August Book Club: Let's go to the movies!
What I read, what I wore, what I created + announcing September's Book Club theme
This post serves as our official August book club “meeting,” where we’ll share the books we read and the creative ways we immersed ourselves in our stories.
August’s Theme: Let’s go to the movies!
If you’re just joining us, you can learn more here. And even if you’re reading this later in the year, feel free to join the conversation whenever you like.
How to Participate
I’ll pose a series of questions below along with my responses. You’re welcome to answer as many as you like or simply share your reflections.
By leaving a comment, you’ll be entered into a drawing for a $25 Gift Card to Bookshop.org at the end of the summer (I’ll announce the winner next month). You can also earn extra entries by:
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❤️ Hearting this post
🧵 Sharing how you creatively paired your book with an outfit, recipe, party, or craft
Feel free to link to Instagram posts, TikToks, blogs, Substacks or any other places where you’ve shared! I’m excited to hear about your reading adventures!
What Did You Read?
Not what I planned on reading!
My sister bought me a copy of Tom Hanks’ The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece, which you may have noticed in the middle of my TBR pile back in June.
Knowing that I had plans to visit my sister in Los Angeles at the beginning of August, I thought it would be the perfect time to read it. That is until I remembered it’s as thick as a dictionary, and I already had to sit on my suitcase to zip it shut.
I left for the West Coast without a plan for what to read for Book Club, trusting that the right title would come my way. And indeed it did, in a way that could only happen in the town where movie magic is made.
The book I ended up reading is Cinema Speculation, written by Quentin Tarantino.
What made you choose this book?
On the Monday of our LA visit, we did something incredibly cool: we saw a screening of an episode of Netflix’s Ripley, followed by a Q&A with the director, production designers, and actress Dakota Fanning.
When they introduced Dakota, they listed a few of her credits, including her portrayal of Squeaky Fromme (an absolutely incredible name) in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. I’d seen the film a couple of times, but Squeaky is a small part, and I didn’t remember her in it.
A few days later, we were deciding what to do after dinner when my brother-in-law mentioned that Once Upon a Time in Hollywood was playing at The New Beverly Cinema, a historic theater that Quentin Tarantino owns.
YES! Let’s do that! I was so enthusiastic that I don’t think I gave anyone a chance to suggest an alternative plan. All four of us (my husband, sister, and brother-in-law) are fond of Tarantino’s films, and I particularly love his most recent releases, Inglourious Basterds, Django Unchained, and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood because they are triumphant rewrites of historical events.
Not only was it special to see Once Upon a Time in Hollywood in the filmmaker’s theater, but it was also shown on film, and included a bunch of bonus content before the feature: commercials, shorts, and music from the era with tie-ins to the movie.
The viewing also took place, chillingly, on the anniversary of the night the Manson Murders took place (a huge plot point in the story).
So needless to say, re-watching the movie amid these special circumstances ended up being my favorite moment of the trip. That night, I stayed up way too late reading about the Manson Murders (which I do not suggest) and Tarantino’s history as a filmmaker.
The next morning, I remembered that I had already downloaded a copy of his book, Cinema Speculation, and that it was sitting in my Audible queue. It was practically a footnote, but I did include it in this post, highlighting my TBR list for the summer.
Considering that incredible movie-going experience and the fact that I didn’t have to fit the book in my luggage, I knew I had found my pick for August Book Club.
What were your thoughts?
Despite the gushing you just read above, Cinema Speculation is not a book I’d recommend unless you are a bonafide movie nerd.
In it, Quentin highlights about a dozen movies from the 70s that influenced the films he went on to create. A few are big movies, ones you’ve probably heard of, like Dirty Harry, Deliverance, and Taxi Driver. I have seen zero of them.
After hearing his descriptions, I wasn’t surprised that these titles hadn’t floated my way or were recommended by family and friends. They are violent films that touch on heavy topics I don’t like to think about.
But yet, so are Quentin’s movies — and I love them.
This book wasn’t just a recounting of films that impacted Quentin Tarantino but a unique look at what was happening in the world during the time they were made.
