These days, there’s a subscription service for just about anything—meal kits, clothing rentals, personalized wine recommendations, and yes, your reading list. A book subscription box may finally help kick your habits into high gear, especially now that you may find yourself spending more time indoors than ever, and your local bookstore may be dealing with mandatory closures. (P.S. You can check to see whether your local bookstore offers curbside delivery or pickup through Postmates.)
Whether you’re into steamy romance, Y.A. novels, or sci-fi, there’s a book box out there for you—and one that may deliver more than just a great read to your doorstep. Some book rental services let you join a virtual book club (hi, approved social distancing activity), or send socks and bubble-bath soap themed to your selection. From crowdsourced reads by women for women like the Feminist Book Club to expertly curated picks from Book of the Month, we found 12 of the best book subscription boxes that’ll please even the choosiest readers.
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We love the thrill of receiving a delivery notification from USPS just as much as the next person—but nothing quickens our pulse quite like a limited-edition line that also happens to be on sale. Universal Standard gets us, and its Mystery Box sale is back and better than ever.
If you’re new to Universal Standard, the brand is known for minimal silhouettes in an impressively inclusive size range—we’re talking 00 to 40—and mission-driven projects with J.Crew and Rodarte. Right now, its wardrobe-boosting essentials are even more accessible with the Mystery Box sale. For the next eight days, you can shop 10 different outfitting boxes, valued up to $650.
The Universal Standard Mystery Box sale runs from February 13 until February 20, and it’s fully loaded with desk-to-dinner tops, bottoms, and dresses. Other than elevated office attire, you’ll also find weekend-ready activewear and reliable options for petites.
So what’s the deal?
There are plenty of sales coming up for Presidents’ Day, but the main draw for Universal Standard’s Mystery Box is the price—you get more items for less than what it would cost if you bought each piece individually. Plus, it’s an easy, noncommittal way to experiment with personal style or nail an unexpected gift.
Boxes start at $50 for tops, $60 for athleisure, $85 for bottoms, $90 for dresses, and $175 for luxe styles. But surprises aren’t for everyone. So to make sure this deal is actually worth your money, we got our hands on three Classic Style boxes, priced at $95 each.
Each box contains three pieces to wear as an outfit or style individually. The first box, for a 4XS (00–0), had a leather biker jacket, a black midi skirt, and a black bodysuit. We love a silk skirt around these parts, but the leather jacket was a sleeper hit since it retails for $425. The box comes out to $595, so you’re saving $500. [Holds for applause.]
The next box, curated for a size 3XS (or a regular size 2–4), included a white turtleneck, a navy blazer, and amatching tracksuit pants. It was clean, crisp, and modern. The three pieces total $445, and can easily be dressed down with a pair of denim (as shown).
The last box we unwrapped was for a 2XS, or a 6–8 size. There was a black turtleneck, a gray cardigan, and skinny jeans. Together it felt basic in a good way, and the tissue turtleneck proved a great layering piece under a printed dress later in the week. The total value of this box is $275.
We’re into it. At best, you’ll walk away with stuff that’s six times what you paid for. And, at the very least, you’ll break the “I have nothing to wear” cycle by having a curated outfit at the ready. Altogether, the Universal Standard Mystery Boxes felt consistent despite their contents being a surprise, and we got more mileage out of our pieces by styling them with things already in our closet. Our only caveat is that the garments run large, and sizing can be confusing if you’ve never ordered from the brand before—so make sure to double-check your measurements before adding to cart. Get into the Mystery Box sale here. Time for your best Nancy Drew impression.
Marvel’s first female-led superhero movie is officially a record-breaking success: Captain Marvel made a reported $153 million in its opening weekend, just in the U.S. alone. It brought in another $302 million internationally for a huge total of $455 million worldwide ticket sales, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The movie stars Brie Larson as Carol Danvers, a pilot who becomes Captain Marvel after she finds herself in the middle of an intergalactic war. It’s also the first in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to have a woman behind the camera—co-director and writer, Anna Boden.
Those numbers make Captain Marvel the biggest opening of 2019, as well as the first film to break the $100 million dollar mark this year. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the global sales also make Captain Marvel the biggest launch for a female-fronted film ever and the second-largest superhero film behind Avengers: Infinity War. It’s the sixth-best opening worldwide of all time.
Clearly, moviegoers were ready for a female superhero to take charge in her own piece of the franchise. This, along with the smashing success of Wonder Woman, should put an end to any doubts that female superheroes can’t sell at the box office.
Fans took to social media to give their own mini-reviews after seeing the film. “I saw Captain Marvel tonight,” wrote one user. “I am such a fan of the @kellysue comics, and was KINDA nervous. Because SOMETIMES screen things aren’t as good as paper things. BUT I LOVED IT. Truly. Madly. Deeply. #HigherFurtherFaster” Another said, “I just wanted to tell you that we WE ARE SAFE NOW MISS CAPTAIN MARVEL IS HERE AND SHE IS GLOWING.”
“#CaptainMarvel was good fun, and the backlash against it pre-release was ridiculous,” said another user. “Go see it and support it – shouldn’t matter to whiny nerds what gender or race the lead in a Marvel movie is, it’s still a Marvel movie. Representation clearly matters.”
