Discuss: Fall Reading Material

Sep 18, 2014

Several readers and commenters have asked for another post for book recommendations.  The last post of reader recommendations generated hundreds of comments and thousands of suggestions for good reading material.

Because law school has eaten up all of my shelf space with contracts and property books, I haven’t had much time to read anything else this year.  So perhaps I should list the books that I’ve downloaded onto my iPad…you know, the books I’ll be able to read over Christmas break.  I hope.

Looking for Alaska by John Green

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

The Bully Pulpit by Doris Kearns Goodwin

I Await the Devil’s Coming by Mary MacLane

If you have books to recommend (or not recommend as the case maybe), leave them in the comments.  Keep the suggestions brief if you can, it will help preserve the usability of the list.

Update: It dawned on me after the post that I do have a book to recommend.  It’s called Blind Your Ponies.  It’s about a small (tiny, really) town in Montana a few over from my hometown and their high school basketball team.  It really captures how isolating and difficult living in such a place can be, while explaining how these towns become more like large dysfunctional families than communities.

Discussions

share this post

Leave a Reply to Mina Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

  1. Addie says:

    The Beautiful American by Jeanne Mackin was excellent. I also really enjoyed the Appetites of Girls by Pamela Moses.

    Thanks for this post, now that I’ve finished those two, I bed something new to read during my commute!

  2. Mel says:

    A Visit from the Goon Squad
    Girls in White Dresses
    Tell the Wolves I’m Home
    Anything by Gillian Flynn

  3. Tif says:

    My favorites over the last few months – some are old and some are new:
    Where’d You Go, Bernadette – Maria Semple
    Delicious! Ruth Reichl
    This Is Where I Leave You – Johnathan Tropper
    The Ex-Pats – Chris Pavone
    Crazy Rich Asians – Kevin Kwan
    Scarlet Feather – Maeve Binchy

    • JenniferD says:

      Love, love, love Maeve Binchy – I’ve read everything of hers. Circle of Friends remains one of my favorite movies.

  4. MK says:

    We were Liars by E.Lockhart
    Lies you wanted to Hear by James Whitfield Thompson

  5. Jess says:

    Hopefully The Secret History turns out good for you. I read Donna Tartt’s The Goldfinch, and while it had moments of brilliance, I was overall unimpressed.

    • Sharon says:

      I agree with you, Jess. The Goldfinch was quite uneven, but was brilliantly captivating in some moments.

    • Lacey says:

      The Secret History may be in my top favorite books of all time category. I’ve also recently enjoyed: Tell the Wolves I’m Home, The Signature of All Things (Elizabeth Gilbert), This Is The Story of a Happy Marriage (Ann Patchett), and B.J. Novak’s One More Thing. I think everyone has already read Unbroken, but if not I think that’s a must-read before the movie comes out in December.

      • Mina says:

        I also agree with The Secret History being my top favorite books of all time. It is so, so good.

        I haven’t read The Goldfinch, but The Little Friend fell flat for me.

        • marisa says:

          Agreed. I read a LOT, but The Secret History is one of the few that I reread every year (the others being Beach Music and Prince of Tides – both by Pat Conroy and The Magicians by Lev Grossman).

          I just finished Night Film by Marisha Pessl. It is not an exaggeration to say that I could not put it down, it was that good.

  6. Katy from Oregon says:

    Gun Metal Heart by Dana Haynes –strong female protagonist and high-octane action

  7. N says:

    Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Couldn’t put it down.

  8. Emilee says:

    Seconding Gillian Flynn and “This is where I leave you”

    – Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty
    -anything by Sarah Pekkanen (bonus she’s a DC “local”!)

  9. JenniferD says:

    For your pulp fiction reading. . . Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. It had been a while since I read a good murder mystery, and I. Could. Not. Put. It. Down. Then you can get your Ben Affleck fix when the movie opens on October 3rd.

  10. Liz F says:

    If you want beautiful short stories (I prefer short stories for night time reading since I can normally only make it through 20 pages before getting sleepy):
    Vampires in the Lemon Grove by Karen Russell

    And a serious page turner:
    Room – Emma Donoghue

  11. Gabby says:

    OMG The Secret History is awesome. I read it for AP English in high school and have re-read it often enough that it’s actually falling apart.

  12. No More Sad Books for Moi says:

    Can anyone speak to how sad Looking for Alaska is? I read the Fault in Our Stars on the subway and bawled through the end (very embarrassing). For some reason, I can watch the saddest movie with dry eyes, but give me a sad book and that’ll just bring on the tears.

    • CH says:

      Less sad than “Fault in Our Stars.” I cried a river over “Fault” but none at all during “Looking for Alaska.” Totally safe for Metro/airplane reading.

      “Paper Towns” is another John Green book and while it has some morose moments, it will induce zero tears. Highly recommend!

  13. I don’t remember what I said last time, though I think it was summer so probably lots of fluffy P.G. Wodehouse and Agatha Christie. This fall I’m dying to re-read everything by Evelyn Waugh and M.F.K. Fisher. Also, if you’ve never read any of the adult writing by Roald Dahl, there’s no way to go wrong there.