We, as creative people, know that the best stories are human stories, and the ones that move us are the ones that make us think.
Though even hearing about some of these movies made me squirm, Cinema Speculation challenged me as a storyteller. One of my favorite parts of the book was when Quentin recounted his experience of seeing all these films in the theater.
He emphasized the ways audiences reacted to what they were seeing on the big screen and how it was not always the response one expected. History and society slowly but reliably shift as a result of the stories we consume, and the fact that writers and creators get to play even a tiny part in that is so special.
Bringing the Story to Life
👗 Costume
Since this was a non-fiction read, I did something a little different this month and decided to showcase what my husband calls my “I’m an incognito celebrity in the airport” outfit.
🍪 Snack
While I did not put together my own culinary creation I need to call out the popcorn from the New Beverly Cinema where we saw Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. I don’t know what they are doing differently than other theaters, but it was fantastic.
There was a strict no-phones policy inside the theater so I don’t have a photo. You’ll have to make a trip and taste it for yourself. ☺️
🎨 Project
I’m more of a 40s-50s-60s gal when it comes to style, but I have to tell you that I’ve gotten very into the late 60s-early 70s vibes from Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and even some of the grittier films mentioned in Cinema Speculation.
Here are the mood boards I created inspired by 1970s cinema:
I also need to share the phenomenal soundtrack from Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, which includes commercial clips from the era.
Next Time on Book Club
I plan on doing a 2-for-1 next month as I have a pair of books, one fiction, one non-fiction, both in a setting that I think is perfect for early fall.
🔎 🖼️ 🎨 Our theme for September is: Museum Stories
Read a book set in a museum, maybe one that involves an art heist, a non-fiction read, one that involves museum studies, or any other way you’d like to interpret the theme.
It can be a book you’ve already read or a new story. Whatever brings you joy! I look forward to seeing what you read and create next month.
Save the date! Our September Book Club “Meeting” post goes live on Sunday, September 22nd.
✍️ Creative Exercises/Journal Prompts
Watch a movie that’s outside of your go-to genre. Stay curious about how you might enjoy the experience.
What’s a historical event you’d love to rewrite? How would your version end?
Create a piece of fan art to go with one of your favorite films.
☀️ Five good things
When we can recognize the things that bring us the most joy, we invite more of them into our lives. Here are five things that made me happy this week. Share yours below!
Five good things that happened this week:
As you can tell from this post, I’m still reeling from my trip to LA. You can catch more photos and read about my favorite moments in this post.
During our stay, my sister served us a refreshing strawberry sorbet, and I couldn’t wait to make my own batch when I returned. Here’s the simple recipe.
Upon a recommendation in Ali Labelle’s Substack, I started watching (binging) a new YouTube channel called Indoor Kat. It’s quirky, stylistic, and made me consider reviving my channel with a whole new vibe (I’m not! I’m staying focused!).
I had my second Moxi Laser treatment done! My aesthetician only did one pass over my face this time instead of two, so the healing and recovery are a bit lighter and I’m looking forward to enjoying my extra smooth skin.
The final episode of our Film to Table Girl Dinner series hit the airwaves. I’m feeling proud of the shows we’ve produced this summer and even more excited about what we have in store for the rest of the year.
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Until next week, get out there and make something beautiful.
Michelle
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I had planned to read a book with a more direct movie connection, but wasn't able to fit it in so the book I want to highlight is one I read at the beginning of the month that will maybe be a movie or tv show one day, but the writing was easy to visualize, so it was like a movie was playing in my head while reading.
On my brother's recommendation, I started reading the Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson. I don't read a ton of fantasy that doesn't also have a heavy romance emphasis, but I really loved the first book in the series, The Final Empire. The book features a rag tag group of rebels who work together to try to figure out the secrets that the corrupt government is hiding and also take the government down. The magic system in the book is around burning different metals that each have a different power which results in some cool action sequences.
While it isn't a movie or tv show yet (rights have been sold but it has struggled to get off the ground), I absolutely loved the different characters and how it all comes together in the end while also leaving you excited for book 2. I have already started reading the next book and ended up getting the audiobook to listen to while reading the ebook, which has been a fun experience.