Over the course of a year, I find that my dedication to books waxes and wanes. Some months, I struggle to finish a single book. Other months, I read four or five. I can feel that I’m sliding into a “I need more books in my life” phase right now, so I’d love to hear what you’ve been reading.
As for me: As I mentioned in Tuesday’s newsletter, I just finished Ryan Holiday’s Stillness is the Key, which I loved. It’s a short and easy read, and it’s meditative and restorative: it helped me reflect on my priorities and consider how to treat myself better. Last night I started
’s new book On Our Best Behavior, which is powerful and intriguing and all about how the pressure on women to “be good” shapes our lives and holds us back. I’m also reading The Birth of the Pill by Jonathan Eig, which is about how the birth control pill came to be. And the thriller lover in me is deep in the Karin Slaughter book Fallen. I love everything Slaughter writes, but fair warning, her books can be dark and disturbing. (Also, yes, I am reading three books at once. Different books for different moods!!)What are you reading right now, or what have you recently read that you’ve loved? Totally fine if they’re fun beach reads. No judgment here!!
I am reading Fat Talk by substack author Virginia Sole Smith and Screaming on the Inside by Jessica Grose (excited to interview her)!
I’m in grad school so have kept most of my personal reading to fiction that’s easy to get in to. Some favs so far this year:
- The dead romantics by Ashley poston (romcom vibes with a very quirky twist - I loved it)
- Other birds by Sarah Addison Allen (multi-perspective saga with lots of family and home elements, plus a touch of magical realism without being super out there.)
- The bullet that missed by Richard osman (third book in the Thursday murder club series which is a group of retirees in England who solve crimes. It is so smart and funny and I’ve loved every book in the series!)
- The violin conspiracy by brendan slocumb (mystery that deals with fame, family, race. I play violin and the musical details are extra fun if you have some musical background)
- Remarkably bright creatures by Shelby Van Pelt (you didn’t know you wanted a book with an octopus as a main character, but I promise you do. Really lovely book about multiple characters journeys to find themselves)
For nonfiction I recommend reading “share your stuff. I’ll go first” by Laura tremaine and preferably with a friend or two so you can share the stories it stirs up!