What I'm reading + NOTD pt. 73

'I was born twice: first, as a baby girl, on a remarkably smogless Detroit day of January 1960; and then again, as a teenage boy, in an emergency room near Petoskey, Michigan, in August of l974 ...My birth certificate lists my name as Calliope Helen Stephanides. My most recent driver's license ...records my first name simply as Cal.' 

So begins the breathtaking story of Calliope Stephanides, and three generations of the Greek-American Stephanides family who travel from a tiny village overlooking Mount Olympus in Asia Minor to Prohibition era Detroit, witnessing its glory days as the Motor City, and the race riots of l967, before they move out to the tree-lined streets of suburban Grosse Point, Michigan. To understand why Calliope is not like other girls, she has to uncover a guilty family secret, and the astonishing genetic history that turns Callie into Cal, one of the most audacious and wondrous narrators in contemporary fiction. Lyrical and thrilling, Middlesex is an exhilarating reinvention of the American epic.

Middlesex is indeed an epic novel. I always loved the stories when we get to know the whole history of the family till the present day. It's written in a way that will always pull you to read forward even though you decided that you have enough for today. It is a fatty, and I was a bit scared how long will it take me to finish it, but after I started I saw that it would be a quick page turner.

Sometimes when I finish reading a book I have some questions in my head that are not always connected directly with the story, but maybe there is a theme I would like to explore further. The debate between sex and gender is not new to me, since I had taken gender studies at my university, but it was some time ago so I decided to refresh a subject a little. And there was a book on my reading list that it was perfect for this.

It's the book Sex/Gender. Biology in a Social World by Anne Fausto Sterling. Sex/Gender presents a relatively new way to think about how biological difference can be produced over time in response to different environmental and social experiences. This book gives a clearly written explanation of the biological and cultural underpinnings of gender. Anne Fausto-Sterling introduces the biochemistry, neurobiology, and social construction of gender with expertise and humor in a style accessible to a wide variety of readers. In addition to the basics, Sex/Gender ponders the moral, ethical, social and political side to this inescapable subject.

Human body is very complicated indeed and I didn't get definite answers about sex and gender just a will to learn more. There is some interesting fact in the book and I would recommend the book to everyone that is interested in the debate about sex and gender, since is written in the way that anyone can understand the topics. For example, did you know that the colours, blue for boys and pink for girls, came in use after the second world war, so that the generation that is now around fifty is the first that was raised in this strict colour scheme. 

Here I have another fun fact for you. In Slovenian language we don't have a world for gender, so for the need of having something, at least for studying the subject at universities we say social sex when we mean gender and biological sex. But in everyday use, I don't think we ever use the world gender, is all just (biological) sex for us.

The nail polish is from Essence, from an old limited edition and the name is Blues of being cool. It's a greyish blue, application was ok, nothing to complain about.

Have a great day.

Catrice ICONails Gel Lacquer in 07 Meet Me At Coral Island

Autumn is just around the corner, I can feel it in the air already for a while now, but at least on the calendar summer is still here, so today I have for you a very summery nail polish.

The ICONails are no longer a novelty in Catrice assortment, but this is my first ICONails nail polish. I admired them in the shop, but I just couldn't decide which colour should I pick. I just don't want any dupes in my collection. This one was a birthday gift, and I'm happy for that, as I believe I couldn't pick a colour. The colour I have is Meet Me At Coral Island.

This is what Catrice says: Lasts up to 7 days – without a top coat! The innovative nail polish formula ensures a perfect gel-shine finish and maximum durability on the nails. Thanks to the GLOSS SEAL’RTM technology, the nail polishes have a spectacular high-shine finish. The shock-shield complex offers a perfect balance of elasticity and stability for optimal resistance against chipping and a long durability of up to 7 days. The ICONails Gel Lacquers are enriched with acai oil, which provides pampering care for the natural nails in addition to intensive colour – Colour & Care at its best!

The square cap of the brush is removable, so you can hold it easily while applying it. The application is ok, the brush is quite big, but fortunately not too thick.

About the claim that it last up to 7 days. On me it last just about any other nail polish, so one, maximum two days, with this one I didn't see any difference. But it's ok, I'm used to short wear time, unfortunately.

All in all, it's a nice nail polish and I will definitely buy some other colours.

Have a great day!

