Autumn Reads

In this post I have selected some books I have read and some I cannot wait to read this autumn. Hopefully, these books will give some inspiration for what to read when all you want to do is cosy up with a good book and a warming cup of tea.

Books I've read and are perfect autumn reads:

All the Light We Cannot See

Anthony Doerr

The way Doerr so viscerally and sensorily writes is captivating. The acute attention to sound and the heightened awareness of touch, which is so often forgotten in writing, were the most beautiful aspects of the novel. One of the most beautiful books I’ve read and perfect to snuggle up with on a cold Sunday afternoon.

Small Pleasures

Clare Chambers

This book was no small pleasure. The intimate honesty of this book only grew with each page and left me feeling hopeful and warm, yet torn apart. I felt the ending saved this book from being another predictable novel about an unhappy middle-aged woman. A beautiful, read to warm the soul.

Small Island

Andrea Levy

This book astounded me with its honesty and its illumination of the human, personal experiences of the Windrush era. Levy follows the narratives of four protagonists; Queenie, Gilbert, Hortense, and Bernard, with skill as Gilbert and then Hortenese move from Jamacia to London after the end of the Second World War. Not only is this a great read, but it is also eye-opening and informative.

Books I can't wait to read this autumn:

The Marriage Portrait

Maggie O'Farrel

This is Maggie O'Farrel's latest novel that is set in Renaissance Italy and follows Lucrezia, Cosimo de' Medic's daughter, as she is thrust into marriage after her sister dies, creating a portrait of a young woman torn with duty, girlhood, and love. I cannot wait to read this as I loved her previous book Hamnet, which would also be a great book to get stuck into.

Autumn

Ali Smith

The first in Ali Smith's Seasons series, Autumn is all about fleeting time, feminism, and a post-Brexit United Kingdom, with the novel being socially and politically infused. I have been wanting to read some of her work for a long time and aim to read her seasonal series throughout the coming year.

Stone Blind

Natalie Haynes

This book follows Medusa and tells the story of how a young woman became a monster within popular culture but in reality was never really a monster at all. I love anything based on Greek mythology (Circe, The Song of Achilles, The Silence of the Girls) and I cannot wait to read this one.

*For extra fun, listen to Natalie Haynes Stand up for the Classics to hear her defend characters from Greek myth that get bad reps (spolier: they're usually the women) with enigmatic wit and mind bogling expertise.*