Next up for Captain Marvel? She’ll help take on Thanos when Avengers: Endgame opens on April 26.
Crazy Rich Asians is certifiably the movie of the summer. Since its opening in mid-August, the film has won both critical and fan acclaim thanks to its highly obsess-able plot line, incredible fashion, and its casting (it was the first cast to feature actors who were all of Asian descent since 1993’s Joy Luck Club). And it’s making a boatload of money to boot: The movie raked in more than $26 million over its opening weekend and has held the No. 1 box office spot in the U.S. ever since—and now, it’s set to make box office history again.
The movie’s expected to make up to an additional $30 million by the end of the Labor Day weekend, which means it will be the best performing movie over the holiday in more than a decade. The only other film to make $30 million over Labor Day holiday was 2007’s Halloween, according to Business Insider,.
But that’s not all. According to Forbes, the movie has already surpassed other major romantic comedy winners including 2015’s Trainwreck, 2016’s Bad Moms, and 2017’s Girls Trip—meaning it’s now one of the biggest romantic comedies in recent film history. All it needs to do now is surpass 2002’s My Big Fat Greek Wedding, which made $283 million.
To date, Crazy Rich Asians has grossed more than $111 million at the domestic box office—and you can bet there’s a sequel or two coming our way. According to Rolling Stone, Warner Bros. has already obtained the rights to author Kevin Kwan’s follow-up novels China Rich Girlfriend and Rich People Problems. Director Jon M. Chu will return to helm the production of China Rich Girlfriends, though there’s no official word yet on casting or a release date. But at least this way you still have plenty of time to read all the books—and obsess over the wardrobes of incredible couture—first.
Whether it’s a trolling contest with husband Ryan Reynolds or a day of outfit changes,Blake Lively always goes all out. For her 31st birthday on Saturday (August 25), she celebrated in a reliably over-the-top way: The actress and fashion icon consumed the best part of a dozen cupcakes, possibly by herself.
On the morning of her birthday, Lively hopped on Instagram Stories to share a photo of a dozen cupcakes from Sprinkles, a celeb-favorite cupcake outpost based in Beverly Hills. “Thank you, @sprinklescupcakes!” she captioned a photo of some admittedly delicious-looking cupcakes that spelled out “Happy Birthday Blake!”
PHOTO: Instagram @blakelively
Minutes later, Lively posted an after shot of her Sprinkles box. Where, just moments before, followers could once see a full box of cupcakes, there was utter wreckage: not a whole cupcake in sight.
She captioned the picture with a cheeky update: “Worked it,” she wrote.
PHOTO: Instagram @blakelively
We’ve got to hand it to Lively: There’s no better way to kick off a birthday morning than with a box of wonderful baked goods. We can’t say for certain whether Lively actually demolished the entire box on her own—she has Reynolds and their children to help out, after all—but we wouldn’t blame her if she did: Cupcakes are delicious, and, after all, it was her birthday!
This complete annihilation is just the latest entry in Lively’s history of social media shenanigans on her birthday. Last year, the actress celebrated her 30th birthday with a large dinner. But in signature Blake Lively fashion, she had a hilarious comment to mark the occasion: “My super sweet 16. …but like 14 years late,” she wrote.
Lively was otherwise pretty quiet on her social media accounts during her birthday celebrations this year—but we’ll be keeping our eyes out to see if Reynolds has any birthday wishes to extend—or if he just continues the wonderful tradition that is their birthday-related Instagram trolling.
The film, which officially hit theaters in the U.S. on Friday, has been receiving a surplus of positive acclaim from both audiences and critics alike. Thanks to the movie’s cast of actors, who are all of East Asian descent—the first such cast in far too long—and aesthetically staggering sets (not to mention the incredible clothes), Hollywood’s standard rom-com formula got what seems to be a much-needed changeup.
Taking to Instagram, the film’s star, Constance Wu, immediately showed her excitement after learning how well the film was being received. “#crazyrichasians is certified fresh…. and I can’t believe we’re playing in the DOME! Amazing. Thank you everyone for all your love and support.”
But Wu wasn’t the only person to express her happiness over how the film turned out—particularly with respect to its ability to break boundaries in the Hollywood inclusion arena. On Friday, the Asian Voices editor at the Huffington Post, Kimberly Yam, took to Twitter to explain, in an emotional eight-part thread, exactly what seeing a cast of predominantly East Asian descent in the film meant to her.
“You’re 8 years old. Your 3rd grade class orders chinese food & your father delivers it. You are so excited to see your pops in school. He’s your hero. But apparently other kids don’t think he’s so cool. They laugh at him and mimic his accent. You don’t want to be Chinese anymore,” she begins—continuing through a series of difficult moments throughout her life when she felt ashamed of her Chinese ethnicity while growing up in the U.S.
Concludes Yam in her last tweet: “You’re 25 years old. You see a movie with an all-asian cast at a screening and for some reason you’re crying and you can’t stop. You’ve never seen a cast like this in Hollywood. Everyone is beautiful. You’re so happy you’re Chinese. #CrazyRichAsians #RepresentationMatters”
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