My Favorite Little Girls

Eeeek! I've been ignoring my little blog. So sorry. I'll get better about writing soon. But in the meantime, I'll share some photos of my favorite little girls, who I've been spending a lot of time with lately.

Little Miss Kinley. Looking so precious here, just angelic. Her hair cracks me up.

Miss Mira, being goofy.

Kinley apparently likes to suck on her toes. Here she is going for them.

I love Mira's eyes in this picture, they look so pretty.

Both girls together. This was the best picture I could get.

The girls spent the night. Though Mira went to bed immediately and in the guest bedroom, Kinley was up for quite a while. Here is her safely bordered area in my bed. And she's going for her toes again!

Seriously, how cute!?!

Need To Read

I have a lot of books in my "To Read" pile that I really need to get to. Some have been there for a while and some have been loaned to me. Here's what's up next:

"We are in the center of Paris, in an elegant apartment building inhabited by bourgeois families. Renée, the concierge, is witness to the lavish but vacuous lives of her numerous employers. Outwardly she conforms to every stereotype of the concierge: fat, cantankerous, addicted to television. Yet, unbeknownst to her employers, Renée is a cultured autodidact who adores art, philosophy, music, and Japanese culture. With humor and intelligence she scrutinizes the lives of the building's tenants, who for their part are barely aware of her existence.

Then there's Paloma, a twelve-year-old genius. She is the daughter of a tedious parliamentarian, a talented and startlingly lucid child who has decided to end her life on the sixteenth of June, her thirteenth birthday. Until then she will continue behaving as everyone expects her to behave: a mediocre pre-teen high on adolescent subculture, a good but not an outstanding student, an obedient if obstinate daughter.

Paloma and Renée hide both their true talents and their finest qualities from a world they suspect cannot or will not appreciate them. They discover their kindred souls when a wealthy Japanese man named Ozu arrives in the building. Only he is able to gain Paloma's trust and to see through Renée's timeworn disguise to the secret that haunts her. This is a moving, funny, triumphant novel that exalts the quiet victories of the inconspicuous among us." (from Goodreads)

John loaned this to me quite a while ago, and I feel bad that I've had it so long, so it's at the top of the list. It's not my usual kind of book, but John said it was really good so I'll give it a try. I'll let you know what I think.

"The Hours tells the story of three women: Virginia Woolf, beginning to write Mrs. Dalloway as she recuperates in a London suburb with her husband in 1923; Clarissa Vaughan, beloved friend of an acclaimed poet dying from AIDS, who in modern-day New York is planning a party in his honor; and Laura Brown, in a 1949 Los Angeles suburb, who slowly begins to feel the constraints of a perfect family and home. By the end of the novel, these three stories intertwine in remarkable ways, and finally come together in an act of subtle and haunting grace." (from Goodreads)

Next up is The Hours, which I bought a hundred years ago from the $2 book store. It seems kind of heavy but comes highly recommended.

"With Felipe de Castro, the Vampire King of Louisiana (and Arkansas and Nevada), in town, it’s the worst possible time for a body to show up in Eric Northman’s front yard—especially the body of a woman whose blood he just drank.
Now, it’s up to Sookie and Bill, the official Area Five investigator, to solve the murder. Sookie thinks that, at least this time, the dead girl’s fate has nothing to do with her. But she is wrong. She has an enemy, one far more devious than she would ever suspect, who’s out to make Sookie’s world come crashing down." (from Goodreads)

After what I expect to be a heavy read in The Hours and before the next expected heavy book, I'm going to go for some light, paranormal romance, just-for-fun reading. This is the second-to-last book in the Sookie series from Charlaine Harris. I'm kind of excited for the series to end, I feel like it's time. Though I still enjoy the books, I feel like the last few haven't been as good as earlier books in the series. 

"In The Hour I First Believed, Lamb travels well beyond his earlier work and embodies in his fiction myth, psychology, family history stretching back many generations, and the questions of faith that lie at the heart of everyday life. The result is an extraordinary tour de force, at once a meditation on the human condition and an unflinching yet compassionate evocation of character.

When forty-seven-year-old high school teacher Caelum Quirk and his younger wife, Maureen, a school nurse, move to Littleton, Colorado, they both get jobs at Columbine High School. In April 1999, Caelum returns home to Three Rivers, Connecticut, to be with his aunt who has just had a stroke. But Maureen finds herself in the school library at Columbine, cowering in a cabinet and expecting to be killed, as two vengeful students go on a carefully premeditated, murderous rampage. Miraculously she survives, but at a cost: she is unable to recover from the trauma. Caelum and Maureen flee Colorado and return to an illusion of safety at the Quirk family farm in Three Rivers. But the effects of chaos are not so easily put right, and further tragedy ensues.

