For The Love Of Reading

Author and Editor: Ursula Vollmer

———————————————————————————————————————————————————-

If I’m completely honest, I think there is no better time to get into reading than on winter break. The conclusion of the semester leads to an absence of work and of formal requirements. There is an obvious chill in the air and a desire to stay warm in bed, preferably horizontal. Even with Netflix, the lure to escape into the pages of a different world is something I always find comforting ahead of the holidays.

I pick up a book that has been on my list forever and finally immerse myself in it fully—without the distractions I loathe during the year that always seem to get in the way. Peace at last.

This is one of the reasons I am sharing this list, one that I have combed through my Goodreads and brain to put together. I want you to find a place to be able to enjoy one of life’s simple pleasures this winter—reading a good book. There is nothing complicated or confusing about the act, but it is in the decision that many of my friends have told me they do not where to start or what would catch their attention.

While I do know the books that I gravitate towards at this point in my reading journey, I wanted to take myself back to the feelings that these novels and stories evoked within me. Whether it was joyful, sad, entertaining or funny—every book had the capacity to bring about feelings that allowed me to be connected to the characters in a personal way. I hope you take these recommendations with a grain of salt, but also with an understanding that a book is always what you make of it. Enjoy the journey, but trust me, this is a very good place to start.


Ursula’s Top Books
The Essential Stars: A Breakdown by Genre  

An English major at Barnard (and occasional booktok user), these are the books I would recommend to those wanting to get into reading for the first time or the first time in a long time…

Fiction 

  • Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid 

    • Multiple perspectives revisiting the past rise as well as the fall of Daisy and her band

    • Loosely inspired by Stevie Nicks and Fleetwood Mac 

    • Like a love song and a sad song coming together 

  • Five Star Weekend by Elin Hildebrand 

    • A woman decides to bring 5 people from different parts of her life together 

    • Set in the gorgeous Nantucket Island during the heart of the summer  

    • The queen of the beach read, you will imagine you are there and feel at ease even with the petty drama

  • Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens 

    • A marsh girl and a southern boy 

    • A murder 

    • And a lifelong love of nature 

    • All come together in one book that leads you to question it all at the end 

  • The Invisible Life of Addie Larue by V.E Schwab

    • One girl is forced to trade away people remembering her (her name, her face, her everything) in order to live forever 

    • A curse but a blessing? 

    • Until she meets someone like her…and this changes everything

  • Good Material by Dolly Alderton 

    • One of the funniest books I have read in a long time 

    • A 31 year old comedian gets broken up by his long time girlfriend and is forced to come to terms with his own self-worth

    • And even though a mental breakdown ensues, it is the perfect material to teach him lessons about life and love and himself

Thriller 

  • The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides 

    • This does not get a description 

    • A true uncomfortable page turning book

    • Could not put it down and the plot twist is unlike something I have ever experienced from a thriller

  • The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley 

    • Longtime fan, have read all her thrillers  

    • This is by far the best one

    • Set in a gorgeous far away “island” for the opening night of a new hotel 

    • When a murder happens, secrets revealed and longtime connections come back to haunt our main characters

  • The Last Mrs.Parish by Liv Constantine 

    • Truly one of the best thrillers/dramas I have read 

    • More of a modern day setting

    • Woman jealous of becoming another, just to realize she may have made the biggest mistake of all in the process

Romance

  • Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross 

    • Your classic enemies to lovers 

    • Brought me to tears the first time I read it 

    • Truly have never felt as connected to a couple despite also being mad at them

    • This is also fantasy since it happens to have some magic involved (and there is a sequal)

  • Once Upon A Broken Heart by Stephanie Garber 

    • Another forbidden love story that had me begging for more 

    • Our main character strikes a deal with a devilishly handsome prince…to slowly regret it with each passing page

    • Then I realized there was a second and third and I loved it even more 

  • Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller 

    • One of the best mythical love stories that truly broke my heart and crushed it after

    • But I could not look away and need this to become an adaption 

    • Despite the negative reviews, I would recommend it to anyone who wants to feel a yearning to be able to love someone

  • People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry 

    • This is Henry’s comedic and promising love story 

    • When two best friends travel together every summer for 10 years, whats the worst that can happen 

    • Or the best….


Honorable Mentions  (if you are feeling a little more daring, sad or intrigued)
 

  • Ninth House by Leah Bardugo 

    • Took me two months to read last fall 

    • Our main character is brought into the world of nine secret societies at Yale University, a dark complex web of lies forming around her

    • Trigger warning: dark academic fantasy, you will get confused 

  • Normal People by Sally Rooney

    • I fully felt like I was going to throw up during parts of this book it made me so mad and sad. But it was utterly poetic too.  

    • But also it was so beautiful and I felt seen as well 

    • So do with that what you will  

  • American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins 

    • One of the most poignant and thought-provoking thriller/fiction books I have read 

    • A longer read, a woman and her son must flee to the United States illegally

    • Touching, emotional, painful, hopeful but raw   

  • If We Were Villains by M.L Rio 

    • Another dark academic book, this time centered on a small group of friends and classmates at an elite arts college

    • One fateful night turns people against each other as we reflect on the past with them 

    • Edge of the seat, in a long and slow and semi painful way 

  • This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald 

    • For the history buffs and the nerds, read this for school last year 

    • Found myself loving this as feeling akin to the lost generation 

    • For anyone who also feels lost, reflecting on their youth and “innocence” will make you think about the life you have lived so far

Photo Credits: Ursula Vollmer (Bookculture, 112th and Broadway), Pintrest

Next
Next

Rediscovering Focus