September - Books, Films and Places

SEPTEMBER – BOOKS, FILMS AND PLACES

I feel that the older I get, the more sentimental I become. I now keep a memory jar filled with old concert and train tickets. I save ALL my Instagram stories month by month so I can watch back over them. I love keeping memories (especially as my own memory is so shit) and I love writing, so I thought it would be nice to look over my past month. I know this year is going to go extremely quickly and so I don’t want to forget any of it! Without further ado, here is my September books, films and places…

BOOKS:

ANNA KARENINA – LEO TOLSTOY

I’m actually being a bit of a liar by saying I read this in September, as I actually started it waayyy back in July, but I FINALLY finished it in September! This 800 page whopper was not an easy one to get through, but I am so glad I did! If you know me, you’ll know that I love nothing more in a novel than a strong female protagonist, and Anna was everything I could have wanted and more. She could command a room, get away with so much shit and make everyone fall in love with her – basically how I’m trying to be. This is definitely a book I’d like to read again at some point in my life, so it can grow with me. Maybe I’ll read it in 5 years and absolutely hate Anna, but for the meantime, this book is deeply ingrained in my heart.

HUNGER – ROXANE GAY

After taking around 2 months to read Anna Karenina, I feel I redeemed myself by reading this book in a day! I smashed through it on my way to and from Birmingham earlier this month, so if you don’t get car sick, car journeys are a really good time to read! This book detailed sexual assault and weight issues in a way I didn’t think was possible. Having suffered an eating disorder, this book was extremely real to me. Despite dealing with such challenging topics, it was so easy to read. It felt like a conversation with a friend, and opened my eyes to weight issues other than my own that people are forced to deal with on a daily basis. If you’ve had to deal with sexual assault or weight issues in your life, or you’re just open minded and looking to understand other people’s struggles, I’d strongly recommend this book.

THE FEMALE EUNUCH – GERMAINE GREER

This was one of the only books I’ve read in my life that has genuinely shocked me, and so I can only imagine how it must have gone off when it was first published in 1970. Parts are very explicit, and even pornographic, so I was always very conscious of anyone looking over my shoulder while I was reading it on public transport. Whilst I definitely do not agree with a lot of what Greer argues, it helped me to understand my own feminist beliefs a little bit more, and appreciate how far feminism has come. Unfortunately, I didn’t love this book.

CARRIE - STEPHEN KING
I’ve actually read this book before and studied it in quite deep detail as I’m writing about it for my English coursework. The first time I read it I thought it was fucking fabulous, and it really excited me, although I did expect it to be a little more gory and have a slightly more complex plot – I think I liked it so much because it was a very easy read though. This time, it excited me far less, and I think that’s because the shock factor wasn’t there, and I’d researched all of it in such detail that I didn’t feel there were many stones left unturned. It is a very easy read, and you can get through it in a couple hours, so it definitely wasn’t a waste of time going over it once more.

FILMS:

LOVE SIMON

I’d seen this film before, but it has got to be one of my favourites. I love the music, I love Simon (pun not intended) and I love the humour. Sure, its not a cinematic masterpiece, but its cute as hell and just makes you feel good. Definitely a film I could watch 100 times over.

                                      

MAMMA MIA 2

This is a film I have watched 100 times over. That may be an exaggeration, but I did watch it 5 times at the cinema (Cineworld unlimited is the ONE). I’m still not sick of it though, and I’d go so far as to say I like it more than the first film. The songs are EVERYTHING, Lily James is EVERYTHING and Cher really had us all shook. Although I’m pretty sure I know the entire script now, I will never tire of it.

                                                     

THE MISEDUCATION OF CAMERON POST

If I said I didn’t just want to watch this film because Chloe Moretz was in it, I’d be lying. Whilst this wasn’t the best film I’ve ever seen, it definitely wasn’t the worst. I liked some of the characters and I liked the message of the film. The ending was the biggest let down of the 21^st century, but I’d still probably watch this film again.

                                       

THE NUN

Was it scary? No. Was it good? Kinda. Was it interesting and watchable? I’d say so! I definitely feel like more could have been done with it, but considering how shit horror films can be, it wasn’t too bad. Wouldn’t be in a rush to watch it again.

                                      

A SIMPLE FAVOUR

Blake Lively could stab me and I’d say thank you. Remember what I said earlier about loving a strong female protagonist? Blake Lively gave this. Whilst the plot was a little ??? at times, I did enjoy this film. It was kind of similar to Gone Girl, which made me wish I was just watching Gone Girl instead, but it was still good. Blake Lively and Henry Golding have got to be two of the most attractive people on planet earth.

                                                         

THE MEG

Well I’m scared of the ocean now. Whilst this film wasn’t necessarily my cup of tea, I still enjoyed it. I was particularly excited to see Ruby Rose in this as I have a MASSIVE crush on her but she was kinda meh. Li Bingbing and Jessica McNamee were fabulous however. I probably wouldn’t watch this film again. Maybe I’ll go swimming with sharks one day though.

                                   

PLACES

LONDON – THE GLOBE THEATRE

My lovely friend Oonagh and I went to the Globe one Friday evening to watch the Taming of the Shrew. I’ve been to the Globe before and I love it, but I didn’t know what to expect from The Taming of the Shrew. Turns out it was brilliant and HILARIOUS – which I definitely didn’t expect. The acting was fabulous and it’s just a great play, and I had a wonderful evening.

MANCHESTER

I embarked on this lovely trip at the beginning of the month with my parents for the day, Tino and Eva (thanks guys). I actually went up to do a speaking competition, which was some scary shit. Despite the fact that I didn’t win, it was a really wonderful experience, and Hannah 3 years ago wouldn’t have believed you if you told her she’d be out doing shit like that. The only bits of Manchester I got to see were the train station and conference centre, but the people were really lovely and I think that says a lot about a city.

                            

BIRMINGHAM

The general life plan is that a year from now I’m going to end up at university, and so off me and my Dad popped to the University of Birmingham. It has an amazing campus and English course, and they have a Starbucks on campus which is just across from the library, so I can definitely see myself feeling at home there.

BRIGHTON

Again, I dragged my Dad along to look at the University of Sussex. I’ve always loved Brighton and so was very excited at the prospect of going to university just outside of that wonderful city. The campus was very small and cosy compared to Birmingham, and so it felt really different, but still felt like it could be a home to me one day. After looking round the campus and eating cake with my wonderful friend Amber (hello if you find your way to this post), Dad and I went into Brighton. We wandered round the lanes and ate vegan ice cream by the beach. The highlight however was DEFINTELY the fucking ridiculously amazing pizza at Purezza. This is seriously the best vegan food I’ve EVER had and I’m VERY happy that they also have a location in London, which I hope to visit ASAP. I had a great time in Brighton, and I’m currently salivating thinking about that goddamn beautiful pizza.

So that’s pretty much my September! I am hoping to write one of these little summaries every month, as it’s always nice to get nostalgic, even if it is about stuff that only happened a few weeks ago. I hope every one else had a lovely September, and like me you’re getting reading for AUTUMN!!!! Lots of love x