While Maureen fights to regain her sanity, Caelum discovers a cache of old diaries, letters, and newspaper clippings in an upstairs bedroom of his family's house. The colorful and intriguing story they recount spans five generations of Quirk family ancestors, from the Civil War era to Caelum's own troubled childhood. Piece by piece, Caelum reconstructs the lives of the women and men whose legacy he bears. Unimaginable secrets emerge; long-buried fear, anger, guilt, and grief rise to the surface.

As Caelum grapples with unexpected and confounding revelations from the past, he also struggles to fashion a future out of the ashes of tragedy. His personal quest for meaning and faith becomes a mythic journey that is at the same time quintessentially contemporary -- and American.

The Hour I First Believed is a profound and heart-rending work of fiction. Wally Lamb proves himself a virtuoso storyteller, assembling a variety of voices and an ensemble of characters rich enough to evoke all of humanity." (from Goodreads)

This looks really heavy but I've been told it's a must read. I also can't remember who loaned this to me, so hopefully it will find its way back to its rightful owner eventually. After watching the horror of what happened at Columbine High School happen right here and knowing people who knew people there, this book hits close to home. 

In addition to these paper books, I have a bunch of books being delivered to my Kindle automatically upon release that I know I won't be able to ignore for long. Those include the newest Anita Blake from Laurell K. Hamilton - Kiss the Dead (June 5), the new Bloodlines from Richelle Mead - The Golden Lily (June 12), Nicole Peeler's latest addition to her Jane True series - Tempest's Fury (June 26), and the follow-up to Deborah Harkness' A Discovery of Witches - Shadow of Night (July 10). Happy reading for me!

Yves Saint Laurent Retrospective

"Fashions fade, style is eternal." - Yves Saint Laurent

Me in front of the iconic "Paris Rose" evening dress used in the advertising

A few weeks ago, the Denver Design Center hosted an exclusive night at the Denver Art Museum to tour the Yves Saint Laurent exhibition. The event was for all sorts of people from the design community, including interior designers, kitchen designers, reps, showroom staff, etc. It followed on the heels of a day of learning and new product showings at the Design Center itself. After a cocktail party in the lobby, we all lined up to make our way through the exhibit.

The Denver Art Museum is the only U.S. venue for the sweeping fashion exhibition that chronicles the designer's 40 years of creativity, and is showing through July 8. It features a stunning collection of two hundred haute couture (high fashion) garments along with numerous photographs, drawings, and films that illustrate the development of Saint Laurent's style an the historical foundations of his work. It explores the full arc of Saint Laurent's career, from his first days as head of the House of Dior in 1958 through the splendor of his evening dresses from 2002.

It was really quite an amazing show and I really learned a lot about the history of women's fashion as well as about Saint Laurent himself. I highly recommend getting the headphones and listening to the blurbs about some of the items if you're interested in the history of fashion and the "stories" that go along with these pieces.

This outfit was in the "Gender Revolution" room, and though it's not one of the most revolutionary outfits there, I thought it was absolutely beautiful. I loved the applique on the chest and the gorgeous hat. Most of the outfits in this room had amazing hats. This room included Saint Laurent's pantsuits, which were one of the most revolutionary aspects of his designs. Before this, women did not really wear pants in high fashion. He transformed traditionally masculine clothing to have feminine appeal. One of the stories I listened to was that a woman once wore one of his pantsuits to a high-end club and the doorman wouldn't let her in. He said that women could not wear pants inside, so she just took them off and went inside. Hahaha! (UPDATE - After seeing the show again yesterday, I realized that I remembered this dress wrong. It was actually in the "YSL and Women" room and was a gift from Her Serene Highness Princess Grace of Monaco. Though it seems a little daytime to me, it is described as a cocktail dress from 1964, natural and black shantung with a black silk applique rose.)

This dress is completely embroidered with gold beads and fake diamonds. It's amazing and beautiful, and I'm sure incredibly heavy! Such a simple form, but totally extraordinary!

