MSH Backup

One of the few perks of the start of winter is being able to cosy up indoors with a selection of good reads. With the evenings drawing in and arrival of chillier temperatures, wrapping up in your cosiest pyjamas with a cup of tea, book and blanket feels like a real luxury, especially if you’re looking to channel some serious Hygge vibes. Over the last few months, I’ve amassed a fair old selection of reading material- some of which I’ve already whizzed through, and some of which I’m eagerly anticipating leafing through over the coming weeks: First up, Pretty City Londo n by Siobhan Ferguson, an accompaniment to her fantastic Instagram account of the same name. Whether you’re looking to up your Instagram game or are just eager to swoon over some of London’s most photogenic spots, snapped beautifully and collated into a super cool compendium, this is well worth investigating- I’ve already got a little list on the go of new places to discover! I finished The Silence of the Girls by Pat Bar...

I don’t know about you, but for me summer somehow seems synonymous with getting lost in a good book. Perhaps it’s something ingrained from the days of holidays past, where I used to get through a new tome every day and a half or so (often resulting in a suitcase laden with prospective reads!), and would always relish being more or less completely cut off from the world and as a result being able to get completely lost in a good story. Looking back, it seems almost impossible to imagine being that disconnected these days- indeed, as I type this my Instagram feed is undoubtedly filling up with images of people on their early summer breaks- but there’s something fantastic to be said for being able to resist checking your phone so regularly when you’re in holiday- in fact, the experience would be a welcome diversion from constantly feeling the need to be reachable, no matter where in the world you might be. Indeed, the breadth of imagining which came from reading so much on those childhood...

With the end of another month in prospect, and a four day Easter weekend just peeking tantalisingly over the horizon, it seems high time for another reading round up. I’ve snapped up a hearty collection of new reads over the last month or so, and having started perusing the pages of these new volumes, I’m really looking forward to getting lost in them over the next couple of weeks- having next weekend bookended by two Bank Holidays offers the perfect opportunity to settle down with a selection of serious page turners: Women & Power by Mary Beard is a volume which I’ve been wanting to peruse since it was released, and International Women’s Day earlier in the month seemed like the perfect motivation to treat myself. I’ve also been loving Civilisations on BBC2, and this is a great companion read. Charting the history of and discourses surrounding women and specifically focusing on their relationship to power, it’s a really accessible, well plotted piece of writing, drawing on insigh...

If one of your resolutions for the year ahead is to read more, then we are most definitely on the same page. There are few things I enjoy more than picking up a book, but sadly it's one of those hobbies which tends to fall a little bit by the wayside during the week, especially as I'm guilty of being quite glued to my phone on the daily commute, and am usually too tired to attune my eyes to the pages by the time I get to bed. Having said that, I'm very much determined that this is the year that I'm going to become a little bit better read- and if you're setting yourself the same challenge, then here's a peek at my current bookshelf buys:    Get Your Sh*T Together by Sarah Knight- This book was a lovely Christmas present from Jessie  and is something which I can't wait to get started on. I adored Knight's The Life Changing Magic of Not Giving a F*ck when I read it about eighteen months ago, so am beyond keen to delve into more pages of sage, sassy advice....

Hurrah- time for another post in which I wax lyrical about my current (and future) literary loves! Whilst this might be long overdue, it's a sad incitement of my life that it now takes me so long to get through one book, whereas I used to be able to devour them at a rate of knots growing up. Having said that, back then I suppose I didn't have all of this 'being an adult' nonsense to worry about (growing up is rubbish), but one thing which hasn't changed is just how much I find myself enjoying the process of getting lost in a good read. Whilst I struggle to devote as much time to it as I would like to, it's always been a real form of therapy for me and one which, over recent months especially, has really helped in distracting me from lots of little anxieties here and there. So, without further ado- here's a peek a what my current reading list looks like: The Brownlee brothers' Swim Bike Run  was a birthday present which I got last year from the best girl ...