What I'm reading + NOTD pt. 72

Jorgen Hofmeester once had it all: a beautiful wife, a nice house with a garden in an upper-class neighbourhood in Amsterdam, a respectable job as an editor, two lovely daughters named Ibi and Tirza, and a large amount of money in a Swiss bank account. But during the preparations for Tirza's graduation party, we come to know what he has lost. His wife has left him; Ibi is starting a bed and breakfast in France, an idea which he opposed; the director of the publishing house has fired him; and his savings have vanished in the wake of 9/11. But Hofmeester still has Tirza, until she introduces him to her new boyfriend, Choukri--who bears a disturbing resemblance to Mohammed Atta--and they announce their plan to spend several months in Africa. 

Most of the story happens at Tirza's graduation party with Jorgen being the host. He is reminiscing about his past so we get to know him and his story. I guess the novel won't be up to everyone's taste. but I liked it. It seems that I like Dutch writers, I think  The Dinner by Herman Koch is still one of the best novels that I‘ve ever read.

The nail polish is from Essence, from a limited edition and it is a nail polish with a thermo effect. The name is My Sweet Escape. Essence had thermo polishes also in their regular line for a period, but not anymore. When it's hot the nail polish is a salmon colour, but when it's cold the polish becomes nude, mauve colour. The colour change it's not spectacular, but it's there.

Have a great day!

What I'm reading + NOTD pt. 71

Veronika is quiet and responsible girl. She was never a kind of girl who hides in the corner with a best friend and shares secrets with her. She doesn't need anyone to go to the toilet with her or share lunch with her. She was without a best friend her whole childhood and this was ok. She encounters her best friend just at the end of teenage era, a girl named Madla. Madla is crazy and wild, she is everything that Veronika isn't. With Madla Veronika finds also a new family, secret love and warmth, that was missing in her life before Madla. But not for long, there is an ugly coincidence that cuts in Veronika's happiness.

Hruškadottir is an awarded first novel of a Czech writer Jana Šramkova. She got the sward in the category Best young author. The novel was written in 2008 and published in Slovene language in 2015, but I don't know if it was translated in some other languages.

The description is a little bit off though, because we could hardly say that Veronika is a girl, with 24 years she is already a woman and she is finishing her studies. But it is also true that we follow more storylines, Veronika remembers her life when she was 18 and just met Madla, then when she is around 20 and also what is happening at the present, so when she is 24. Because of this you must read the novel very concentrated or if you won't know where in time the story is happening.

The nail polish is from Catrice, a discontinued one with the name Dirty Berry. It's a violet, with silver glitter, in the sun you can see the glitter is holographic, but it's not a strong effect. The application was perfect. Catrice has had many shapes of brushes in their polishes and I like the ones that were the first the best. They were flat and not thick and chubby, they were just the right shape for my taste. I miss these brushes.

Have a nice day!

What I'm reading + NOTD pt. 70

Douglas Petersen understands his wife's need to 'rediscover herself' now that their son is leaving home. He just thought they'd be doing their rediscovering together. So when Connie announces that she will be leaving, too, he resolves to make their last family holiday into the trip of a lifetime: one that will draw the three of them closer, and win the respect of his son. One that will make Connie fall in love with him all over again. The hotels are booked, the tickets bought, the itinerary planned and printed. What could possibly go wrong?

"I was looking forward to us growing old together. Me and you, growing old and dying together.'

'Douglas, who in their right mind would look forward to that?"

Us is a 2014 novel by English author David Nicholls for whom it won the Specsavers "UK Author of the Year" award. It was also long-listed for the 2014 Man Booker Prize.

Of all the books I read this summer this would classify for the perfect summer read. Although I don't like summer reading lists, I mean, why should you read something lighter in the summer? I could see myself reading this on the beach and not be bothered by other things that happen around me. If the book is complicated and not a light read I need a more relaxed place and beach is not such. Also, if the heat is too strong I can't concentrate. And this one is also not so trivial that I would instantly know how it would end that I would lost all the interest. And it also made me think about the relationships and marriage and raising children. So, a book that leaves you thinking is always a good thing.

Nail polish is from Manhattan with the number 34K and since we don't have Manhattan cosmetics in Slovenia any more I don't know if this nail polish is still available. It's an orange creme and the application was ok. This polish should dry in 60 seconds, but I use a quick drying topcoat so I don't know if this claim is true. 

