’ roll through her brash sense of humor. “Everyone loves a bad kid on a roll,” she writes. “I am a bullet, being shot out of a dirty gun.” If you’re in the mood for a fun, rowdy read, this book hits the mark perfectly.
3. The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
Portland client Robyn Downs recommended this book, and we’re so glad she did! It’s the hilarious, feel-good tale of a charming—and socially challenged—geneticist who embarks on a quest to find true love. As Robyn puts it, “The Rosie Project’s protagonist approaches life with a checklist. And though his checklist brings order and predictability, it’s when he encounters a woman who meets none of his listed criteria that he starts living his best life. Many of us prefer to live by lists, to plan things perfectly and then to check the boxes. I loved this book because it reminds us that sometimes throwing out the list can lead to the best possible outcomes.”
4. A Season in Purgatory by Dominick Dunne
How’s this for a recommendation? When Communications Manager Kait Hurley was assigned this book in a college class, she literally shut herself up in her dorm room reading until 2:00 am on a Saturday night to finish it. A Season in Purgatory tells the story of a wealthy blueblood family corrupted by power and greed. Loaded with affairs, cover-ups, and crimes of passion, this is juicy reading at its finest.
5. All Fall Down by Jennifer Weiner
All Fall Down is the page-turning story of a working mom’s slide into addiction and her struggle to find her way back up again. We found ourselves nodding our heads in sympathy as the main character Allison struggles to balance being a mother, a daughter, and a wife while desperately just wanting to be herself. With a sparkling comedic touch this tale of empowerment and redemption reminds us that no matter how far you fall, it’s possible to get back up again.
6. Yes Please by Amy Poehler
We have an imaginary BFF, and her name is Amy Poehler. Poehler’s hilarious book Yes Please is filled with stories, thoughts, ideas, lists, and yes, even haikus about everything from her childhood and motherhood to her observations about Hollywood and “the biz.” In between bouts of hysterical laughter, we found Yes Please to be chock-full of words of wisdom to live by. (Some of our favorites: “If It’s Not Funny, You Don’t Have To Laugh” and “Everybody Is Scared Most Of The Time.”) Until we can find a way to hang out with Amy in real life, this book is the next best thing. Read more about Yes Please here (it was February’s book club pick!).
Have you read any of these books? Got any others to recommend? We’d love to know! Let us know in the comments below.
Looking for a few good page-turners you can dive into during Spring Break? We’ve rounded up a mix of autobiographies, thrillers, and modern fiction that have earned rave reviews from barre3 clients and team members. Whether you’re headed for a tropical getaway or taking a mental vacation right at home, these are the books that have found their way into our beach totes.
1. Not that Kind of Girl by Lena Dunham
Dunham’s witty memoir doubles as an advice book, with some great pointers on how to navigate the occasionally perilous waters of womanhood. Through a series of personal essays, Dunham shares her thoughts on love, career, friendship, and the random epiphanies of a 20-something. A random gem: “Confidence lets you pull anything off, even Tevas with socks.” Despite some of the controversy surrounding Dunham’s book, her candid observations had us alternately laughing out loud and nodding at her wisdom, which is well beyond her years.
2. How to Build a Girl by Caitlin Moran
If you haven’t heard of Caitlin Moran, this fearless little book is the perfect introduction. How to Build a Girl is about an uncool girl who decides to reinvent herself as a rock critic and make her way to London. (Imagine a dirtier, funnier version of “Almost Famous,” and you get the idea.) The title character Johanna gains entry into to the mostly male world of rock n’ roll through her brash sense of humor. “Everyone loves a bad kid on a roll,” she writes. “I am a bullet, being shot out of a dirty gun.” If you’re in the mood for a fun, rowdy read, this book hits the mark perfectly.
3. The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
Portland client Robyn Downs recommended this book, and we’re so glad she did! It’s the hilarious, feel-good tale of a charming—and socially challenged—geneticist who embarks on a quest to find true love. As Robyn puts it, “The Rosie Project’s protagonist approaches life with a checklist. And though his checklist brings order and predictability, it’s when he encounters a woman who meets none of his listed criteria that he starts living his best life. Many of us prefer to live by lists, to plan things perfectly and then to check the boxes. I loved this book because it reminds us that sometimes throwing out the list can lead to the best possible outcomes.”
4. A Season in Purgatory by Dominick Dunne
How’s this for a recommendation? When Communications Manager Kait Hurley was assigned this book in a college class, she literally shut herself up in her dorm room reading until 2:00 am on a Saturday night to finish it. A Season in Purgatory tells the story of a wealthy blueblood family corrupted by power and greed. Loaded with affairs, cover-ups, and crimes of passion, this is juicy reading at its finest.
5. All Fall Down by Jennifer Weiner
All Fall Down is the page-turning story of a working mom’s slide into addiction and her struggle to find her way back up again. We found ourselves nodding our heads in sympathy as the main character Allison struggles to balance being a mother, a daughter, and a wife while desperately just wanting to be herself. With a sparkling comedic touch this tale of empowerment and redemption reminds us that no matter how far you fall, it’s possible to get back up again.
6. Yes Please by Amy Poehler
We have an imaginary BFF, and her name is Amy Poehler. Poehler’s hilarious book Yes Please is filled with stories, thoughts, ideas, lists, and yes, even haikus about everything from her childhood and motherhood to her observations about Hollywood and “the biz.” In between bouts of hysterical laughter, we found Yes Please to be chock-full of words of wisdom to live by. (Some of our favorites: “If It’s Not Funny, You Don’t Have To Laugh” and “Everybody Is Scared Most Of The Time.”) Until we can find a way to hang out with Amy in real life, this book is the next best thing. Read more about Yes Please here (it was February’s book club pick!).
Have you read any of these books? Got any others to recommend? We’d love to know! Let us know in the comments below.
