We Are Reading
Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell
Maggie O’Farrell has written a new book! It’s as if she knew we were going to be cooped up and would need something to read. She and Hilary Mantel should be given some sort of medal in these troubled times.… Read More
Love Colour, Choosing Colours To Live With by Anna Starmer
Once you’ve decluttered (see yesterday’s post) you’ll look around and think ‘this place could do with a repaint’. I’m about to repaint the kitchen, which means looking at colour choices and that always makes me very nervous. I am always… Read More
Worn / Kingpins: Denin Inspiration From Sue Barrett
Our denim trend forecasting pal Sue Barrett has produced a lovely magazine on stylish denim attire you may be interested in, if vintage indigo is your thing. Worn Publications is a review of beautifully curated vintage clothes and their wearers, … Read More
Fashion Climbing, A Memoir With Photographs by Bill Cunningham
The fabulous and much missed Bill Cunningham left us all a small, posthumous treat, a memoir, uncovered when his monk-like apartment was cleared by his family after his death in 2016. It’s now available to buy here. Anyone who knows… Read More
Summer Reads: Best Books To Take On Holiday
I read an enormous amount of words every week of the year, mostly to do with work. My daily consumption of fashion reports, consumer analysis and fragrance goings-on is always interesting but quite serious and thought provoking. That’s before we… Read More
The Accidental Botanist by Robbie Honey
Robbie Honey is one of my favourite florists, not only is he super-talented, but he’s also utterly lovely. We interviewed him for We Wear Perfume and I’ve been a fan of his entertaining and artful instagram feed ever since. Also… Read More
Catwalking: Photographs by Chris Moore
This is a must for any fashion fan. I can’t believe we haven’t popped this wonderful book on the reading list before now, it came out in November 2017 and is a glorious documentation of the last 60 years of… Read More
Cook Yourself Happy by Caroline Fleming
Are we over Skandi stuff yet? I ask because if we’re not, then this new cookery book by Danish lifestyle blogger and model Caroline Fleming might suit a millennial near you as a festive present. Caroline is one of those… Read More
The Secret Gardeners by Victoria Summerley
Oh my, this is a fabulous book for anyone who is a teeny bit nosy (in a Hello! crossed with Gardener’s World kinda way) and loves gardens. The Secret Gardeners, Britain’s creatives reveal their private sanctuaries is by Victoria Summerley… Read More
The Flexible Vegetarian by Jo Pratt
When I first read The Flexible Vegetarian I wasn’t sure it was different enough to suggest you bought it, after all we’ve all got enough cookery books, recommending a new one requires it to have a strong point of difference.… Read More
Soulful Baker by Julie Jones.
If any of you are keen bakers, you probably already follow the talented Julie Jones on her instagram feed. She has a way with decorating a cake or a tart that makes you wish for more time in the day… Read More
The Lost Girl, By Carol Drinkwater
This week I found myself sitting opposite Helen Herriot, wife of vet James Herriot of All Creatures Great And Small fame and the person I most wanted to end up being when I was a teenager (after Rhoda). Who wouldn’t… Read More
London, The Cook Book by Cara Frost-Sharratt
Since we all now have enough cookery books to last a couple of lifetimes (it’s not just me, of that I’m sure) publishers are coming up with new hybrids of the form to keep us buying. So we have London,… Read More
Vera & John – An Everyday Story of Family Life
Jason Wilde is a London based photographer who’s work is influenced by growing up in the city and the small dramas of family life. He looks at the shifting social landscapes reflected in the people that inhabit its diverse communities.… Read More
Studio, Creative Spaces For Creative People by Sally Coulthard
Other people’s work spaces, just like other people’s houses, are endlessly fascinating to me. And when the work space is a creative one, such as a studio or workroom, it’s even more exciting; as well as looking at lots of… Read More
The No Spend Year, by Michelle McGagh
I’ve just ordered this book by Guardian journalist Michelle McGagh having heard her on Women’s Hour this week. I’m going to go the whole year without buying any new clothes, which I reckon will be hard enough but Michelle went… Read More
House Of Plants by Caro Langton and Rose Ray
If you’ve lived or visited East London within the last few years, you’ll know that succulents and cacti are the house/shop plant du jour, popping up on hip coffee counters, in store windows and woven into VM displays in the… Read More
Gathered by Mary Norden and Polly Wreford
I met Mary Norden at a couple of years ago at a friends dinner party and could tell she was a kindred spirit. Mad about flowers, a dog lover, a textile collector, passionate about colour and pattern and inspired by… Read More
The New Garconne, How To Be A Modern Gentlewoman, by Navaz Batliwalla
The author of The New Garconne, Navaz Batliwalla, writes one of my favourite fashion blogs, Disneyrollergirl, so news that she was writing a book was greeted with excitement here at TWR Towers.
Navaz has a clear sighted and pragmatic approach… Read More
A Certain Age by Beatriz Williams
I got sent this book ages ago, but couldn’t get passed the first page for some reason. Then on holiday, I noticed it on the shelves of a Greensboro book store tagged as a New York Times best-seller. Predictably, I… Read More
A Bird In The Hand by Diana Henry
While helping M.A.D with his vinyl pop up, I checked out the local charity stores – East Sheen has a staggering number for a small place -and discovered this fabulous cookery book in one of them. The joy of the… Read More
Vinyl, The Art Of Making Records by Mike Evans
In connection with our post on Middleagedad’s pop up vinyl record store, music fans might like to know about Mike Evan’s definitive book on the history and recent resurgence of vinyl. Written by the husband of our fabulous French-based, roving… Read More
Savage Salads by Davide Del Gatto & Kristina Gustafsson
Savage Salads is a neat title and the team behind the book are already food-truck stars, seen daily at Berwick Street in Soho. The book is less vegetable-drama and more a list of interesting combinations you can play with and… Read More
We’ll Always Have Paris, Trying and Failing to Be French, by Emma Beddington
I’ve been meaning to pop this book up for weeks now, life got in the way.
We’re huge fans of Emma Beddington’s blog Belgian Waffle and have been since we started TWR. She wrote it anonymously to start with (it… Read More
This Must Be The Place by Maggie O’Farrell
There is a new Maggie O’ Farrell out. I have not read the reviews, I have no idea what it’s about and frankly, I don’t care. Neither will you if you are a fan like me. All you need to… Read More
1971- Never A Dull Moment: Rock’s Golden Year by David Hepworth
David Hepworth’s 1971 Never A Dull Moment is a book I would urge anyone who was born between 1950 and 1965 and loves their music to read immediately. Also anyone who is currently loving the 70s vibe in fashion and… Read More
Frida Kahlo, Life Portraits by Zena Alkayat and Nina Cosford
This is a delightful little biography; part illustration, part hand written assessment of Frida Kahlo’s life, all of which adds up to a very endearing and charming insight into one of our favourite women in art. The book’s illustrations are… Read More
Clean Cakes by Henrietta Inman
I’m mostly ignoring the current food fad for ‘eating clean’, because I’m not really sure what the ‘clean’ means, but one thing I am very consciously doing is reducing the sugar in my diet. However, I am a cake lover,… Read More
Grow Your Own Cake by Holly Farrell
This book had me at the cover really, as a keen gardener and cook, the idea of being able to combine the two in one read was appealing. Our favourite Reader’s Digest cookery books from years ago did this brilliantly,… Read More
Saul Leiter, with introduction by Max Kozloff
There is a small but perfectly formed exhibition currently running at The Photographer’s Gallery in London that everyone should go to if they have a spare 15 minutes. It only costs £3.00 to visit and it will brighten your week,… Read More