Have a great day!

What I'm reading + NOTD pt. 69

Lolita is a 1955 novel written by Russian American novelist Vladimir Nabokov. The novel is notable for its controversial subject: the protagonist and unreliable narrator—a middle-aged literature professor called Humbert Humbert—is obsessed with the 12-year-old Dolores Haze. 

Humbert Humbert is a middle-aged, frustrated college professor. In love with his landlady's twelve-year-old daughter Lolita, he'll do anything to possess her. Unable and unwilling to stop himself, he is prepared to commit any crime to get what he wants. Is he in love or insane? A silver-tongued poet or a pervert? A tortured soul or a monster? Or is he all of these?

Lolita quickly attained a classic status. Today it is regarded as one of the prime achievements in 20th century literature, though also among the most controversial. 

The book I read came with an afterword from Nabokov that accompanied the first publication in the United States. There he explained the difficulties that came with publishing the story and I found it interesting so with the help of Wikipedia I will include the information here.

Nabokov finished Lolita on 6 December 1953, five years after starting it. Because of its subject matter, Nabokov intended to publish it pseudonymously. The manuscript was turned down, with regret. After these refusals and warnings, he finally resorted to publication in France. Nabokov signed a contract with Olympia Press for publication of the book, to come out under his own name.

Lolita was published in September 1955, as a pair of green paperbacks. Although the first printing of 5,000 copies sold out, there were no substantial reviews. Eventually, at the very end of 1955, Graham Greene, in the London Sunday Times, called it one of the three best books of 1955. This statement provoked a response from the London Sunday Express, whose editor John Gordon called it "the filthiest book I have ever read" and "sheer unrestrained pornography". British Customs officers were then instructed by a panicked Home Office to seize all copies entering the United Kingdom. In December 1956, France followed suit, and the Minister of the Interior banned Lolita; the ban lasted for two years. Its eventual British publication by Weidenfeld & Nicolson in London in 1959 was controversial enough to contribute to the end of the political career of the Conservative member of parliament Nigel Nicolson, one of the company's partners.

Despite initial trepidation, there was no official response in the U.S., and the first American edition was issued by G. P. Putnam's Sons in August 1958. The book was into a third printing within days and became the first since Gone with the Wind to sell 100,000 copies in its first three weeks.

Nail polish is from a limited edition from Catrice called Travelight Story. The polished in this collection have really cute bottles, so this was also the reason I bought this one. The name of this nail polish is Skyline and it’s a metallic blue. It's pretty, but I just don't like the brushes strokes that remain visible after the application. The application is also not the easiest because of the tiny cap. It's pretty but not very functional.

Have a great day!

What I'm reading + NOTD pt. 68

An inspiring literary fantasy about two gifted girls. The Life of Elves sings of the human spirit and conveys a message of hope and faith. Muriel Barbery's new novel is the first of two books about Maria and Clara, unforgettable heroines of a world facing annihilation. Animated by a large cast of endearing characters, it is a timeless story about the forces of good and evil and a moving meditation on the power of nature, music, art, storytelling, and love. When the harmony between living beings turns to discord, the seasons will be loosed from their moorings and the natural world thrown into disarray; human beings--no longer capable of feeling either empathy or enchantment--will abandon themselves to hate, violence, and war. An epic battle between forces that wish to re-establish harmony in the world and those that wish to shatter it definitively is being waged on earth and in the mysterious land of mist, where the elves dwell. A ragtag army of rural peasants gathers in readiness for the fight--their weapons, an age-old kinship with the land and an affinity for magic. But humankind cannot hope to win this battle alone. Victory depends on help from the inhabitants of a world that is hidden from human sight. Hope rests with Maria and Clara, two girls whose prodigious artistic talents and deep connections with nature make communion with the numinous realm possible.

If you look up the book on Goodreads you will see that it has bad reviews and a bad average score. For me it was an average read. I wouldn't say that is as bad as the average score is, but it also wasn't anything special. There will also be a sequel and I will read it, and this means it was good enough for me to read the second part. 

The nail polish is from Essence and still available, it's from The Gel line. The name is Pure beauty, a muted dust pink. The application is not the best, I don't know if it the brushes fault, but it wasn't smooth. I would expect more from a new nail polish. 

Have a great day!