One might think this dress was lingerie, as the lace was completely see-through and the pink bows on the side were the only thing holding the front and back together, but it's not. It was a made to order evening dress for an wealthy, but culturally conservative, Indian woman. The story was that she absolutely loved Saint Laurent's designs and commissioned many of them, though she wasn't allowed to wear them out because they were so risque. So this gorgeous dress was never actually worn out in public. Such a pity!

The Torero outfit in in the "Imaginary Journeys" room. From 1979, it showcases a pink gazar cape, gold and pink lame bolero and knickerbockers, and a bright pink satin and taffeta blouse. It's totally crazy and I love it. Especially because of the pink.

This is when I got in trouble for taking pictures. Whoops! I should've realized that I wasn't allowed to take pictures, but I'd seen others do it and I wasn't using a flash. Oh, well. So I didn't get any photos of some of the most iconic YSL fashions, like the Mondrian inspired cocktail dress, or his Van Gogh inspired bead and sequin embroidered jackets that looked so much like the actual paintings they were amazing!

Two of the most stunning rooms were the "Shock of Colors" and the "Iconic Tuxedo" rooms. The "Shock of Colors" was an all black room featuring six silk evening dresses hanging alone in little black boxes. Pinned on all the walls were 750 swatches of fabric that showcase Saint Laurent's use of color for the evening dresses, to an almost ombre effect. The little silk squares flutter with the air movement and is really a stunning visual, and the evening dresses are from his final collection in 2002. (UPDATE - I remembered this room wrong somehow. The fabric swatches do not flutter in the air as they are actually protected behind plexiglass. I must just want to see them fluttering. Still a fabulous visual.)

The "Iconic Tuxedo" room is also visually stunning. You come into this room from the relatively close quarters of the "Shock of Colors" room and you're greeted by a sweeping three-level display of women's tuxedos. Saint Laurent was the first designer to alter the classic men's formal suit to fit women. Some of these designs are very similar to the men's suit, but many more are evening gowns inspired by the suit. I was able to sit down on a bench, listen to the recording about the tuxedos and just gaze up at all of the beautiful designs.

The last bit of the exhibition is called the "Last Ball", a collection of enchanting ball gowns. The display is beautiful, with many gowns "spilling" down a stair case and ending with the iconic "Paris Rose" dress from the advertising, which was also used in an ad campaign for a Paris perfume in 1983. I busted out my phone and slyly took one last picture when none of the exhibit staff were looking.

I couldn't not take a picture of the dress! It's so beautiful in person. The top and the bow are YSL's signature pink satin and the skirt is sumptuous black velvet. Absolutely gorgeous!

As a designer, I really wanted to touch the fabrics and feel their weight or softness or the texture of the beading. I asked some of the people who were walking around with me and they all felt the same way. I think it must be an occupational hazard kind of thing. It was hard to not touch anything.

I really loved this exhibit. I'm going to go see it again with a group of friends soon. My only complaint was that sometimes the lighting wasn't really that good. I wanted to be able to see some of the fabrics and details better, but a lot of the rooms were really dark. Also, in the "Last Ball" room, some of the gowns were quite far away, so you couldn't see them well at all. But, all in all, it was really a pleasure to see and I'm so excited that it came to Denver.

"Fifty Shades Darker" Book Review

My review of "Fifty Shades of Grey" has proven to be very popular, so I figured I'd continue with reviews for the other books in the series.


"Daunted by the singular tastes and dark secrets of the beautiful, tormented young entrepreneur Christian Grey, Anastasia Steele has broken off their relationship to start a new career with a Seattle publishing house.  But desire for Christian still dominates her every waking thought, and when he proposes a new arrangement, Anastasia cannot resist. They rekindle their searing sensual affair, and Anastasia learns more about the harrowing past of her damaged, driven and demanding Fifty Shades. While Christian wrestles with his inner demons, Anastasia must confront the anger and envy of the women who came before her, and make the most important decision of her life." (Amazon's Description)


**You should only read this if you've already read "Fifty Shades of Grey" or if you're not opposed to some spoilers (not really bad spoilers, but some).




"Fifty Shades of Grey" ends with Ana leaving Christian. She's determined, after letting Christian whip her with a belt, that she is so not cut out for this lifestyle. Though she was once curious (uncomfortably so) about the lifestyle and even liked some of their "scenes", was willing to try, and in love with Christian - the pain and humiliation, as well as the realization that Christian really enjoyed hurting her - was all too much for her to take. 


