Kali J Desautels

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 Fans of NPH are aware of his quirky sense of humour and his love of Magic and Illusion, but they may not be aware of his apparent affection for the Choose Your Own Adventure novels that many of us read in elementary school. For those who aren’t aware – Choose Your Own Adventures were novels aimed at children, wherein the reader would read a chapter and then decide one of several options, flipping through the book at random. NPH decided to write his autobiography in this format, which while hilarious, and entertaining, leaves the reader wondering how much they have actually learned in the autobiography. Being the type of person that I am, I ultimately went through the book and flipped through every individual page, finding jokes and tricks that you would not find by simply following the options, so do not neglect this tip when reading. There are stories about his family, his husband, his kids, his work, his life, and also encounters with other celebrities. A key component was about his coming out to his family and finally to the public. Choose Your Own Autobiography is fun, and very much what one would expect from NPH, however, do not read it in anticipation that you will become suddenly “closer” to the star. 291 pages. #chooseyourownautobiography #neilpatrickharris #nph #autobiography #2014 #humour #chooseyourownadventure #bookstagram #books #bookstagrammer #read #reading #kalidesautelsreads

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My Name Is Lucy Barton is the story of a woman who reconnects with her estranged mother after years apart. Through her thoughts, between conversations with her mother, Lucy makes it clear that the home she grew up in was not safe for a child. Her father suffered from undiagnosed PTSD, and her mother lacked the ability to express love. Strout explores the difficulty that we all have with connecting our memories of childhood, and our fears or traumas, with the love and need that we have for our parents, as adults. If we, as Lucy did, feel hurt, shamed and angry by our original family, how can we also still need them and love them as adults? There are many questions that Strout does not answer, that she cannot answer, but allows, as a character in the book states, us, the reader, to view that human condition and to ask ourselves the same questions. Written in a beautiful, conversational style, My Name Is Lucy Barton is impossible to put down once begun. 
#mynameislucybarton #elizabethstrout #audiobook #2016 #fiction #newyork #reading #read #mustread #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookstagramfeature #book #books #bookclub #bibliophile #bookclubofinstagram #kalidesautelsreads 

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Anna Kendrick’s bestselling memoir, Scrappy Little Nobody, creates the feeling that you are chatting with a new friend, and, as she writes, she “mostly talks, and you listen. As most conversations in real life.” She writes about her rise to stardom, including her time as a child actor, she writes of her anxieties and awkwardness, and how she feels she has become LESS confident as she got older, she writes of how she is small, full of energy and loud. Her first encounter with the paparazzi at IKEA, how bizarre fame is, how scary the red carpet really is, and how she has a genuine fear of coming across as an a$$hole. She writes very much as she speaks in her interviews. She shares so much of herself, to the point where the reader may think TMI!! But it is endearing, and her story is relatable, even for those of us who do not professionally make out with Orlando Bloom, or get nominated for Oscars after working with George Clooney. The book is charming and funny, and Kendrick’s fans will come away feeling that they know her better for it. At 271 pages, it is definitely worth picking up. 

#scrappylittlenobody #annakendrick #newyorktimesbestseller #2016 #memoir #oscar #academyawards #nominee #newyorktimes #actor #broadway #kissing #hollywood #maine #audiobook #book #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #books #bibliophile #read #reading #mustread #kalidesautelsreads

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 The Light Between Oceans is such a rich, beautiful book that it becomes challenging to do it justice. The pacing of the book, for me, was off, taking a few attempts to get invested in the story, but by Chapter 10 (page 85), I was engulfed. The historical novel flashes through a few time periods, but the majority of the events occur in the years following WWI. Tom Sherbourne is a lighthouse keeper who cannot accept the things he saw and did in the war, and asks to be selected to tend the lighthouse at Janus Rock, a lonely island between the Great Southern Ocean and the Indian Ocean (the titular Light Between Oceans). He desires nothing more than to be left alone to cause no harm, and follow his regulations. Until he falls in love with Isabel. Creating their own private paradise is not as easy as they had hoped, and their decisions begin to have consequences. The book leaves many unanswered questions, which leaves the reader feeling perplexed as to Tom’s choices, but Isabel’s decline to madness is mesmerizing. The novel is 345 pages, and trust me, getting past the slow start is worth it in the end. 

