Binge-Worthy Books: 6 Picks For A Mental Vacation

Binge-Worthy Books

6 Easy & Entertaining Binge-Worthy Books You’ll Enjoy For A Mental Vacation

Around this time last year, my husband and I spent 8 days in Hawaii (Maui). We had plans to go back to Maui for 2 weeks this year, and well, C19 ruined everything (sad face emoji). Yeah, so, now I listen to Hawaiin music in the mornings as I sip on my coffee and read binge-worthy books.

Reading has helped a lot during this chaotic and unprecedented period. For me the ultimate escapism is getting lost in a sumptuous book 🙂

Folks, wanna go on a mental vacation? Then get lost in these easy & entertaining 6 binge-worthy books shown below.

#1 BIG MAGIC – Elizabeth Gilbert

This is a wonderful read for creative people and content creators. I’ve already enjoyed it once and I’m gonna read it again this summer for sure. It’s a very easy read, I finished it in about two days.

The author, Elizabeth Gilbert, shares the habits and attitudes that we need to live our most creative lives. She claims that creativity is a path for the brave, because creativity asks us to enter into realms of uncertain outcome. Gilbert describes the menial jobs she had prior to her career as a successful author, she never pressured herself to pursue a prestigious well paying job because she didn’t want that lifestyle to take her away from what truly mattered to her: her writing. Her unskilled, low paying jobs didn’t bother her because it allowed her the flexibility to master her writing craft.

This magical book is filled with inspirational and empowering quotes:

“And you have treasures hidden within you – extraordinary treasures – and so do I, and so does everyone around us. And bringing those treasures to light takes work and faith and focus and courage and hours of devotion, and the clock is ticking, and the world is spinning, and we simply do not have time anymore to think so small.”

So, if you’ve been wanting to try something new and creative then this is the book for you.

#2 CRAZY RICH ASIANS – Kevin Kwan

I finished this book in 4 days. It was that good. I couldn’t put it down. I was hooked as soon as I read the Prologue: The Cousins. Twelve pages in I knew I was going to enjoy a wild and hilarious ride. I’m not gonna ruin it for anyone who hasn’t read it, but let me just say that Eleanor Young and family are crazy, crazy rich. Author, Kevin Kwan, nailed it in the first few pages as he successfully describes how powerful and influential these main characters are.

The book starts off in New York, 2010. The author introduces us to the two main characters – Rachel & Nick. Nick has just invited Rachel (his girlfriend) to his best friend’s (Colin) wedding in Singapore and to meet his large family. They’re a young, successful couple that have been together for about two years, and they live a modest life in New York. Rachel is an economics professor and Nick is a history professor and they both teach at the same university. Up to this point, Rachel has no clue that Nick belongs to a rich dynasty, but Nick is going to use this trip to expose her to the way he was raised in Singapore. And that is where all the fun & trouble begins!

EXTRAVAGANCE: Let’s see, do you have thousands and thousands of dollars to fly to Singapore first class? Can you stay a whole month in a 5 star resort? Do you have an unlimited budget to buy haute couture clothing? No. Bummer, me neither. No worries my friend, pick up this book, relax, and you can live out your wildest fantasies without having to spend a dime. The author claimed in an article that he had to constrain himself when writing this book because his publisher claimed that the readers wouldn’t believe the amount of opulance described in his National BestSeller, but Kevin Kwan has personally seen and experienced this type of grandiose living in Asia.

FOOD: “Welcome to Singapore…where arguing about food is the national pastime.” Kevin Kwan describes the food in Singapore so accurate that my mouth was watering and my stomach was grumbling the entire time I was reading. Nick & Rachel eat a lot throughout their trip. In fact, all the main characters do a lot of eating. Their first Singapore dining experience was at Lay Pa Sat -“old market” an open-air pavilion that houses a bustling hive of food stalls (where the masses come to worship food). The author expertly describes as Rachel and Nick and Colin and Araminta (Colin’s fiancé) eat char kuay teow (rice noodles flash fried with seafood, egg, and bean sprouts in a dark soy sauce), or orh luak(a fried omelet with oysters), and Hikkien-style noodles in a thick garlicky gravy.

