Behind the scenes on The Today Show, my favorite travel items, and so many book recommendations
Friends,
Did you miss me? I'm so sorry for my unannounced and lengthy break from this newsletter -- I had travel to New Orleans for Book Lovers Con, then my deadline for edits for Royal Holiday, and then more travel to New York for Book Expo and BookCon, and during all of that I kept thinking "Oh, but I'll have time to write my newsletter on Friday!" and I kept being so busy I forgot it was even a Friday, and on and on. But I'm home in California now, and I'll be here (more or less) until my book tour for The Wedding Party starts in less than six weeks, so you'll get a bunch of newsletters in that time, I promise!
Okay so: I was on The Today Show again earlier this week. I did not know when I left California for New York that I'd be on national TV while there (fun fact, right before I left someone asked me "are you going to be on TV again?" and I laughed and said no), and I'm very grateful that I'm an overpacker, because I had enough with me to have clothes for all of my other New York events, The Today Show, and for the two extra days I was in New York because of the show. Everyone there was super nice, and it amazed me how the hosts of our segment came running onto the set about 30 seconds before we went on air (they had been making mozzarella in another studio in the segment right before), were chatting with us while they got settled on the couches, and then snapped to attention as soon as we went on air. The other three authors were all delights, and it made me happy that Elizabeth Gilbert was just as giddy and excited about being on the show as I was. Yes, Jenna Bush Hager said my name wrong (I've gotten many questions about this!), but it happens all the time. Oh, and the green room is pretty small, and when we were all in there plus our respective publicists and editors and guests, Pete Rose was also in there, because he was on a few segments before us, but no one in the room recognized him or said anything to him, we were all just chatting about books and TV, and he looked so confused by us (I knew it was him because I heard the hair and makeup people talking about it). All in all, it was a blast, and I'm so glad I got to tell lots of people about some great books!
Two of the books I recommended you've heard me rave about before: The Key to Happily Ever After, by Tif Marcelo, and The Hollow of Fear, by Sherry Thomas. And here are three more (two of which I didn't get to talk about on TV): Ayesha at Last, by Uzma Jalaluddin, is a modern day Muslim retelling of Pride and Prejudice, set in Toronto, and it's such a lovely, heartfelt read. Sometimes in P&P retellings the books are too predictable, because you can pick out all of the characters immediately and know what they're going to do, but this wasn't the case here, and there was a lot that surprised me in a great way. Queenie, by Candice Carty-Williams, is about a 25 year old Jamaican British woman going through a breakup, but it's about so much more than that -- it's about being Black in this world at this time, people touching her hair and her body over and over again without her consent, friendship and family. And There's Something About Sweetie, by Sandhya Menon, is a book I wish I had when I was a teenager. Sweetie is a track star, and she's fat, and she's happy with herself and her body, but the rest of the world (especially her mom) is trying to make her ashamed of herself and what she looks like, and I loved her to pieces. And I loved her relationship with Ashish, and the way they both related to their parents and their families, and you all should read this book and then pass it on to every teenage girl you know.
Speaking of travel, and since this is the summer traveling season, here's a big roundup of some of the things that have been lifesavers for me on the many trips I've been on this year (my flight back from New York was my 21st flight of the year, I think). Some of these I've recommended before, but not all of you have been around this whole time, so I'll give them to you all at once. Eye mask: I love this one so much I have three of them. I put one on when I get on an airplane to help me sleep, and it really helps to shut out the world and put me in my own little bubble. Packing cubes: I have this set, and I love it and would have been lost and far more disorganized over the past year without it (and unable to pack as much, see above). There are plenty of other kinds and I'm sure they're all great, but packing cubes have made it so that I've done all of my travel with a rolling carry on and a duffel bag (and have been able to pack like, 10 dresses in each of those big cubes, magical). Travel humidifier: I bought this (actually I think mine is a slightly different version of this, but very close) more or less at random before a trip, because my fave ladies from the Forever 35 podcast talked about them, and I'm so happy I had this thing! There's so much dry air in hotels, you can't open the window in most of them, and it's just so much easier to breathe with a little moisture in the air. And this one was way simpler to use than I feared it would be; just put it together and drop one end into a glass of water and turn it on. Noise canceling headphones: this is a splurge item, and I sort of poo pooed it when people raved about how much these changed their travel life, but then I got them. Warning: if you have tiny ears like I do, these won't be perfect; they hurt after a few hours for me, but all earbuds do (why don't they have an extra small version???). I didn't want over the ear because they're so bulky and I usually need the extra space, but if you don't care about that, go for the over the ear ones, because every says they do an even better job with noise canceling. It's really lovely to watch people with a baby get on board and not even worry if the baby is already crying. Portable charger: That's the one I have, and I recommend it, but I've used a few of these, and my big recommendation is just to have one. It makes life so much less stressful in airports if you don't have to worry about being near a charger, and on a day when you're out all day and want to keep being able to use apps like Google Maps or Instagram that drain your battery, it's great to have this in a bag or pocket. Extra long charging cable: crucial for hotel rooms that have inconvenient plug placement! Weekender: I have this Lo and Son's Catalina Deluxe bag (in the small), and I've taken it on many trips over the past two years. The amount of pockets is perfect, it holds a lot, it has a slot so you can slide it onto your rolling luggage and not have to carry it, and it fits under the seat on a plane. Also: I bring a heavy duty moisturizer for the plane (there are a bunch I like, but especially this Origins Drink Up Mask), multiple containers of a good hand cream, and at least three lip balms (lip balm is very personal, but I like the Laneige one and the Fresh ones).
No recipe today since I haven't cooked for weeks, but I promise you soon you'll get Carlos's enchilada recipe from The Proposal!
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Jasmine
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