// winter reads //
#THROWBACK.
Y'all remember when I did this a couple years ago? I've been planning, off and on, to do a winter edition ever since. Maybe one day we'll actually get around to all four seasons.
Pretty straightforward: a little list of books that, to me, seem particularly ideal for a snowy day. (A lot of them are fantasy because apparently winter just seems like the time to read fantasy, to me?)
The Books of Pellinor
by Alison Croggon
I'm still hoping to review these at some point, but I'm not entirely sure how/if I'll do so. Maybe a video? I dunno. Anyway, this is a fantastic young adult fantasy quartet that I'd definitely recommend if you're suffering from The Lord of the Rings hangover. The first book, especially, has quite a bit of Tolkien-"borrowing" (ahem) and isn't paced super well, but the characters suck you in so strongly. As the series grows, it really comes into its own and ends up being a perfectly unique and perfectly worthwhile story. I'm so, SO happy these books crossed paths with me. ♥
Behold the Dawn
by K.M. Weiland
Taut, emotionally intense medieval his-fic. Quite excellent. :)
East
by Edith Pattou
Reading this book was one of those experiences where you don't love a book when you're actually in it, but it lingers in your mind afterwards and you realize that you really enjoyed it after all. Very nicely atmospheric for the colder months, too: it's set in the winter, but not so heavily that you'd feel smothered in wintry vibes.
Mary Barton
by Elizabeth Gaskell
Impassioned themes of social and economic reform! Dramatic interpersonal dynamics! Bad choices! Good choices! Hate! Forgiveness! True love! Torture! Sword fights!
The Forgotten Beasts of Eld
by Patricia A. McKillip
I loved this. It's so evocatively written: it gives off this aura of darkness pricked with stars and frost and pine needles. The story tells such profound and satisfying truths so elegantly. I'm a fan.
Geekerella
by Ashley Poston
The only contemporary you'll see on the list, as it's not my favorite genre. ;-P But I could see this one being fun to read in the winter. Comic-cons and fandoms and online interactions, oh my.
All the Light We Cannot See
by Anthony Doerr
This is a delicate and gritty and textured WWII novel, vaguely reminiscent of The Book Thief but thoroughly its own.
Les Miserables
by Victor Hugo
Okay so I have a rather complicated relationship with this book. 'Cause . . . it's a hot mess. Certain parts of it and certain elements of it are ridiculous and/or very poorly executed. But other parts and elements of it are excellently done. In the end, I enjoy the experience of reading it, even when it makes me head-desk into oblivion, as the kids say.
Entwined
by Heather Dixon Wallwork
All of Dixon's books are very nice for winter ⎼ in fact, the other two are more explicitly set in winter ⎼ but this one is the first I read. And it's twinkling and family-centric and ever-so-slightly dark and overall delightful.
A Sparrow Alone
by Alicia Petersen
This is a little-known Biblical fiction, and I personally think it's excellent. It's brief, taut, and vivid. I love the atmosphere it evokes and the (consistent and respectful) twists it places on the Biblical narratives.
Spinning Silver
by Naomi Novik
Salt to the Sea
by Ruta Sepetys
Too long and mainly too bleak, but the way it wraps up is suuuuper satisfying. The experience of reading this was similar to that of reading East, as I mentioned earlier.
Salt to the Sea
by Ruta Sepetys
Titanic-esque his-fic with four alternating POVs (usually I'm not a fan, but Sepetys is a pro and pulls it off). The way these three teens come together and hold each other up in the midst of crisis is amazing. And the ending is emotional. *sniffs*
Talk to me!
What books do you love reading in winter?
Wow, I have not read any of these. This came at the perfect time because I was just wondering what to read next! *scurries off to the library*
ReplyDeleteOh, hurrah! I'm glad it came at a useful time. :)
DeleteSalt to the Sea and All the Light We Cannot See . . . *criesssssssssssssssssssssss* HEARTBREAKING WW2 SURVIVAL STORIES FOR THE WIN. This is my Entire Aesthetic and I cannot lie. xD
ReplyDelete"headdesk into oblivion, as the kids say" Haha!!
Haha! It is, isn't it? But that's awesome. :D
DeleteHmm, I might have to try some of these for winter. I'm planning on rereading Narnia for Christmas, and starting on reread the Lord Peter Wimsey novels during January. I've only read Entwined by Heather Dixon, not her other books, but I loved it and have read it twice, at least. Might have to pick it up again, too.
ReplyDeleteOoh, YES. Rereading Narnia is always a good idea, but particularly in the winter. I think I might try that after Christmas.
DeleteEntwined might be my favorite of her books so far. Illusionarium was fun, but Entwined felt more cohesive and structured, I think. (And I liked The Enchanted Sonata a lot, but the other two were better, quality-wise. In my opinion.)
I can't help feeling like a few scenes of torture and sword fights would have kept me from DNFing Mary Barton...
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure I have any books but LOTR that I get really in the mood for in the winter. Hmm.
HA! Well, to each their own. xD
DeleteReally? That's so funny, how LotR strikes everybody differently, in terms of which season is the best for reading it.
December = LOTR movie vibes for me and for my hubby because that's when they were released, and we saw all 3 LOTRs and all 3 Hobbits in the theater, and so... December is when you watch LOTR. We only managed to watch TTT this year, but one is better than none.
DeleteAnd then January is when I want to start reading LOTR because I'd never read it before the movies came out, but I fell in love with the first movie, so I got the book, but I only read as far as the movie goes, partly because I wanted to go into the movies fresh and unbiased, and partly because I was in college and my next semester started up again about the time I finished reading that much. And then the next year, I did the same thing, only read TTT after seeing the movie. Same for ROTK. Then, a few years later, I decided to reread the whole thing starting in January because we'd just rewatched the films in December, because December is when you watch LOTR, and that happened several years in a row, so... now January and February are the best LOTR-reading months for me :-) I've read it other times of the year too, tho.
We often watch LotR in December (or one of the winter months) too, actually! I think the books just have more of a spring vibe to me. Don't really know why.
DeleteAh! I love this post idea!!!
ReplyDelete(YES to Salt to the Sea!)
Some books that remind me of winter include: War & Peace, Mansfield Park, North & South, The Lion the Witch & the Wardrobe, 101 Dalmatians, Sense & Sensibility, and Little Women.
Thanks!
Delete(I thought you'd appreciate that one. ;))
Ooh, have you read War & Peace? Props.
Somebody else who's read the original 101 Dalmatians! I love that book so much. <3
Haha, well, I've never actually *read* War & Peace. Just a few parts, and I've listened to the BBC audio drama and watched parts of the 2007 and 2016 adaptations.
DeleteYes! I read it because I'd heard you mention it in glowing terms on more than one occasion!
Ah, gotcha. ;)
DeleteAw, yay, that makes me happy. :D
Danggg. I haven't read any of these. :P (Nor even heard of most of them!)
ReplyDelete2020 will be the year I read Les Miserables. IT WILL.
Well, you'd best get on that, hadn't you? ;) JUST KIDDING.
DeleteI believe in you, fren!