FAMILY & FRIENDS: Peik Lin – is Rachel’s best friend and she is my favorite character in the whole book. I lover her so much. She has a great heart, and she is such an amazing friend to Rachel. And yeah, she’s crazy rich too, wish she was my best friend. Astrid – is my second favorite character, she is awesome when it comes to shopping. She travels to Paris for a month at a time just so she can shop the latest and greatest couture. Astrid is a part of the elite, but she doesn’t follow the rules, she makes her own rules. She was once nicknamed “The Goddess” by her peers and all the men worship her. Edison Cheng – was my least favorite character, and I’m sure the author portrayed him as a villain on purpose. This guy is rich, super rich, but it’s never enough for him. It upsets him that his parents are frugal, and that they don’t know how to enjoy their money. Bernard Tai (hilariously inappropriate) – hosts wild parties with the best drugs, he jet-sets around the world, and is Asia’s biggest bon vivant. Only arrives to the most luxurious destinations with the hottest babes and does everything in a flamboyant style. Actually, there were so many fun and interesting characters in this book it is impossible to include them all in this book review. But let’s just say that Kevin Kwan wrote them all out so perfect, you’ll become emotionally attached to them by the end.

This is a fun literary masterpiece that provides readers a window into a world that most will never know or ever be apart of. 95% of this book is lighthearted, but the author does a great job of reminding us that there is more to life than money, stature, luxury cars, and mansions. Because the majority of people on earth struggle to have a comfortable life with safety, food, shelter, and clean water. The way that these rich, Asians ostracize and look down at each other, their families and individuals is agonizing to read. It’s honorable that Kevin Kwan describes and brings forward the good and the bad.

#3 THE BOOK THIEF – Markus Zusak

Year: 1939

Location: Nazi Germany

Heroine: Liesel Meminger, aka “The book thief“

Narrator: Death, aka “The Grim Reaper”

Liesel is an 11yr old foster girl who steals, she doesn’t rob banks or anything like that. But she steals candy, food, and other little items. Then, she starts stealing books from a rich family in her town, and that is how her love affair with books begins. Liesel lives through war, love, and heartbreaking loss.

This is a beautifully written masterpiece. It’s emotionally draining, but in a good way. This literary sensation will make you laugh, cry, and it will steal your heart. It is one of my favorite books of all time.

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#4 THE SWANS OF FIFTH AVENUE – Melanie Benjamin

Glamorous Fashionista: Babe Paley

Location: New York City

Year: 1940’s, 50’s, 60’s, 70’s

High Society Swans: Slim Keith, C. Z. Guest, Gloria Guinness, Pamela Churchill

Golden-haired genius: Truman Capote, aka “True Heart”

Barbara Paley and her glamorous Swan squad were the ultimate New York high society women during the 1940’s, 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. Paley and her social circle (the swans) were the original influencers of their time. In 1941, TIME Magazine voted Barbara Paley the world’s second best dressed woman. Paley worked as a fashion editor at Vogue, which gave her access to designer clothes, influential people, and glamour.

During this time, novelist Truman Capote (Breakfast At Tiffany’s, In Cold Blood) exploded onto the scene. Paley and her swans befriended Capote and gave him access to their elite inner Manhattan circle. For years Truman was privy to their scandals and gossip and dirty secrets. The extraordinary lives of these women were sumptuous sources of inspiration for the author and they became characters in his literary work. In 1975, Capote wrote a scathing exposé about New York City’s elites that was published in Esquire magazine, unfortunately Paley and her swans were not pleased that he aired out their dirty laundry to the world.

If you like The Women (1939) and old Hollywood glamour and this time period in general, then you’ll love this book. It’s an easy and fun read.

#5 DELUXE – Dana Thomas

Luxury was once available only to the aristocratic world of old money. It offered a history of tradition, superior quality and a pampered buying experience. Today, however, luxury is simply a product packaged and sold by multibillion-dollar global corporations that focus on growth, visibility, brand awareness, advertising, and, above all, profits. Journalist Dana Thomas digs deep into the dark side of the luxury industry to reveal the industry secrets that Prada, Gucci, and Burberry don’t want us to know. An uncompromising look behind the glossy facade, Deluxe asks: How did luxury lose its luster?

We’re currently living in the Golden Age of social media luxury – Youtubers show off luxury handbag collections & film their extravagant lifestyles, Instagrammers snap hundreds of pictures wearing $3,000 purses, and bloggers post luxury unboxings on their blogs. Honestly, the only time ‘Luxury’ is blatantly & consistently rubbed in my face is on social media.

And that’s why I’m glad that I read this book by Dana Thomas, because she did an amazing job informing her readers about the democratization of luxury or mass-produced luxury that has emerged within society in the past 30 years:

“Louis Vuitton is the greatest example of what executives in the fashion business call democratic luxury: it’s big, it’s broad-reaching, and it sells wildly expensive stuff that nobody really needs. It is mass- produced luxury. Vuitton is a status symbol. It’s not about hiding the logo. It’s about being a bit of a show-off.”

In the beginning of the book, Dana Thomas explains that true luxury originated for royalty. Luxury artisans  were supported by royalty so that they could provide nobility with superior products. Superior products, not “logos”. True luxury was only made in small quantities, and only for the elite. It wasn’t a product that could be mass produced or purchased in your local store.