  14. Caroline says:

    The Circle by Dave Eggers
    Dear Life by Alice Munroe
    And I second Gone Girl. Unreal in the page-turning department.

  15. Mrs. Type A says:

    I’m reading the Secret History right now and I CANT PUT IT DOWN!

  16. E says:

    Secret History=GOOD

  17. Shaeds says:

    The Secret History is one of my favorite books ever.

  18. Kendra says:

    Where’d you go Bernadette is a super fast, fun read!

  19. KS says:

    i highly recommend the entire Vince Flynn series. His books are pageturners and were absolutely amazing. Hope there is a real Mitch Rapp out there somewhere.

  20. Brittany says:

    Second Tell the Wolves I’m Home, Goon Squad, The Circle, and Gillina Flynn. Also HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend Unbroken, for something with a little more substance, I finished that last weekend. Another recent favorite has been the 2nd installation of The Good Soldiers, it’s called “Thank you for your service”.

  21. Stephanie says:

    I would recommend the following:

    Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell
    Quiet by Susan Cain
    The Storied Life of AJ Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin
    The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak
    Everyday by David Levithan
    Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl

  22. Maura Schmidt says:

    The Vacationers by Emma Straub, The One and Only by Emily Giffin and also love The Secret History

  23. January says:

    The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P. Compelling satire.

  24. KRF says:

    “Where’d you Go Bernadette” (Maria Semple and also recommended by other readers)
    “Still Alice” (Lisa Genova)
    “Left Neglected” (Lisa Genova)

    Here’s to great books!

  25. Lauren T. says:

    I recently finished “In Cold Blood” by Truman Capote. It’s nonfiction, but it’s reads like a novel.

  26. JMW says:

    I am a huge fan of Khaled Hosseini. If you haven’t read his books yet, you should: The Kite Runner, A Thousand Splendid Sunds, And the Mountains Echoed – all excelent reads.

  27. Nancy says:

    Women in Clothes by Sheila Heti…so so interesting

  28. Maggie says:

    The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P. and The Interestings were the best books I’ve read in the past year.Guess I’ll have to read The Secret History now though!

  29. Fish says:

    Lost Girls: An Unsolved American Mystery by Robert Kolker is about a serial killer (who is still at lose) and leaves the bodies of his victims on an isolated stretch of beach in Long Island. It’s gripping.

  30. ~M says:

    Americanah is the best book I’ve read in several years.
    Attachments is the worst (Salt is also awful)
    I loved the Master and Margarita, but those in my book club without a connection to the Soviet Union/post-Soviet/socialist space had a hard time with it.

    That great quote Beyonce used at the VMA’s is from Adichie’s (author of Americana) “We Should All be Feminists.” A TED talk/Kindle single.

  31. J says:

    Agree with a bunch of the recommendations above so far including Gone Girl, Americanah, The Book Thief, and We Were Liars. I’m half way through Visit from the Goon Squad and it’s great so far. I’d also recommend Wild (Cheryl Strayed) and The Ocean at the End of the Lane (Neil Gaiman).

  32. Alicia says:

    Wild (Cheryl Strayed) about hiking the Pacific Crest Trail after personal loss was great.

Join The List

Stay up to date on the latest from Capitol Hill Style!

sUBSCRIBE

Ask Me Anything: March 2024

It’s almost the end of March, so let’s get to some of the reader questions that came in through Instagram last night. Time for Ask Me Anything.

0

READ MORE 

Recent Posts

The Find: A Cute Spring Dress

Need a cute dress for a spring event? Something simple and easy to wear, something you can dress up or down? This is the dress for you.

0

READ MORE 

Beauty Review: Bondi Boost

As I age, I notice many changes in my body. Most are fine. Some are frustrating. Like many women, I lost a lot of hair in my postpartum phase. Being anemic for more than a year after, it didn’t grow back in to its former glory. So I’ve tried any number of shampoos, pills and […]

1

READ MORE 

VIEW ALL POSTS

Ask the Edit, Style, Top Posts | March 28, 2024

Ask Me Anything: March 2024

It’s almost the end of March, so let’s get to some of the reader questions that came in through Instagram last night. Time for Ask Me Anything.

0

READ MORE 

Fantastic Finds, Posts, Style | March 28, 2024

The Find: A Cute Spring Dress

Need a cute dress for a spring event? Something simple and easy to wear, something you can dress up or down? This is the dress for you.

0

READ MORE 

Beauty, Posts | March 27, 2024

Beauty Review: Bondi Boost

As I age, I notice many changes in my body. Most are fine. Some are frustrating. Like many women, I lost a lot of hair in my postpartum phase. Being anemic for more than a year after, it didn’t grow back in to its former glory. So I’ve tried any number of shampoos, pills and […]

1

READ MORE 

Fantastic Finds, Posts, Style | March 27, 2024

The Find: Shirts That Don’t Gape

I remember when Rochelle Behrens launched The Shirt — a button-down blouse with anti-gape technology (a patented internal button that keeps the look smooth). The idea seemed brilliant, but at the time, my bust didn’t require an extra button. One baby later, I understand the need for some extra security.

6

READ MORE 

RECENT POSTS

©2023 CAPITOL HILL STYLE | SITE BY LEIGH THE STUDIO