Unplugged Book Box is a monthly self-care subscription box that delivers a book, bookish treats and skin care items curated around a theme — all with a view to taking time to “unplug” (from screens, work, the everyday grind) and take some time for you. Two subscriptions are available: young adult fiction ($34.99 USD/month) and adult fiction ($39.99 USD/month). November’s box celebrates friendship. Let’s see what’s inside!
Each Unplugged Book Box comes with a guide to the contents and photo challenges throughout the month where subscribers are invited to share pictures of the items on Instagram for a chance to win a free month or other prizes. Another card (not pictured) offers a peek at December’s theme and a playlist for November — in this case, all songs centered around friendship. And if you scan the barcode on the card you can listen to it on Spotify. Brilliant!
Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts: A Novel by Kate Racculia
The book was actually the last item I saw in the box (it was carefully wrapped in tissue under the rest of the items) but it sounds soooo good that I can’t help sharing it straight away. It’s Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts: A Novel by Kate Racculia and it was released just last month. Tucked inside is sticker signed by the author that you can put in your copy if you choose, and there’s also a card with a note from the author on one side (awesome!) and a recipe on the other. (More on the recipe later.)
Here’s the summary from the book:
“A dying billionaire sends one woman and a cast of dreamers and rivals on a citywide treasure hunt in this irresistible novel by the author of Bellweather Rhapsody.
Tuesday Mooney is a loner. She keeps to herself, begrudgingly socializes, and spends much of her time watching old Twin Peaksand X-Files DVDs. But when Vincent Pryce, Boston’s most eccentric billionaire, dies—leaving behind an epic treasure hunt through the city, with clues inspired by his hero, Edgar Allan Poe—Tuesday’s adventure finally begins.
Puzzle-loving Tuesday searches for clue after clue, joined by a ragtag crew: a wisecracking friend, an adoring teen neighbor, and a handsome, cagey young heir. The hunt tests their mettle, and with other teams from around the city also vying for the promised prize—a share of Pryce’s immense wealth—they must move quickly. Pryce’s clues can’t be cracked with sharp wit alone; the searchers must summon the courage to face painful ghosts from their pasts (some more vivid than others) and discover their most guarded desires and dreams.
A deliciously funny ode to imagination, overflowing with love letters to art, from The Westing Game to Madonna to the Knights of the Round Table, Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts is the perfect read for thrill seekers, wanderers, word lovers, and anyone looking for an escape to the extraordinary.”
I try to keep abreast of new releases but somehow Tuesday Mooney escaped me. I’m glad to find it here. “She keeps to herself, begrudgingly socializes” is like looking in the mirror, ha ha, and when I read this line in the author’s note I was sold: “It’s a coming of age story for whatever age you happen to be, and a love letter to introverts and creative souls, to anyone who feels lost or lonely and is searching for a life less ordinary.”
I feel like me and Kate could be kindred spirits!
Now on to the bookish items…
At first glance, I didn’t fully understand each item’s relation to the theme of the story (with the exception of the bookmark from the TV show Friends, that one was obvious) but the guide to the contents made it all make sense.
I haven’t watched Outlander, but the mug is a nod to the friendship between Jamie and Claire. We have a few travel mugs that have seen better days, so it’ll be nice to have a new one. (Maybe I’ll keep this one for tea. I find the coffee taste tends to stay in some of them.)
The measuring cup features a quote from Anne of Green Gables, and anyone who’s read it knows friendship is an important theme in the story. “With the holidays coming, cooking for/with our friends is a great way to have fun self-care,” says Unplugged. To that end, they’re also included a recipe for pumpkin pie created by a character from Anne of Green Gables. I love pumpkin pie so I’m definitely going to try this one, and measuring cups always come in handy.
And the self-care items (‘tho one could argue they’re all about self-care!)…
First we have a charcoal face mask, an Unplugged Book Box exclusive celebrating friendship in The Phantom of the Opera. I love a face mask, especially one with charcoal’s skin-clearing properties, so I’ll be trying it immediately.
The last item is a kit for DIY elderberry syrup nodding to the potions for eternal life that Niclays tries to create in The Priory of The Orange Tree (another book I haven’t read) “Niclays may not have found the potion for eternal life,” Unplugged says, “but perhaps this Elderberry kit will give you a boost. This syrup is a natural remedy for sick season, so if you feel the sniffles, give it a go!” With winter weather here it’s only a matter of time before a plague is on our house so we’ll be needing all the remedies we can get.
Unplugged Book Box Review November 2019 – Final Thoughts
November’s Unplugged Book Box is the first one I’ve tried and I’m pleasantly surprised. I’d never seen the book but it’s something I think I’ll enjoy, and all of the items in the box are things I’ll use. (Can you ever have too many travel mugs?) What makes the Unplugged Book Box really special are the personal touches exclusive to this box, namely the note from the author which gave me a lot more appreciation for the story than the summary of the book (did I mention Tuesday Mooney’s partly an homage to The Goonies? Only one of the great films of my youth!!) and the Friendship playlist, which you can actually listen to in just a couple of clicks. (I love that!)
I’m curious to hear your thoughts on Unplugged Book Box. Are you a subscriber? Is it a subscription you’d like? What themes would you like to see in an upcoming box?
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