When winter break finally arrives, I plan to spend many hours with a blanket, hot cup of coffee and some of these great new reads on my Christmas list.
Talking As Fast As I Can by Lauren Graham: Our favorite Gilmore girl tells all! In her second novel after Someday, Someday, Maybe, Lauren Graham reveals her story of becoming a Hollywood actress, including what it was like to work on Gilmore Girls and the new revival (Goodreads). (Lauren-Online)
Scrappy Little Nobody by Anna Kendrick: Okay, who doesn’t have this book on their Christmas list? Pitch Perfect actress Anna Kendrick is stylish, dorky, sophisticated and hilarious all at once, and we all are dying to read what she has to say in her new bestselling autobiography (Goodreads). (Twitter)
The Sun Is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon: Rated 5/5 stars by Barnes & Noble, this novel is a story on science, love and the value of every small moment in our lives, lending the message that the universe is bound by something greater. The Horn Book wrote, “Fans of Eleanor & Park and The Fault in Our Stars are destined to fall for Daniel and Natasha,” (Amazon). (PRHInternational)
Bad News: Last Journalists in a Dictatorship by Anjan Sundaram: Sundaram provides a non-fiction account of his time trying to train journalists in Rwanda, where President Kagame’s regime is praised for bringing progress to an unsettled nation once devastated by genocide. The author demonstrates reality is much different in a world that silences any voice of dissent (Goodreads). (AllAfrica)
My Own Words by Ruth Bader Ginsberg with Mary Hartnett and Wendy W. Williams: A collection of speeches and writings from the groundbreaking female Supreme Court justice, this book is on my reading list because, let’s face it, I’ll probably feel really smart when I’m finished (Goodreads). (Booksense)
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr: “So how, children, does the brain, which lives without a spark of light, build for us a world full of light?” A blind French girl and a German boy meet in occupied France during the height of WWII in Doerr’s Pulitzer Prize-winning piece of historical fiction (Goodreads). (Tumblr)
The Martian by Andy Weir: I’m a little behind the times, and definitely watched the movie before reading the book. However, I absolutely still plan to read Weir’s well-reviewed, enthralling tale of a man’s efforts to survive on Mars, while mainting some of his humor that makes the story feel personable, human and real. (Randomhouse)
The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher: Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher discovered her journals from being on-set of the first film decades ago, and decided to put the tales in a book giving a behind-the-scenes look at its production, as well as her personal story of becoming an actress and icon (Goodreads). (Unbound Worlds)
Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow: The book that inspired a revolution on Broadway is still sitting on my shelf, waiting to be finished. I guess reading about the ten-dollar founding father who wrote like he was running out of time inspired me to put the books down and get stuff done this semester. But soon, the semester will be over, and this gal is taking a break. (Goodreads)
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling: Let’s be honest, I haven’t re-read my favorite series in a while (unless you count the play that shall not be named), so Hogwarts will likely be getting a visit sometime soon.
Whether you choose one of these hit novels, a classic, or whatever else you love, be sure to wind down with a good read this winter break!