Out with the (c)OLD! and in with 30% off spring styles 🌷🌷 SHOP SPRING CLEANING
It is somehow September already, and the coming chill in the air means you can shelve all those beachy books and dive into the more “hearty soups” of the reading world. Visit other worlds, meet some very interesting (sometimes very weird) characters, and learn about women’s contributions to booze with our six fall book picks. For more, check out our spring reading list and the books that moved us last fall.
Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr
Sometimes a book comes along to remind you what really, truly exceptional writing is. Cloud Cuckoo Land was so immersive and clever that I hated for it to end. Doerr’s other book, All the Light We Cannot See, was much the same. This one combines a classical common thread with jumps across time—from Constantinople in the 1400s to somewhere, sometime in the future. As the name suggests, it’s a wild ride.
Small Pleasures by Clare Chambers
The storyline of Small Pleasures is incredibly unique, following a reporter from a small newspaper outside of London in the 1950s as she investigates a woman’s claim of a virgin birth. Is it a miracle? Is she a fraud? You’ll want to find out.
Rules of Civility by Amor Towles
Oh this book was lovely. Transport yourself to New York City in its 1930s heyday slinking into basement jazz clubs and rubbings shoulders with the city’s elite. It’s all very glamorous, even when it isn’t. The writing is so vivid you’ll almost taste the champagne.
The First Bad Man by Miranda July
I don’t even know how to describe this book. It follows a very average woman who lives alone, is obsessed with a man from her company’s board, and invites her boss’s 22-year-old-daughter to live with her. It’s a lot to take in. Weird in all the best ways.
You Too Can Have a Body Like Mine: A Novel by Alexandra Kleeman
Another strange but interesting choice involves characters whose names we never know, and neighbors disappearing in the night leaving all their possessions behind and wearing sheets over their heads. It has nuanced cultural commentary while also being a fun, oddball read that’ll keep you on your toes.
Girly Drinks: A World History of Women and Alcohol by Mallory O'Meara
For nearly all of human history, alcohol has played an important part in how society functions, and women we’ve never even heard of played key roles in the world of booze—everything from beer brewing to cocktail menus. The patriarchy is the main theme, and sometimes it feels a bit heavy handed. I suggest that you listen to this book because it’s more podcast-y, whereas the writing isn’t always great when you’re reading a hard copy.
