Chic Delights: Books

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Saturday, January 03, 2015

Inspiring Book: Places To Go, People To See

Books/ Chapters Indigo/ Fashion Style/ Kate Spade New York/ New Year/ People to See/ Places to Go/ Travel

A New Year has begun. This is a time to turn a new leaf, to make resolutions or to set our intentions and goals for the coming year ahead. One of the inspiring books I recently read is Places To Go and People to See that presented Kate Spade's travel inspirations and lessons. Besides all of the spectacular photos on this book, there are also life lessons here that we can apply throughout this new year. I hope you will get inspired as I did with this inspiring and stylish book. I wish you all a year full of new adventures, new discoveries, new people and most of all new memories.

All Photos Credit: Places To Go, People To See, Kate Spade New York.

Wednesday, July 02, 2014

Summer Reads

Posted by Chic Delights 14 comments

Books/ Canada/ Chapters Indigo/ Holts Muse/ Summer

This Summer season, whether you find yourself at the Beach or at Home, we relax more and enjoy the summer sun. It is also the time to catch up on our Summer Reads. Here are some of my recommendations that will transport you to different places, cultures, dramas and give you some love story inspirations. The first book is Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walters which was set in the Cinque Terre region along the Ligurian Sea of Northern Italy. In this Story which begins in 1962 involves some Hollywood intrigue set in this Italian Riviera. The other Book titled 2 States: The Story Of My Marriage, written by Chetan Bhagat transports us to India where the author, written in his male perspective, tells us about the challenges of marrying outside of your State/Province and social class in India. This book is very funny and also very informative about the trials, challenges of marrying outside of your social class and region in India. The book also shares the different traditions in India about courtship, families and marriage. Lastly, the Book, Paris My Sweet: A Year In The City Of Light And Dark Chocolate written by Amy Thomas, is about the real life experience of Amy Thomas who left Manhattan for Paris, France. This book is so delicious to read and makes one want to just leave for Paris right now. How about you? What are your inspirational Summer Reads? Do you like to be transported to some far away place during this Summer Season?

Yesterday, July 1st was Canada Day. Here was a feature about the fashion style around Canada titled True North that will transport you around the major cities in Canada. (Photo Credit: Holts Muse).

Happy reading and travelling!

Wednesday, June 04, 2014

Book: The Fault In Our Stars

Posted by Chic Delights 12 comments

Books/ John Green/ Movies/ The Fault In Our Stars

For the start of the Summer, have you picked up your summer reads? One of the Books that I highly recommend and New York Times Best Selling Book is The Fault In Our Stars written by John Green. This is a love story about the young love of Hazel and Gus. The book shows us their friendship, love, overcoming challenges and tragedy. It is not your typical love story but it will definitely excite you, reminding us of young love, that moment when we first fell in love. There is excitement, love, tragedy and sadness all in one in this book that you will discover. Most of all, there are life lessons here for everyone. I hope you will get a chance to read it before the Movie begins this week.

The Movie will be showing on June 4th. Watch the Official Trailer.

You don't get to choose if you get hurt in this World, but you do have some say in who hurts you.

I like my choices. I hope she likes hers.

- Gus

You gave me a forever within our numbered days.

I can't tell you how grateful I am for our little infinity.

- Hazel.

Tuesday, January 08, 2013

The Happiness Project

Posted by Chic Delights 8 comments

Barnes and Noble/ Books/ Chapters Indigo/ Gretchen Rubin/ Prada/ Style.com/ The Happiness Project Book/ The Happiness Project Toolbox/ Tommy Ton

This is a re-post from January 3, 2012. I am sharing this again in my blog as this January is the time to set our New Year's Resolutions or Goals that we would like to achieve for the rest of the year. I hope this Book may inspire you to take on the monthly challenge.

The Happiness Project Book book written by American, Gretchen Rubin has been in the New York Times Bestseller's list for several years now. Gretchen is a lawyer in New York City with her husband and daughter when she actually created a Blog about her Happiness Project to change her life for the better. This is a book about changing our lives in small monthly steps. An inspirational and effective book in helping us to achieve our goals for a period of 12 months.

