Melody’s September 2017 Wrap Up

Wow, I can’t believe September has come and gone so fast! Fall is here and we’re almost done with the year 2017. Wild. I’m still settling into having moved back to Los Angeles and haven’t written about TV on the blog just yet but IT’S COMING, just you wait! So far, I’m really enjoying all of the premieres and want to give a special shout out to the under-appreciated Scorpion on CBS and The Good Place on NBC. What premieres did you love this month?

As for movies and the like, whoa. I finally got around to watching the Mommy Dead and Dearest documentary on HBO and oh my goodness! If you haven’t seen this, find someone with an HBO login to watch this! I’m telling you.

When it comes to books, I’ve been on an audiobook kick thanks to the library, review copies and my absolutely ridiculous public transportation commute to/from work. I finally read the conclusion to The Murder Complex by Lindsay Cummings, The Death Code. It was fantastic! It was everything a sequel should be and more. If you like The Purge, you should check out this duology. I loved Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson. Talk about #BlackGirlMagic! I also really enjoyed getting to know Jennifer Weiner more in her first memoir, Hungry Heart. A must read for anyone who is a fan of her work and has been following her career over the years. Warcross by Marie Lu was such a treat, oh my goodness. It gave me Ready Player One gamer vibes which was fun. I haven’t read The Young Elites series so this was the first book of hers that I’ve read completely since her first trilogy and it was a joy to be back inside the mind of Marie Lu. Long overdue for me. I also got to catch up on a lot of graphic novels this month which has been so great! So yeah, this month has been great for my audiobook listening and graphic novel reading. Stay tuned for some reviews coming your way!

Book Reviews
* The Last Arrow by Erwin McManus
Spinning by Tillie Walden

E-book/Book/ARC (Advanced Review Copy)/Audiobook Haul
North to You by Tif Marcelo

So You Think You Can Dance Taping at CBS Studios

September Notes
* I found myself at a taping for So You Think You Can Dance on double elimination night as the final four were announced! Stay tuned for a write up on that experience! Spoiler alert: It was fun!

* FIDM showcased its annual free exhibit, Outstanding Art of Television Costume Design. This was my first year checking it out and boy was it exciting getting to see the costumes of some of my favorite shows, up close and personal! Shows featured included HBO’s Insecure and Big Little Lies, Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale, Netflix’s Stranger Things, TV Land’s Younger, WGN’s Underground, and NBC’s This Is Us among others. I was especially taken by the attention to detail on the grime and grittiness of Stranger Things and how striking the costume design was on The Handmaid’s Tale. Beautiful exhibit, definitely something I see myself going to every year if I can.

Stranger Things at FIDM’s Outstanding Art of Television Costume Design Exhibit
Underground at FIDM’s Outstanding Art of Television Costume Design Exhibit
The Handmaid’s Tale at FIDM’s Outstanding Art of Television Costume Design Exhibit

* To celebrate the show just in time for its final season, The Paley Center for Media featured a free exhibit of The Mindy Project, 6 Seasons of Style Curated by Salvador Perez. Perez is not just an Emmy-nominated costume designer but also the president of the Costume Designers Guild. I had a blast checking out the exhibit, as the show is one of my favorites and the costume design is so colorful, so much fun, and such an integral part of the look and tone of the show. So to get a piece of the show up close and personal was a treat. I found myself laughing when some costumes reminded me of the hilarity that ensued in said episode. The majority of the pieces are obviously pieces that Mindy wore, however, there are a few from the other characters, which was nice to see. Enough talking about it, here are some pictures. And be sure to watch the sixth and final season of The Mindy Project. Thanks cast, and crew for giving us an amazing six seasons!


* Co-creator of The CW’s Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Aline Brosh McKenna released her first graphic novel, Jane (Add it to Goodreads), this month, a modern day Jane Eyre. To celebrate, Aline held a book signing and discussion at The Grove Barnes & Noble which was so much fun to attend. Co-creator, Rachel Bloom’s parents were in attendance, sitting proudly and adorably in the first row. Anyway, Aline’s discussion was so great and honest and welcoming. She opened the Q&A up to screenwriting questions which I did not prepare for (silly me) so next time, I will be prepared. You never know with these things if the talent wants to keep the topic on whatever they’re promoting or talk about everything and I do know to be prepared for all occasions but my head just wasn’t there so now it is haha. Only need one time to miss an opportunity to ask a pro a question to get you in shape. Finally, don’t mind my horrible outfit in the photo, I’ve lost some weight and didn’t realize how huge my clothes looked on me.

* If you didn’t know, I’ve been vegan since January. I’ll post about that in October. Anyway, my first month checking out vegan spots in LA has been a lot of fun. My favorites this month in no particular order are the vegan cheeseburger at Burgerlords in Chinatown (also note that the fries remind me of McDonalds fries, which I’m not complaining about), the vegan reuben at Localita & the Badasserie in Downtown LA (note that every location is vegan friendly but the DTLA location is the only one that’s entirely vegan), and The Weekender at Real Food Daily in West Hollywood, and the coconut bowl from Amaze Bowls which I had from at Smorgasburg (Every Sunday from 10am – 4pm, get there early to get the goodies before they sell out!) in DTLA.

Vegan Burger at Burgerlords in Chinatown, Los Angeles
The Vegan Reuben at Localita & the Badasserie in Downtown LA (DTLA)
The Weekender (Brunch) at Real Food Daily in West Hollywood
The Coconut Bowl from Amaze Bowls – Photo taken at Smorgasburg in DTLA

* I’m going to be an Aunt! I am so excited for this new chapter in my family’s life! I’m the middle child and my older sister, who married last fall, is now expecting her first child! I can’t wait to meet the little guy! Oh man, I’m so excited!!! I’m going to be an Aunt!!!! Whoa!!! Ahhhh!!!!

Books I Read

If you’d like to keep track of my reading progress as it happens and reviews as they are posted, feel free to follow me on Goodreads!

Audiobooks That I Listened To (Own/Library):
1. Strike by D.J. MacHale
2. The Last Arrow: Save Nothing for the Next Life by Erwin Raphael McManus
3. Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson
4. Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard
5. The Death Code by Lindsay Cummings
6. Hungry Heart: Adventures in Life, Love, and Writing by Jennifer Weiner
7. Warcross by Marie Lu
8. Girling Up: How to Be Strong, Smart and Spectacular by Mayim Bialik
9. The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli
10. Windfall by Jennifer E. Smith
11. Outpost by Ann Aguirre

Books On My Shelf/Kindle That I Read:
1. Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

Graphic Novels That I Read (Own/Library):
1. March: Book Three by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, Nate Powell
2. The Harlem Hellfighters by Max Brooks, Caanan White
3. Jessica Jones, Vol. 1: Uncaged! by Brian Michael Bendis, Michael Gaydos, Matt Hollingsworth
4. Paper Girls, Vol. 3 by Brian K. Vaughan, Cliff Chiang
5. Captain Marvel, Volume 1: Higher, Further, Faster, More by Kelly Sue DeConnick & David López
6. Jane by Aline McKenna, Ramón K. Pérez

My favorite reads this month: The Last Arrow: Save Nothing for the Next Life by Erwin Raphael McManus, The Death Code by Lindsay Cummings, Warcross by Marie Lu

Movies & Documentaries I Watched
Watched in September 2017
Batman & Bill (Hulu)
Mommy Dead and Dearest (HBO)
Gaga Five Foot Two (Netflix)

My favorite movies/documentaries this month: Everything I watched this month was fantastic! All winners this time around.

Until the end of this month, happy reading and viewing!