As the nights get chillier and we spend more evenings at home with cocoa by the fire, we asked our BAHS team members to recommend their favorite books to curl up with on a snowy night.聽Below we are sharing our winter reading list for the months ahead. We wish everyone a warm and cozy holiday season – with plenty of time for stories by the fire!
BAHS Winter Reading List聽
A Hint (or More) of Magic and Fantasy聽
UK Senior Placement Specialist Zoey Ingarfield’s top recommendation is the “absolutely beautiful” book,听聽by Erin Morgenstern. The imaginative story follows the poignant relationship between two young dueling magicians. For those who love a touch of whimsy and magic, she also suggests聽聽by Helene Wecker,听by聽Katherine Arden,听by Claire North,听聽by聽Robert Dinsdale, and聽聽by Eowyn Ivey. Senior Placement Specialist Elizabeth B. Myerson recommends聽聽by Emma Straub; the book is a coming-of-age classic meets time travel story. Not only is it an excellent read, it was written by a聽Brooklyn mother who owns the bookstore,听聽(in this newsletter, we’ve tried to link our book suggestions to this store whenever possible). Massachusetts-based Abby Schuster, a voracious reader and BAHS Senior Placement Specialist, suggests聽聽by Garth Nix this time of year. Abby shares “I鈥檓 not generally big into fantasy, but these books are the best. I鈥檝e read them all 5+ times and cry at the end every time. The atmosphere in the first one really lends itself to feeling cozy, and then the second two take you on a real adventure.” Another of Abby’s favorites is the enchanting聽聽by聽TJ Klune.
Love, Tears, and Resilience聽
Senior Placement Specialist Vanessa Vargas shares “anything by聽Nicholas聽Sparks is good…. but guaranteed to be a tear-jerker.” Her particular favorite is聽, a hope-filled story of a single mother who finds a love letter in a bottle on the beach and sets out to find the writer.聽Ellie Mohammadi loves聽Donna Tartt’s gorgeous book,听听补苍诲听by聽Holly L. L枚rincz and L. Maleki. Both Abby and Zoey recommend聽聽by聽Shelby Van Pelt and聽聽by聽Anthony Doerr, two very different but incredibly touching stories of perseverance, hope, and resilience.
Non-FictionBoth our COO Catherine Whyte and聽Senior Placement Specialist Elizabeth B. Myerson highly recommend聽聽by聽Eve Rodsky. Catherine also loves聽, particularly聽. Elizabeth recommends聽Jia Tolentino’s聽, which she describes as “a collection of extremely astute essays” – and it was named one of the top books of the year in 2019 by multiple publications, including聽The New York Times Book Review,听罢颈尘别,听Chicago Tribune,聽The Washington Post,聽The Paris Review, and聽NPR.
Warm and FunnyTalent Acquisition Specialist Liz Hankins loves聽聽by Fredrik Backmann; Backmann’s books are as tender as they are humorous. This fall, Catherine Whyte saw David Sedaris reading from his 2022 book of essays聽聽and that is now next up on her nightstand!聽The New York Times聽described the book as “consistently funny” and “delightful.”
ThrillerFor those who aren’t afraid of crime and suspense, Liz Hankins is currently working on聽, a book based on Ted Bundy’s crimes, by Jessica Knoll. Liz’s colleague in聽Talent Acquisition Alanna Kaminski loves anything by聽Freida McFadden, a successful thriller author聽and聽practicing聽physician specializing in brain injury; Alanna divulged she has read ten of McFadden’s books in the past year! Another great page turner on Alanna’s list is聽聽by Sarah Penner. UK Senior Placement Specialist Martha Keith Burnett, who loves to get lost in books by the fire in chilly Edinburgh, recommends Ian McGuire’s聽, which she describes as “dark, thrilling and cold,” as well as John Banville’s聽, a Booker Price Finalist described as “a sinister, quirky and thrilling character study.”
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