True luxury died in the 1960’s. Corporate tycoons and financiers saw the potential in making ‘luxury’ accessible to the middle market. That means teachers, nurses, paralegals, secretaries are now able to afford and purchase deluxe brands more than ever, compared to prior to the 1960’s.

Now the goal is to make as much money as possible, not to provide the consumer with the most superior quality or service.

I think if you like to read and you are into your luxury goods, then you should most definitely give this book a go. The only thing that I found a little boring was when the author would go into very long detail about the factories or locations where the some of the purses were made. Dana Thomas also went into great lengths about the current corporate tycoons, and there were a few other instances where I felt the book kinda dragged a little.

“The luxury industry has changed the way people dress. It has realigned our economic class system. It has changed the way we interact. It has become part of our social fabric. To achieve this, it has sacrificed its integrity, undermined its products, tarnished its history, and hoodwinked its consumers. In order to make luxury “accessible” tycoons have stripped away all that has made it special. Luxury has lost its luster.”

I enjoyed this book and I thought it was very informative. Currently and in the future I know it will keep me from making deluxe ‘impulse’ purchases, especially silly fads I see on social media. Because of the authors amazing research I’m more informed as a consumer. I now know the difference between true luxury and high street fashion. I will never see Louis Vuitton as special anymore, but merely as the McDonald’s of the luxury world.

I got this book on Amazon for less than $10 and I think it was totally worth the purchase. I’ll never look at ‘luxury’ items the same way. This is a must read before your next ‘luxury’ purchase. I’d recommend it if you want to zone the world out for several hours and read something interesting.

#6 THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN – Paula Hawkins

• #1 on The New York Times Fiction Best Sellers of 2015 (remained in the top for 13 consecutive weeks)

• Worldwide sensation

• 2016 “Audiobook of the Year”

• Millions and millions sold

Paula Hawkins shares with her readers the lives of three women, each in the first person, the novel moves backwards and forewards through time.

• Main protagonist: Rachel | 33 years old | alcoholic |divorced (She spends her lonely time on a train and stares out on to the houses along the track, she fantasizes about the lives of the people who live in these homes)
• Missing woman: Megan
• Tom: Rachel’s ex-husband
• The “other woman”: Anna | married to Rachel’s ex-husband
• Evie: Daughter of Anna and Tom (Rachel could never conceive a baby with Tom)

Rachel Watson is a 33-year-old alcoholic with major self destructive tendencies. She is stuck in her life and she can’t let go of her past. Her abusive ex-husband left her for another woman, and had a baby with his new wife. Rachel lost her job because of her excessive, she drinks heavily which causes her to have blackouts.

Envy, intrigue, murder, betrayal, jealousy, etc. This book has it all. I’m just gonna stop here, because I want you going into this book spoiler-free.

 “Nothing is more addicting than The Girl on the Train.”—Vanity Fair

“The Girl on the Train has more fun with unreliable narration than any chiller since Gone Girl. . . . [It] is liable to draw a large, bedazzled readership.”—The New York Times
 
“Marries movie noir with novelistic trickery. . . hang on tight. You’ll be surprised by what horrors lurk around the bend.”—USA Today
 
“Like its train, the story blasts through the stagnation of these lives in suburban London and the reader cannot help but turn pages.”—The Boston Globe

“Gone Girl fans will devour this psychological thriller.”—People 

Currently Reading: SECOND GLANCE – Jodi Picoult

An intricate tale of love, haunting memories, and renewal, Second Glance begins in current-day Vermont, where an old man puts a piece of land up for sale and unintentionally raises protest from the local Abenaki Indian tribe, who insist it’s a burial ground. When odd, supernatural events plague the town of Comtosook, a ghost hunter is hired by the developer to help convince the residents that there’s nothing spiritual about the property.

Enter Ross Wakeman, a suicidal drifter who has put himself in mortal danger time and again. He’s driven his car off a bridge into a lake. He’s been mugged in New York City and struck by lightning in a calm country field. Yet despite his best efforts, life clings to him and pulls him ever deeper into the empty existence he cannot bear since his fiancée’s death in a car crash eight years ago. Ross now lives only for the moment he might once again encounter the woman he loves. But in Comtosook, the only discovery Ross can lay claim to is that of Lia Beaumont, a skittish, mysterious woman who, like Ross, is on a search for something beyond the boundary separating life and death.

(In image above) I’m currently reading, Second Glance by Jodi Picoult. I will do a proper review on this book when I’m done 🙂

In the comments section below, let me know what you’re currently reading! Which books are you excited to read?

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Have a beautiful day 🙂