As we find ourselves treading through each day engulfed in winter’s frigid air, there can be solace in the warmth between the pages of novels.
In pursuit of this respite of ease, I have found three works of literature that hold this quality. Here are three books you should add to your shelves this winter season.
- Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin
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Written by James Baldwin and published in 1956, Giovanni’s Room follows young American David as he struggles with lust, desire, and identity.
As David falls hopelessly in love with Giovanni, a bartender in a Parisian gay bar, he finds himself caught between the heart that drives him and the mind that condemns him.
At a glance, this novel displays the disaster and chaos which ensue when one is in a perpetual state of running from oneself.
I recommend this novel as one that will keep you warm during the cold winter months because of its unique ability to communicate despair. Not only is the love affair between David and Giovanni consumed by the heat of passion, but the gutwrenching fear and shame that leads the protagonist emanates a similar, almost unbearable feverishness.
- Love Letters by Virginia Woolf and Vita Sackville-West
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Renowned novelist Virginia Woolf met Vita Sackville-West at a dinner party in 1922. With an introduction written by Alison Bechdel, this book is a compilation of their secret romance reflected in Woolf’s diary entries and the intimate letters sent between the two women from their meeting in 1922 to Woolf’s suicide in 1941.
In a tale of longing, this curated collection of letters and diary entries showcases the playful yet passionate relationship between Woolf and West in the space between not-quite friends yet not-quite lovers. The yearning in this complex dynamic evokes a love that is both painful and fulfilling — a love that indeed can keep you warm this winter.
- Call Me By Your Name by André Aciman
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Written by André Aciman and published in 2007, Call Me By Your Name follows an unexpected, quiet romance between Elio Perlman and graduate student Oliver. The two meet in the summer heat of Italy, where Oliver, interning for Elio’s father, stays with him and his family in their cliff-side villa.
The novel follows the two as they hesitantly explore their connection — biking together under a burning sun, devouring each other buried in uncut grass, and avoiding vulnerability under a murky lake.
With natural imagery that you can almost taste and a whirlwind love affair present in small glances and gentle touches, reading Aciman’s novel is like sitting by a burning fire.
Whether it’s the heat of forbidden love, the ache of longing, or the quiet burn of unspoken desire, these three worlds offer not only an escape from this season’s unforgiving chill but also serve as reminders of the significance in the intensity between two people connecting.