I read and tried the projects in the book since January to December 2011. Instead of reading the whole book in one sitting, I read each chapter on a monthly basis so that I can absorb and action each of the set action plans. Instead of having New Year's Resolutions, I highly recommend this book as your project for the year to achieve your goals. I am sure that some of your New Year's Resolutions may be in this book too. You might be surprised!

The Happiness Project

According to Gretchen, "As I worked to identify my resolutions, some overarching principles started to emerge. Distilling these principles turned out to be far more taxing that I expected."

Gretchen's Twelve Personal Commandments

1. Be Gretchen.

2. Let it go.

3. Act the way I want to feel.

4. Do it now.

5. Be polite and be fair.

6. Enjoy the process.

7. Spend out.

8. Identify the problem.

9. Lighten up.

10. Do what ought to be done.

11. No calculation.

12. There is only love.

These are Gretchen's guiding principles that helped her to decide which actions she will take in order to achieve her goals for the whole year. Then she monitors her Happiness Project with a Happiness Toolbox which is available in her website The Happiness Project.

What have I achieved for myself from this book? Among others, the most notable and measurable was from the March Chapter, Aim Higher/Work, the actions plans were:

Launch a Blog.

Enjoy the fun of failure.

Ask for help.

Work Smart.

Enjoy now.

I would say that I have achieved most of it. Not right away but over a period of time during 2011. I was able to launch my blog, asked for help, worked smarter and of course enjoying now. I conceptualised and tested my own blog in July but actually designed, organised and launched the whole blog last September 2011 full time. I learnt many things about this book. Of course, this was written by Gretchen based on her experiences and action plans which were down to earth. Nothing too difficult. Of course, you will have to adjust some things based on your own interests and principles.

Happy in Blue! The Blue Bag and pumps are both Prada.

Photo Credit: Tommy Ton, Style.com

Keep smiling!

Photo credit: Tommy Ton, Style.com

Overall, it is a very inspiring and effective book to help you achieve your goals, to be positive, loving and Happy for 2013!

In Canada, Book is available at Chapters-Indigo.

In the USA, Book is available at Barnes and Noble.

For Worldwide, Book is available at Amazon.

Saturday, November 17, 2012

Word On The Street Festival

Posted by Chic Delights 11 comments

Books/ Toronto/ Word On The Street Festival

Book Festival and view of the CN Tower.

One of the things I enjoy and love about Toronto are the Street Festivals. On the first weekend of Fall, we had the Word On The Street Festival, which was a festival of books, literacy, writing and publishing. It was held on Queen's Park Circle, near the Provincial Parliament Building and my alma mater, the University of Toronto. The festival was for the Publishers to introduce and sell their books at wholesale prices, for authors to meet their readers, to give free readings and talks. This was also a great festival for the aspiring Book Editors, Publishers and Writers to meet the experts and learn more about their chosen fields.

As we walked around the Festival, we discovered many different kinds of books from the literary classics, fictions, children's books, to the horrific books, absurd books, enlightenment books plus some characters in costumes or maybe lost in time. Also beside books, there were street food all around the festival. This festival was very entertaining. It also brought me back to my former University campus which brought back memories of my student days and walking across Queen's Park to attend my classes all around the campus. I hope you have purchased some books to read during this Fall and coming Winter season.

Some Children's books.

What is your favourite Children's book? For me, besides, Snow White and Cinderella, my memorable books are Alice in Wonderland and The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe.

Fiction for the Adults. What books are you reading now?

Books and Street Food coming together in one Festival... Samosas and Butter Chicken.

A Cause for Literacy.

Promoting Gandhi's advocacy for peace and literacy.

Give Girls A Chance is a Canadian Organisation to help disadvantaged girls all around the world. Founded in November 2001 by Canadians Dianne Rinehart while she was an Editor In Chief of Homemaker's Magazine and Publisher Carol Shea. They collect funds for their projects in Developing Countries to build schools, educate and provide school supplies for Girls.

Give Girls a Chance was founded because we believe that if you educate girls, you really can change the world.

Our motto is: Educate a girl. Change the world.

Some enlightenment books.

For some enlightenment, peace, meditation and transformation.

Street Food again.. pulled pork sandwich.

Debating the NHL (National Hockey League)...A Canadian past time is talking about Hockey. You won't believe that this place was fully packed with people. I can only shake my head.