#thelightbetweenoceans #mlstedman #novel #2012 #fiction #historicalfiction #australia #wwi #love #janus #lighthouse #babies #misery #family #death #justice #book #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #newyorktimesbestseller #bestseller #bibliophile #read #reading #kalidesautelsreads

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Most of the world knows Lucille Ball as Lucy Ricardo – spunky, dizzy red headed wife of night club band leader, Ricky Ricardo, who, along with her best friend and neighbour, Ethel Mertz, was constantly getting herself into scrapes. Ball’s autobiography is a revelation to fans and non-fans alike. Unlike her character, Ball was a savvy and shrewd business woman, who broke gender barriers along the way. Indisputably the BEST comic actor who ever graced the screen (I will not be swayed), Ball was the first woman to own her own production company, the first woman to own a studio, she was the first woman to EVER be pregnant on TV (though she couldn’t use the word “pregnant” and Lucy and Ricky inexplicably slept in matching twin beds), she was brought before the House of UnAmerican Activity and was cleared of Communist charges, without ever naming a single name, and she was not a fan of Vivian Vance (Ethel) and had it included in her contract that Vance MUST gain enough weight each season so that Ball appeared more attractive. Chronicling her personal life, her career, the politics of her time, and her volatile relationship with Desi Arnaz, Love, Lucy is a revelatory look into her life. In the days before 24 hour news cycles, celebrities enjoyed a certain mystery that is lost today, and Ball kept much more of her private life private, until now. At 256 pages, it is definitely worth reading. 

#lovelucy #lucilleball #ilovelucy #desiarnaz #lucyandricky #lucyricardo #fredandethel #lucyandethel #desilu #feminism #autobiography #1996 #mccarthyism #communism #hollywood #oldhollywood #comedy #comic #actor #bookstagram #books #bookstagrammer #newyorktimesbestseller #bestseller #reading #read #book #bibliophile #kalidesautelsreads

The Sorting Hat sorted some of my books today – these classics became Hufflepuffs “…where they are just and loyal. Those patient Hufflepuffs are true and unafraid to toil.”
These books stand the test of time, they stand true to their age, and represent in all of us an age of youth, growth, and self exploration. 

Peter Pan – JM Barrie (1911) ❤️❤️❤️

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland & Through The Looking Glass – Lewis Carroll (1865 & 1871) ❤️❤️❤️❤️

The Wizard of Oz – L Frank Baum (1900)❤️❤️❤️❤️

The Catcher in The Rye – JD Salinger (1945) ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Charlotte’s Web – EB White/ Pictures by Garth Williams (1952) ❤️❤️❤️❤️

The Bridges of Madison County – Robert James Waller (1992) ❤️❤️❤️

Mary Poppins – PL Travers (1934) ❤️❤️❤️

Waiting For Godot- Samuel Beckett (1954) ❤️❤️❤️❤️

#hufflepuff #booksgetsorted #jmbarrie #peterpan #aliceinwonderland #throughthelookingglass #lewiscarroll #thewizardofoz #lfrankbaum #thecatcherintherye #jdsalinger #charlottesweb #ebwhite #garthwilliams #thebridgesofmadisoncounty #robertjameswaller #marypoppins #pltravers #waitingforgodot #samuelbeckett #classics #classic #literature #fiction #dorothygale #holdencaulfield #fern #thebanksfamily #godot #estragon #vladimir #pozzo #lucky #aboy #books #jkrowling #harrypotter #sortinghat #reading #bookstagram #book #bookstagrammer #read #readinglist #20thcentury #bibliophile #reading #bestsellers #kalidesautelsreads 

