Ask Stephany Anything | Round 2

Happy Saturday, friends! I’m answering more questions from you guys today, and all of these questions come from the wonderful Engie (as Nicole has coined her, and I am stealing). She asked some really great questions that were fun to answer. If you have a question for me, you can fill out my form and leave a comment on this post!

What book(s) do you recommend to people over and over again?

It really depends on the person. Like, I’m not going to recommend my favorite romance novel to someone who doesn’t enjoy romances. But generally, here are some of the books I feel pretty confident recommending to people:

• Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed – One of my all-time favorites that is chock-full of great advice. This book helped me begin to heal and move forward after becoming estranged from my father. Cheryl’s advice is always spot on!
• Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi – Gosh, I just loved the way this book was written. It goes back and forth between the lineages of two sisters: one who is sold into slavery and taken to America and the other who marriages a rich Englishman and lives a life of luxury. Each chapter is dedicated to a descendant of these sisters, showcasing the impact of slavery, British colonization, and war. It’s incredible and well worth the read.
• Come As You Are: The Surprising New Science That Will Transform Your Sex Life by Emily Nagoski – This is the kind of book I want to shove into the hands of every woman I know, and most especially those who feel a little “broken” when it comes to sex and that’s why so many enjoy site like ehocams.com for their sex lives. As someone who grew up in purity culture and was told again and again that sex was wrong and bad (unless in the confines of heterosexual marriage), I have a lot of issues around sex and this book truly transformed the way I viewed sex and who I am as a sexual being and I even read this hands free vibrators reviews to get toys to use too. It is not graphic, but rather is like sitting down with a super smart sex therapist who just wants every person to have a happy, healthy sex life, in whatever way that looks like.
• This is How It Always Is by Laurie Frankel – This book was just so well-written and also really fun to read. It’s about a family of seven. There are five boys in this family and the youngest son begins to state his desire to wear dresses and become a girl when he grows up. Thus starts this family on a journey they never expected to take. It’s about being transgender and what that means for a family, and it’s also about marriage and parenthood and how you try to figure things out along the way. It’s an incredible book that has stayed with me.
• In the Country We Love: My Family Divided by Diane Guerrero – While this book isn’t super well-written, it’s one I like to recommend because I think it puts a face to the immigration issues in our country. Diane is an actress who was born in the United States, but when she was 14, her parents and brother were arrested and deported, leaving her alone in this country. She had to depend on the kindness of family friends to keep her fed and clothed and housed while her family lived in an entirely different country than her. It’s a moving portrait of the immigrant struggle and just how damn unfair the immigration system is for undocumented people.

A lot of these books are heavier reads, but for some light-hearted romances, my favorites are The Hating Game by Sally Thorne; Book Lovers by Emily Henry; Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston, The Duchess Deal by Tessa Dare, and basically anything Lucy Parker writes.

What is your ideal way to spend a weekend afternoon?

Probably napping, ha. I love a great weekend afternoon nap! Especially when I can crawl into my big bed and the cats jump on the bed to nap with me, too. I always say, “It’s Family Nap Time!” when they do that. 🙂 Ideally, I’d get into bed, read for about 20 or so minutes, take a long nap (3 hours, at least), and then wake up to read more of my book. That is the epitome of luxury to me!

What skill do you wish you had that you don’t have?

I wish I was better at making small talk with new people. My friend Bri and I talk about this a lot (it’s part of the reason we started our podcast!) because she is so good at being around new people and making easy conversation. I just draw a complete blank on what to say to new people and how to draw them into a conversation. How do people do that so easily? I am v jealous about it.

Aside from yourself and the girls, what five things would you grab on your way out the door if you had sixty seconds to leave your house and knew you would never return?

What an interesting question! Let’s see, I would grab:

• My work laptop, just so I have a computer to use
• My Kindle, because I need my books
• My phone, because duh
• My purse, since it has my wallet and some other important docs
• Dutch’s paw print, since it holds immense sentimental value to me

Do you ever listen to Desert Island Discs? Basically, it’s a radio program where they ask people what eight songs, one book, and one luxury would they bring to a desert island. What are your choices?

I don’t listen to Desert Island Discs, but what a fun thought experiment. Here are my answers:

• Eight songs: One Day by Matisyahu, About Damn Time by Lizzo, As It Was by Harry Styles, Take It Easy by the Eagles, Betty by Taylor Swift, Paper Rings by Taylor Swift, You Need to Calm Down by Taylor Swift, and Karma by Taylor Swift
• One book: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
• One luxury: A tent

It was really hard choosing my eight songs because I am not much of a music person. (I’d much rather listen to podcasts/audiobooks than music.) Even though I wanted to choose everything by Taylor Swift, I figured I’d like some variety. Also, I chose songs that are fun to listen to and dance to!

I chose A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith (<– y’all, I first wrote the author’s name as Betty White and I was like, “There’s no way that’s right.” HA.) because this book is one of my all-time favorites and it’s long enough that it would take me some time to get through it.

As for my luxury, I wanted to cheat and bring a Kindle for extra reading material but I figure having a tent would be a better luxury. I’d want to be able to zip myself away from the elements when the sun is too hot or it’s rainy. I’ve watched enough episodes of Survivor to know how horrible those rainy nights can be without shelter.

What is a skill you wish you had that you don’t have?