Tis the season of gift guides! I like gift guides. I do. However, instead of searching out things to include in a gift guide I decided to sit back and let the gifts come to me. All year long I've been keeping careful tracks of the products that I absolutely loved, products that I couldn't stop talking about, products that I had to share with you!
Today I'm featuring (and giving away!) my favorite book and CD of the year.
As a long time Dixie Chick fan, Natalie Maines's voice is one I know well. She was always the vocal powerhouse of the group and I loved to hear her sing whether the song was about love or revenge. In 2006, Nicholas and I saw the Chicks perform during the Accidents and Accusations tour. Natalie belting out "Not Ready to Make Nice" was the most powerful musical performance I have ever witnessed and I still get chills when I remember the emotion radiating from her voice.
I was excited to hear of her solo project after several years of silence and even more excited when it was greeted with rave reviews. I'm not a rock critic so I'm not sure how much I can add to the discussion except to say this album is impeccable. Her voice and Ben Harper's production is fantastic and I listened to the entire thing on repeat for two solid months.
The title track is my favorite.
I know I'm like a year late for this bandwagon but I don't care! This was the funniest, smartest, most thought-provoking book I read all year. Also I have read this section aloud to basically every single one of my girlfriends:
[M]y tits are bust. And they— God bless them— know that. If they were a character in a film, they’d be the girl who falls over when they’re being chased by the Baddies and shouts, “Go on without me! I’ve had a good life!” My breasts wish the rest of me well, but they are just not going to make it.
I laughed so hard the first time I read this passage tea came out of my nose.
No, seriously.
What's that? You want your own copy of this album and book. Well, ok... twist my arm!