"Fifty Shades Darker" begins just days after the big break-up. As any girl can tell you, those first few days are hell and I feel like E.L. James does a really good job of conveying that hell. Ana doesn't have the option to completely fall apart as she has started her new job at Seattle Independent Publishing and needs to prove herself to her new boss. Christian is never really gone from her life though, sending her flowers to honor her first day, and eventually emailing her as well.


Since we already know that there is a third book, and it also follows Ana and Christian (and Amazon's description gave it away), I'm not really giving anything more away by saying that obviously Ana and Christian work it out and get back together.


After Ana left Christian, he did some serious soul-searching and determined that he wanted Ana in his life, even if she couldn't be his sub. Ana knows that she will never be able to be his submissive, but she enjoys the "kinky fuckery" part of their relationship. It seems as though they've found a happy medium. Or have they?


There is still a ton of sex in this book (and HOT sex at that), but there is also a much needed secondary story line. In addition to the continuing development of Ana and Christian's relationship, there is now a big mystery happening. Ana and Christian have a ton of drama to deal with as well. It's almost like these kids can't catch a break and relax. Everything seems to happen in one week - every day is another huge drama. I swear, they have more drama in the span of a week or two than I have in an entire year!


There's a psycho ex-sub of Christians (who we were briefly introduced to in FSoG), Ana's touchy-feel-y boss at SIP, and we finally meet Mrs. Robinson. Of course drama surrounds all these characters. We also continue to deal with Christian's controlling tendencies, jealousy, and issues stemming from his childhood, as well as Ana's insecurities and self-doubt. Then you throw in some really big life-changing decisions Ana needs to make and a serious accident. As Ana would say, Jeez! 


I kept thinking that there was too much going on in these characters lives to be realistic. All the drama, all the sex, plus full-time jobs - I mean really, how on Earth is Christian able to run his incredibly successful empire? How do they fit it all in? Is it because they don't watch TV? And how is Ana so well-read when I think she's only shown reading a book once or twice? They have such fun, flirty email exchanges at work, so how do they actually get any work done?


The other thing I felt was a bit unrealistic is the super-quick progression of Ana and Christian's relationship. I don't know anybody in this day and age whose relationship would progress like Ana and Christian's does in the span of a couple months. Even if they're so completely in love, I feel like any man in a similar place in life (being a young, hot, billionaire businessman) would be a little more cautious inviting a women to share in his life. It does make for enjoyable fantasy reading, though. Like a modern-day Cinderella fairy tale.


In the first book, I was annoyed that James would use the same descriptive words repeatedly, and though she doesn't use those exact same words in this book, she is still a bit repetitive. I was also still looking up definitions, but I like that. I like learning new words. Also, I felt like there weren't as many British words used, so that was better this time around.


I was, again, left wanting more at the end of FSD. Some dramas were resolved, some weren't, and the mystery is definitely on-going. I wanted to read the third book immediately to know how everything would turn out. So I did. :) Like I said in my FSoG review, I didn't get much else accomplished when reading these books. I was also left wanting more information about some of the secondary characters. Specifically about Christian's sister, Mia, and Taylor. I felt like they had backgrounds and potential story lines I'd be interested in reading.


I know some people didn't want to read the second and third books because the sex in the first book made them uncomfortable. I want to ease your mind - the sex in FSD is quite a bit easier to take. There's not as much of a BDSM element or undertone. It's really just kinky sex. Hot kinky sex. Hopefully that will help some people out and they'll continue reading. It's well worth it!

Normal People CAN Dress Like Celebrities!

Or maybe an more apt title would be, A Celebrity Wears an Affordable Dress!

Ginnifer Goodwin wore this cute ruffled dress to the White House Correspondent's After Dinner Party. It is really quite fabulous. She added the black belt and I think that was a good choice (as is her on- and off-screen boyfriend, Josh Dallas!).


Lo and behold, us regular folks can afford this dress! It's from H&M and only costs $295!!!

I believe this is made of raw silk and the edges of the ruffles are unfinished, so there's a bit of fray happening. But if you can deal with that, this is a awesome deal!

Soul Searching

Recently it became obvious to me that I would need to find a new job. Our work load has been steadily declining and the quality of the work that we actually have been getting has been sub-par. Then we had a couple clients freak out about their bills and pull back from their projects a bit. This is a small business to begin with. There are really only two of us to do everything around here. Every client, every job is necessary. When clients freak out and don't buy things, don't use our services, or when new clients don't come knocking with fabulous new projects - it seriously affects us. We can't survive as a business like that. And when it comes down to paying himself or paying me, my boss is going to put himself before me. As he should.

