2015 Summer Reading List

It's time to write down my strategic plan for summer reading.

I still have several books sitting on the shelf that need to be read—Eiffel's Tower, Teri Agins' Hijacking the Runway and my newest signed book, Inside the O'Briens—but I also want to try to make time to read a few other books...

Several peers on Facebook had shared a photo of this book as a "must-read," so I'm willing to give it a go. This is the sort of book that is probably great to read as a post-grad or if you're trying to figure out what to do after your entry-level job. 

I follow Lisa on Instagram and like all of her posts... Why not read her book?

After watching the latest film adaptation at Jane Pickens, I am dying to read the book. I'm going to have to read it at the beach to keep the intense reactions to Hardy's writing at bay...

My reading list wouldn't be complete without one book related to fashion and/or Paris. This just came out in May, so I want to read it while it's still super new. I was really sad to find out she did an event in Westport, only minutes away from my parents' house in Connecticut...

Nomadic Matt puts together great reading lists and this one definitely popped out on his 12 Recommended Books for 2015. Maybe it's because of the color or maybe it's because I seriously need to build better professional habits, but this should be a good one, too. 

Far From the Madding Crowd, Starring Mr. Oak's Layers

I am not going to even try to offer any intellectual input on this film.

This is for two reasons—it's a Thomas Hardy novel and I'm not going to infer anything from a Thomas Hardy novel based off of a movie interpretation that can only capture so much of the original text. To offer any sort of perspective at such a preliminary level of understanding would be an insult to the hundreds of years scholars have studied it.*

The one thing I can talk about on a relatively expert level, though, is Mr. Oak's layers.

Sports coat, corduroy vest, cotton shirt, and a scarf

Photo Credit: my new plaid pants

There is a crucial scene in which Mr. Oak and Mr. Boldwood are conversing in Mr. Boldwood's mansion. As important as their dialogue was, I was absolutely fixated on the effortless appeal Mr. Oak turtleneck, pullover, cardigan and jacket—the colors, the fabrics and the textures of knits should have been enough to swoon Bathsheba Everdene from the opening scene.

I thought I was alone in noticing Mr. Oak's layers, but a review from Pop Babble perfectly captures the effect of the layers on a fashion-conscious viewer:

Stoic farmer Oak (played by Matthias Schoenaerts) is obviously #1, mainly for the fact that this dude knows how to layer, in this scene alone there are approx 4 layers going on. 

So the moral of Far from the Madding Crowd, according to the film adaptation? A man who knows how to layer is always the winner.

*If you insist on learning something a bit more substantial about the film adaptation, this article from The Guardian should suffice.