Q1 2018 Reading List | Wine, Inspo + Pregnancy
2018’s reading list has been chock-full of an eclectic mix of self-help books, wine education and a sprinkle of pregnancy. Yes, pregnancy and of course I don’t actually mean a sprinkle, it’s been more of a pouring over the past 8 months! Knowing this, you could assume that the books I’m about to reco are super random because I’ve been in complete nest mode. It’s true. I thought that was important to caveat before you conclude that I’m just a hot mess! However, after you read my subjective reviews you’ll realize that the majority of these books come full circle for me and they should for you if you are on a mission to follow your passion and learn wine!
While the main point of this blog is to share my journey of wine through life’s experiences, you may be asking, why are there self-help books on this list? I did this because not only am I educating myself through wine literature, I’m also motivating myself to follow my passion – learning and writing about wine to share with you, my fellow fab oenophiles. I encourage you to take this same ‘book recipe’ in wine or your subject matter of choice and really start to take control of your destiny and starting Crushing It (in the words of Gary V below). Ok so let’s dive in nose first shall we?
Bringing Up Bébé: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting | Pamela Druckerman
An American journalist living in Paris absorbing motherhood and parenting one French baguette at a time! This is a great book for those soon to be mamas who want a fresh non-paranoid approach to pregnancy and parenting. I must say, it seems like the French know what’s up! These French kids sleep through the night, entertain themselves while les parents are enjoying their morning espresso and start to eat veggies at an early age! You’ll learn things like how baby formula isn’t poison, taking “the pause” approach when it comes to crying, there being no reason to “dress like a mom” even though you are one and more! A fun and light story with lots of science and expert advice sprinkled throughout will leave you anxious to try out these super practical tips! Pair with… well you may be pregnant while you are reading so I can’t really reco anything however, don’t Europeans enjoy small amounts of wine during pregnancy???
Wine. all the time. the casual guide to confident drinking | Marissa A. Ross
Grab your highlighter, post-its and get ready to DRINK. Consider yourself warned. Marissa is extremely entertaining and simply put FUNNY. She encourages you to put what you’ve learned to use throughout the book by adding a “to-drink list” with tasks at the end of each chapter. This book is for the novice oenophile who wants to become a more confident wine drinker and speaker. With Marissa’s comedic voice and personal stories, she simplifies wine learning. Pair this with… well whatever she tells you.
Crushing It!: How Great Entrepreneurs Build Their Business and Influence – And How You Can, Too | Gary Vaynerchuk
Gary V is the god of wine + social media if you didn’t know already. If you ever have had that moment of self-doubt and thinking you can’t, you must read Gary V’s latest book Crushing It! (the child to his past book Crush It!). Gary will not only give you the tools to succeed in today’s social media frenzy, but will share real stories about 9-5’ers who are miserable in their day jobs, take control of their fate, become vulnerable and are currently crushing it through various social media platforms. The great thing about this book is that it’s not fluff. He deep dives into the hottest social channels to-date and shares actionable items and scenarios to replicate for success. It will take work but the outcome will be glorious. Pair this with a complex Cabernet Sauvignon as you will be hard at work putting what Gary teaches you to use.
How to Get Sh*t Done | Erin Falconer
After reading Crushing It! you’ll want to reach for Erin’s book to put everything into strategic action. To balance out Gary’s mindset of work work work (in a good way), Erin compliments Crushing It! by giving a more psychological approach to start doing less and start achieving more. A lot of what Erin teaches us is how to let go of judgement, limit emotions and expectations and embrace who you are. It’s definitely a lesson in judgement detox and how if we can laser focus on what’s really important to us without caring what other people think, we can accomplish so much more without burning out. The actionable items in this book really make you think! Pair this with… a full bodied red (maybe a Tannat) because you will be doing a lot of deep soul searching.
Cork Dork | Bianca Bosker
Cork Dork brings Crush It!, How to Get Sh*t Done, and Wine. All The Time full circle for me. It’s a real look into the life of author Bianca Bosker who decided to change her life from a Huff Post Tech editor to follow her curiosity of the “So What?” on wine. She throws herself into the subject by joining wine tasting groups, getting down and dirty working in wine cellars of exclusive NYC restaurants and more. By actually living the wine experience she puts an end to her curiosity and has an appreciation and semi-obsession with wine at the end (or the beginning depending on how you look at it) of her journey. Definitely a motivational book for those (like you and I) wanting to learn wine! What better way to learn than jumping in head first! Pair this with a summer rosé as you’ll surely be taking a sip page by page during this page turner!
So there you have it! Q1’s reading list round-up. Would love to hear your reco’s on what you’ve been reading and can’t put down (even if unrelated to wine) in the comments section!! PLEASE!
Also, while I was writing this I found this great Red Wine Boldness chart from Wine Folly. Take a peek!