So, I started thinking about who I could work for; what kind of job I could get. I've been quite lucky in my current and past jobs in that I was always extremely qualified for the requirements of the job. But when I looked for a new job, I found that I wasn't qualified anymore. I realized that I would need to increase my skill set in order to get a new, better job. I just couldn't get excited about it. I don't want to re-learn CAD. I don't want to learn Revit. I don't want to get my NCIDQ certification. I don't want to change focus and try to get into commercial design. Interior Design doesn't excite me anymore and hasn't for probably a couple of years. I don't have the same sort of passion for it that I used to. I had to ask myself, is this apathy for my field because of the quality/type of projects that we've had for the past couple years? Or does it go deeper? I finally realized that I'm just kind of done with Interior Design.

I don't read many design blogs, I don't read any design magazines anymore, I don't blog about many design oriented topics. I don't get excited when friends or family ask for my design advice. I don't feel the same appreciation for new and innovative design products or items that I used to feel. I don't enjoy finding awesome furniture or fabrics for our clients. I search and search and search for items and never feel wowed by anything. I usually just find myself getting irritated by our client's needs and idiosyncrasies. I get irritated when I am second guessed on something that I've been trained to do and have done quite successfully for the past 13 years.

I know that I'm not always going to 100% love my job. It is called a job for a reason! But I should be able to find at least some fulfillment in it. I should be able to feel like I'm doing some good. And I haven't felt that in a long time.

I needed to look at my current skill set to determine if I had any transferable skills with which to apply to a new career. Let me just tell you that it doesn't seem like there are many transferable skills for an interior designer. It was really quite depressing to realize it. What other jobs could I do? Really anything would need additional education to be properly trained. Could I be a teacher? Probably. Do I want to be a teacher? I don't think it's really for me. I couldn't come up with anything else.

So I instead started thinking about what I actually enjoy doing; where I have felt effective and necessary. I realized that I thoroughly enjoyed the role I have had  in Junior League for the past five years - being on and running the Nominating Committee. More specifically, the interview process that we have developed for selecting the Board of Directors. I have lots of non-work skills and experience from interviewing and selecting the JLD Board for the past five years! Maybe I can put those skills to work in Human Resources somewhere!

For the first time in a long time, I was excited about the possibility of a new job. Human Resources sounds incredibly interesting to me. I think I could do a job in the HR field and I think I could do it well. Everybody I've told this new idea to has been very supportive and they all say they could definitely see me in this sort of role. Do I need additional training? I don't know yet. I'm willing to do it. I'm willing to start at the bottom. And it's not like I've made any money the past four and a half years and need to have some great salary.

It was very liberating to realize what I want to do. I feel like a giant weight has been lifted off of my shoulders. I hope that I can make this work and I'm going to start working on making it happen immediately. :)

"Fifty Shades of Grey" Book Review

A few weeks ago I watched Matt Lauer discuss Fifty Shades of Grey, a relatively new book by E.L. James (a pseudonym) on The Today Show.  The panel was discussing whether or not this was good reading.  The two other people discussing it - a male psychologist and Savannah Guthrie (a co-host), had very differing opinions.  The doctor was all about how the book is demeaning to women and it's awful to romanticize an older man taking advantage of a younger, inexperienced woman.  Savannah basically said it's all good fun.  They also interviewed a group of Real Housewives-like women who were all hot and bothered about the books, saying it had jazzed up their sex lives.  I had never heard of the book before then and the hullabaloo about it intrigued me, so off to Amazon I went to purchase it for my Kindle.

"When literature student Anastasia Steele goes to interview young entrepreneur Christian Grey, she encounters a man who is beautiful, brilliant, and intimidating. The unworldly, innocent Ana is startled to realize she wants this man and, despite his enigmatic reserve, finds she is desperate to get close to him. Unable to resist Ana’s quiet beauty, wit, and independent spirit, Grey admits he wants her, too—but on his own terms.
 Shocked yet thrilled by Grey’s singular erotic tastes, Ana hesitates. For all the trappings of success—his multinational businesses, his vast wealth, his loving family—Grey is a man tormented by demons and consumed by the need to control. When the couple embarks on a daring, passionately physical affair, Ana discovers Christian Grey’s secrets and explores her own dark desires." (Amazon's description)


I was a little put off about buying something that screamed erotic literature, but you never know.  And I usually don't read other's reviews on Amazon because I don't want to pre-judge.  This book, and the other two in the trilogy - Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed, are so much more than erotica.  Don't get me wrong, the sex is HOT, but I found myself sucked in to the relationship development and the personal growth of the two main characters, Anastasia (Ana) Steele and Christian Grey.  Ana is a 21 year old college student about to graduate in Vancouver, Washington.  Christian is an extremely successful 27 year old who lives in Seattle.  They happen to meet and fall for each other for very different reasons.