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 For some reason unknown to me, Wordbirds by Liesl Schillinger is listed as a “reference” book. Given that the title includes the word “irreverent”, I am not sure how it became classified as such. It is most assuredly a “humour” book. That cleared up, this beautiful little book is full of gorgeous aviary illustrations, accompanying hilarious definitions for made up words, such as: “Overdoeuvre” – defined as “To eat too many appetizers that you lose your appetite for a meal; or “Macaloon” – defined as One who is loyal to Macintosh computers to the point of obsession. This book is very short, as it is set up like a picture book dictionary, and quite funny, especially for readers who enjoy silly puns. But please, I implore you, do not read it as a reference guide!! #wordbirds #anirreverentlexiconforthe21stcentury #Leislschillinger #elizabethzechel #humour #humor #puns #reference #bird #birds #bookstagram #books #bookstagrammer #book #read #reading #bibliophile #2013 #kalidesautelsreads

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The Happiness Project started as one woman’s goal to spend a year trying to be happier. To enjoy her life more, to snap at her kids less, to appreciate your husband, and became a glasslike phenomenon. I picked up the book while in the midst of a difficult pregnancy, while mothering a *slightly* difficult toddler. In short, I was desperate for something that would “teach me” to feel happy. A fan of AJ Jacobs’ books, chronicling his years as a guinea pig, or reading the encyclopedia, or living biblically, I was curious about a year spent finding happiness. I thoroughly enjoyed and agreed with the concept, and found it interesting how similar my own likes, interests and reactions are to Rubin’s. However, unlike myself, Rubin is very organized and thinks very linearly. One key take away from The Happiness Project was to spend less time doing things you hate to do, in Rubin’s case – trying new foods, and spend more time doing things you love to do, for example making miniature dioramas in shelves around your home. The book is easy to read, at 352 pages, and will leave the reader feeling inspired to declutter their life, however, there is a portion of the project that would require the same sort of dedication that New Year’s Resolutions take, and readers may feel disheartened by their lack of “results”, when they do not have the goal of completing a book and life and work and children and spouses get in the way.

#thehappinessproject #gretchenrubin #nonfiction #reference #selfhelp #advice #happy #goals #reading #read #bookstagrammer #bookstagram #books #book #2009 #ayear #year #kalidesautelsreads 

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This cute little volume is edited and compiled by American Dictionaries. While it does contain 100 words, there are probably about 10 that most people wouldn’t know. If you are looking to remind yourself about fun words like “egregious” or “quixotic”, then by all means, pick it up, as the book also contains sentences that would use the words. However, if you are a fairly capable wordsmith, you will not find anything of extreme usefulness in this book. While endearing, I would give it a pass when selecting my next book. #100wordseverywordlovershouldknow #americansictionaries #100words #2005 #nonfiction #reference #bookstagram #book #books #bookstagrammer #read #reading #kalidesautelsreads

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 British Army Officer Levison Wood’s travelogue reads like an adventure novel. Wood writes that he has often felt that he was born 100 years too late, as he enjoys exploring, climbing, meeting new peoples and immersing in new cultures. One of several walks that Wood has done, including the Nile, Madagascar and Iraq. The Himalayas introduces the reader to a unique cast of characters, while also immersing them in the thoughts of the solitary man. The book opens with a riot in Kathmandu, moves through Wood’s desire for a simpler life, travelling through Afghanistan, meeting the Dalai Lama, a near fatal car crash, and finally, emerging through the Himalayas, at Everest. Part Indiana Jones, part inspirational quote book, Wood is a unique writer of travel journalism. 304 pages pass quickly while following Wood’s often harrowing journey. #walkingthehimalayas #levisonwood #travel #nonfiction #adventure #explore #afghanistan #bhutan #nepal #india #pakistan #dalailama #walk #journalism #britisharmy #inspire #book #bookstagram #books #bookstagrammer #read #reading #2016 #kalidesautelsreads