Last week, I filled my apt with a binge fest of fall magazines & yummy reads! Seeing that funds are at low points this month & can’t bare to bring my “sky high” dreams down, I found these magazines & books to be quite relaxing & inspiring. The Satorialist by Scott Schuman & The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe by J. Randy Taraborrelli, were two books that sent my emotions on very opposite spectrums.

Many biographies have been written about Marilyn Monroe, but J. Randy Taraborrelli was able to compile a slew of never before seen photos & private stories from friends & family members, who felt before they perished needed to be told. Halfway through this book, I can’t help but feel truly saddened by her story. Perhaps the worst tragedy was learning about how many people “tried” to help her from her mental & drug addictions & with most larger than life stars, dying alone.

Although fascinating, I had to take a break for some gorgeous photography from The Satorialist. Scott Schuman’s blog by the same title, has been named one of Time magazine’s Top 100 Design Influencers & with good reason. His portraits manage to capture each city’s stylish essence so beautifully that it’s quite hard to resist flipping through the book in one sitting! So…in this world of computers, cellphones, & social networking hysteria, please pick up a book every once in awhile & read!