Here's the first thing - Christian is really not an older man.  The Today Show story made it seem like Christian was some 40 year old taking advantage of a much, much younger woman.  A six year age difference is negligible in my world.

**spoilers ahead!**




Christian wants to have a dominant/submissive relationship with Ana.  It's how all of his "relationships" have been.  Ana has never had a boyfriend and is a virgin.  He wants to introduce her to what his "world" is all about but doesn't want her to go into it unknowledgeable.  He tells her to do the research.  (I had to do the research!  I had no idea what some of these things were and now I wish I could un-know some of them.)  Ana was understandably shocked and determined that she wouldn't do some of these things, but similarly determined that she wanted to be with this man, no matter what.

There's the second thing - Christian didn't take advantage of Ana what-so-ever.  She went into the relationship wanting and at least semi-knowledgeable about what it would entail.  She may have been inexperienced, but she was fully willing.

A BDSM relationship isn't for everybody, obviously.  And it's not going to be enjoyable reading for everybody, either.  And that's okay.  But it's also okay for people to have this sort of relationship if they choose it.  It's just another lifestyle choice.  But the books are not about a BDSM relationship.  They are about a relationship.  Period.

Ana and Christian have all sorts of issues.  Some are general life issues that I wouldn't expect people this young to have.  In fact, I  often found myself forgetting that they were so young because I can picture them ten years older and their lives still making sense.  Ana is incredibly insecure and Christian (as he says) is fifty shades of fucked up, and those are the things they need to work through.

As I said before, I was sucked into their relationship and its progression.  I literally couldn't put this down and I barely got anything else accomplished while I was reading it.  As I got closer and closer to the end of the first book, I felt unfulfilled because I didn't think everything was going to get wrapped up as neatly as I hoped it would.  I hadn't bought the other two books because I wasn't sure I was going to like the first one, or if it even followed the same characters.  But then I realized that we'd get to follow Ana and Christian throughout the three books; I was so anxious to continue reading about them and find out where they would go next.

Parts of the book were incredibly funny and parts really made me think.  And not just think about the subject matter, but literally I had to look a lot of words up to find out what they meant.  The "big words" were well-done though.  Both Ana and Christian are very smart individuals, and Ana is an English major eventually going to work in publishing, so the use of the "big words" never felt like the author was just having fun with the thesaurus.  (Some of the words I had to look up were: profligate, mercurial, avuncular, apogle, inveigle, antediluvian, and vacuous.)  One of the things that kept making me laugh was when Ana scolded Christian for using SHOUTY CAPITALS in emails, because I feel exactly the same way about all caps.

The author is British, and though I hadn't confirmed that before reading, it was obvious to me because of some of her un-Americanized wording.  She used pram instead of stroller, satchel instead of bag or purse, arse instead of ass, er and erm instead of um, and envisages instead of envisions.  Though I know those words are occasionally used here, they are definitely not as common, while they are very common in current British books.  I was also a little irritated because she would use the same words over and over, without finding another way to describe the same thing.  But as this was her first book(s), I can forgive her.

The books have become incredibly popular and have even been picked up for a movie deal.  I can't imagine these as a movie, probably just because of the sex aspect.  It's really quite graphic (though thankfully not disgustingly so), and so much of the relationship development happens during those scenes.  I just don't think a movie can do it justice.

There was an article about the books and the author in Entertainment Weekly last week, too.  I learned a lot about the development of the books from that article, which I found really interesting.  Apparently the author really loved the Twilight series and she wrote an incredibly popular on-line fan-fic piece which was a sort-of alternate reality Bella/Edward.  That's what became Fifty Shades of Grey.  It makes sense - at multiple times while I was reading (before knowing about the Twilight connection), I thought that the characters reminded me of Bella and Edward somehow.

I really recommend these books.  I thoroughly enjoyed them.  But I do think that most people I know will  need to have a little bit of an open mind about the sex part initially.

{Read my review of "Fifty Shades Darker" here}