SWITCHING UP MY STYLE FOR SUMMER

SWITCHING UP MY STYLE FOR SUMMER

Sunday, 13 May 2018

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I am very much a ‘play it safe’ kind of girl. I do my makeup in exactly the same way every time I get dolled up, using exactly the same products in exactly the same order – with the exception of a different lipstick, depending on the outfit I’m wearing. On a daily basis, when I’m not working, I stick to jeans and a nice top, making sure to go slightly overboard on a night out. I structure my days in the same way – I get home from work and have a ‘break’ until 7pm every day, then finish off whatever planning or resourcing needs doing for the day. We eat at a similar time each evening and I go to bed around the same time as well. I like my routine and, generally speaking, it works well.

IS THIS THE RIGHT WAY TO LIVE?

In spite of this, I know I can live in a much less restrictive way. I realise that some of my habits mean that I am a little bit too structured in how I act, and a lot of change stresses me out and makes me feel incredibly anxious. I love fashion and I love clothes, and buying clothes that are a little bit ‘out there’ is something that I like to do, then promptly return because I stress far too much about what other people think about what I’m wearing.

THIS STOPS NOW.

CO-ORD: Miss Selfridge (here) TOP: River Island (here)

One of my recent goals is to care less about what other people think, and concentrate on my own happiness. If I want to wear something that’s completely out of my comfort zone, then I’m going to do it. I ordered this absolutely gorgeous co-ord suit from Miss Selfridge last week and my initial reaction was to send it straight back. The colour is a beautiful lemon yellow that stands out like nothing I’ve ever worn before- which of course, was part of the problem. My instinct towards wearing black and neutral colours – aka, safe and boring – kicked in. Even my boyfriend asked when I’d have the chance to wear something so bold.

The answer to that question? Whenever I want to.

STANDING OUT OVER FITTING IN

I’ve realised that actually, no one really cares what other people wear for longer than a few seconds. I’m trying to approach life with a much more laid-back attitude and quite frankly, I’ve stopped caring what other people think of me, what I wear and what I do. It’s a hard attitude and stance to follow as it’s human nature to care what other people think but I do think that I am starting to see the benefits of it. By no means am I completely void of feeling and this is absolutely not a quick fix to the feelings that I have when I’m placed in unfamiliar  territory but my point here is that if I enjoy something and I like the way something looks on me, then it’s absolutely no one else’s business except my own. That’s the way I’m going to approach things from this day onward.

This suit? Yes, it’s lemon yellow. Yes, it’s definitely not something I’d normally wear. But you know what? It’s incredibly comfortable, it’s lightweight so would be absolutely perfect in the summer and to be quite honest with you? I think I look great. And that, my dear friends, is all that matters.  

Book Review: The Leavers by Lisa Ko

Book Review: The Leavers by Lisa Ko

Monday, 30 April 2018

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If you would have told me, a few months ago, that I would be reading a debut novel about a Chinese immigrant in New York City and loved it as much as I did, I would probably have been pretty surprised about it. Not because of the genre, or because of the culture, but because I never imagined that I would love a book as much as I did this one.

Let me start by saying that Ko’s prose is beautifully written – I found myself instantly attracted to the novel, primarily because of the bold colour of its beautiful cover and then because of the way it presents itself as a piece of literature. Instantly I was sucked into the story and wanted to delve as deep as possible to understand the reasoning behind Deming’s mother’s disappearance. Deming naturally feels resentment for his mother after she disappears without a trace after heading to work for the day. This resentment builts to the extent that he has absolutely no interest in finding out what happened ot her – until of course, he hears news of her and the natural, questioning instinct of humanity sets itself upon his mind. He feels guilt for wondering about her, having been adopted by a middle-class American couple shortly after his mother left. He is the only Chinese boy in his year group at school and he quickly establishes himself quite unintentionally as the outsider – making friends with another outsider, a Mexican boy who he later plays in a band with.

The second part of the story directly parallels the first part and we hear Polly’s side of the story and follow her journey as immigrant from China to self-sacrificing mother in the States. In doing this, she aims for freedom but this does not happen to her in the way she desires.

It is clear that Deming feels a significant degree of cultural displacement, struggling to fit in within the white suburban family he is adopted by and feeling locked down by his adoptive parents’ expectations – they want him to succeed so that they succeed in themselves and in their task to socialise this seemingly ‘lost’ child. Ko, as the author, does well in subtly critiquing this, depicting the family as being unintentionally condescending in a society where migrants and minorities are seemingly overlooked.

There’s a reason why this book was a bestseller in the US and I have no doubts that it will have similar success here in the UK.

4.5/5.

Exploring Children’s Literature #3 – Billy the Kid by Michael Morpurgo

Exploring Children’s Literature #3 – Billy the Kid by Michael Morpurgo

Wednesday, 25 April 2018

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When I was 10 years old, I was introduced to the wonder of Michael Morpurgo through Kensuke’s Kingdom. Of all of the books I read whilst at school when I was a child, there are only two that I specifically remember studying and being completely engaged by – this one, and The Suitcase Kid by Jacqueline Wilson. Morpurgo’s style of writing thrilled me beyond any feeling I’ve ever experienced and it is probably his influence that encouraged my love of reading further. Since reading this book, I have read countless books by him and am constantly on the look-out for new releases.

Now that I am a primary school teacher myself, using class readers to help with engagement and encourage children to read good quality literature makes a lot more sense to me than it did back then. I’ve realised it wasn’t necessarily just the book that attracted me, but the way it was taught- with insightful activities, memorable pieces of artwork and an enthusiasm that came directly from the class teacher. I have learnt that to encourage a child to love a book, you have to love it yourself, so being able to teach Billy the Kid by Michael Morpurgo this half term has definitely allowed for that intention.  

Anyone that knows me well will know that, as well as my love of books, I have a love of football and of the wartime period. This book manages to combine all three of my loves and brings us a story full of beauty but also incredible sadness. Reading this story aloud to a group of children full of innocence and belief in the world is poignant – they understand how deep the words are and the room is brought to a complete hush as I read.

The story follows Billy, an 80 year old man looking back on his life. He reveals his talent as a footballer and how, back in the day, he played professionally for Chelsea Football Club. He tells of the trials and tribulations that he experienced to get to the point, including the loss of his father and later on, the loss of his brother in the Second World War. It is this loss that finally breaks him and he signs up to join the army- specifically, to drive ambulances – to make his brother proud of him and as a means of allowing himself forgiveness for the war he treated the same brother when he told of his decision to enlist. His war days are told in detail and his suffering is vast – to the extent where he returns from the war, years later, a changed man – he comes back to nothing and no-one and has to make do with living on the street. It isn’t until he meets a young family who understand his difficulties, take pity on him, that he realises the extent of his trauma.

This book is beautiful. I’ve noticed recently when reading war based literature that it can often be problematic- this book, for the most part, comes without political agenda. The story focuses more on Billy and his personal experiences of the war, as opposed to the experiences of the war as a whole. Morpurgo writes in a way that is enjoyable to both adult and children, and I am not at all embarrassed to admit that the story brought a tear to my eye on more than one occasion. (Embarrassingly - on the train. Why do I always read heart-wrenching books on the train?)  My class and I are around three quarters of the way through the story and they too are enjoying it immensely. The work that’s being produced as a result of the reading is fantastic.

I can’t wait to read Morpurgo’s newest book Flamingo Boy in the coming weeks – I imagine I’ll love it just as much as I loved this one.

4.5/5.