Haunted Woods by Sam Leith
I don’t read much nonfiction, but The Haunted Wood went immediately on my reading pile. This is the book that all lovers of children’s books should be reading. It’s for readers, for writers, for educators, for historians! Sam Leith’s in depth look at the birth and development of Children’s fiction, discussing Aesop to Philip Pullman, touches on everything from the myths behind the stories, to the culture of the world around them, and even how education and the way books have been received has changed since the beginning of stories. It’s big, it’s expansive, and it’s absolutely fascinating! – Hannah
*Don’t miss our event with Sam Leith on September 3rd – click here for tickets!*
Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell
What makes a love story great? I read A LOT of romance fiction, and recently I’ve been thinking about this question. I could cite classic romcom tropes, last minute confessions of love, stories that span continents and decades… Or, I could just tell you to read Rainbow Rowell’s Slow Dance. Either way, you’ll find your answer.
In high school, everyone knew that Shiloh and Cary would grow up and fall in love. Everyone, that is, except Shiloh and Cary. Now, they haven’t spoken in years, and life is not at all what either of them expected. When a chance meeting at a wedding sees them reunited, this will-they-won’t-they pair find themselves drawn back into a slow dance that’s spanned fifteen years, each of them afraid to put a foot wrong…
A nostalgia-fuelled journey through the late 90s and early 2000s, this second chance romance paints a realistic picture of two people in love who just can’t seem to get it together. A heartfelt, hopeful riff on Jane Austen’s Persuasion – this is my perfect book. And yours too. – Liv
Storm Pegs by Jen Hadfield
This is for anyone who has felt an intense connection to a wild place and has been convinced that they belong or truly know that landscape and culture.
This book explores what it means to Jen to connect with both the wild and human community that she has lived in on Shetland for the last seventeen years. As she waits for her house building project to progress, she lives in a caravan and is as connected to the elemental intensity of being outdoors as possible
Her writing captures so many moments of beauty: the miracles of wildlife, moments of light in the short winter days, the freezing pains of winter, the magic of swimming in a sea of bioluminescence and the wind that shakes her home and rips away all it can.
Jen Hadfield’s writing is transporting. The Shetland words, dialect and playful writing create a sound to the book which you can hear as you read. I found myself whispering words out loud, skipping back to the glossary and rereading the most beautiful passages. – Katrina