Winter Reading List 2019

Hmmm February 26th and I’m just now releasing my Winter Reading List 2019…? I know, I know! I don’t know where time goes! Honestly, I meant to post this two months ago and I really didn’t realize I hadn’t. I almost waited and wrote it as a spring reading list but then I decided to charge ahead with the post as a winter reading guide. Also, I have so many books I want to share and chat about that I think I might post a spring reading list in April for y’all too! I’ve loved every book I’ve read recently so you’re in for some wonderful reads! I hope you enjoy this post and find a few new books to add to your Amazon cart. xx

P.S. don’t forget to check out my last book list, my Summer 2018 Reading List!

This is How it Always is / The Masterpiece / The Great Believers / One Day in December / A Well-Behaved Woman: A Novel of the Vanderbilts / Love and Other Words / The Unwinding of the Miracle: a Memoir of Life, Death, and Everything that Comes After / The Last Time I Lied / Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup / Dreams of Falling / Where the Crawdads Sing

Winter Reading List 2019

1. This is How it Always is by Laurie Frankel:

This is the story of Claude, a little boy who wants to grow up to be a girl. Claude’s parents are happy with Claude to be whoever he wants to be; however, they and the family aren’t sure they want the whole world to know this. Can a family keep a secret and what happens when the secret explodes? This is such a wonderful story of family, childhood, parenting and more.

2. The Masterpiece by Fiona Davis:

The whole premise of this book is simply magical to me! The novel tells the story of two women living 50 years apart and the role that New York City’s Grand Central Terminal plays in their lives. Clara is a promising art student at the lauded Grand Central School of Art in the 1920s when her world is turned upside down by the Great Depression. Virginia is a desperate mother who takes a job in the information booth at the declining Grand Central in the 1970s when her life is turned upside down by her discovery of an abandoned art school within the terminal and a striking watercolor hidden under the dust. Clara’s story forever changes Virginia’s life in this inspired story!

3. The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai:

This book has won countless awards and has received endless praise for very good reason, it’s pretty gripping. The novel goes between the 1980s Chicago art scene and present day Paris as the characters grapple with the AIDS crisis and how it affects every part of their lives. Thrown in the mix are story lines about art, cults, and more. When reading this book, I was struck with how much I didn’t know about the AIDS crisis of the eighties. I will say that is book isn’t really an upper so be prepared to read about some tough circumstances. P.S. Amy Poehler optioned the rights to this book for tv!

4. One Day in December by Josie Silver:

I’m not a very fast reader and I read this book in three days. I was so in love with the characters and the character development. It’s a fabulous story about friendship, love, and coming of age in London. If you don’t believe in love at first sight, then read this book and your mind will be changed! I truly loved it and was obsessed with the main character Laurie!

5. A Well-Behaved Woman: A Novel of the Vanderbilts by Therese Anne Fowler:

If you read and loved Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald, then this book is for you (it’s the same author!). This book tells the story of Alva Smith and how her life forever changed when she married into one of America’s great Gilded Age dynasties, the Vanderbilts. She was a powerhouse, a leader in the women’s suffrage movement, a woman with incredible social smarts, and so much more!

6. Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren:

This is an incredibly sweet story of childhood best friends/sweethearts who have a chance meeting after being apart for a decade. The novel travels back and fourth in time from their teenage selves to their modern adult selves. Throughout the whole book you’ll be right there with them wondering if they can put the past behind them, experience a great love, and find their way back to each other!

7. The Unwinding of the Miracle: a Memoir of Life, Death, and Everything that Comes After by Julie Yip-Williams:

In one of my recent Weekend Reads posts, I shared a dying mother’s letter to her daughters, which brought me to tears. This book is the mother’s beautiful memoir that she wrote when she was faced with the reality of a life too short. Her tremendous life story, her unwaveringly positive outlook on life, her sincere courage, and her wise words will stay with you long after you read this book. It’s not a super fast read but one with a great message.

8. The Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager:

I went to summer camps for years and loved every second of it! I love the idea of reading a book set at a summer camp but I can tell you that the main character, Emma’s, experience is nothing like mine was. The novel follows Emma as a girl at camp the night her cabin mates disappear and then continues into her adulthood when she is invited back to the camp for its reopening (it closed when the girls disappeared) as an art instructor. As Emma digs into the past, she finds her life at risk from mysterious lies of the past and present threats that continue to mount.

9. Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou:

This book is a must-read! The story of Elizabeth Holmes is incredibly infamous now but the book really dives into how insane the whole fraud is. You will literally not believe what you’re reading! Also, Jennifer Lawrence is playing Elizabeth Holmes in the movie version of the book (obsessed!). I can’t recommend this book enough even if you’ve watched the documentary and listened to the podcast because you learn so much more in this book! The depths of the fraud are really astounding.

10. Dreams of Falling by Karen White:

I was first drawn to this book because it is set in the Lowcountry of South Carolina (yes, Charleston is part of the Lowcounry!). The story tells the tale of three young girls, best friends, who share their greatest hopes and dreams together. Life has unexpected twists and turns, which separates the girls until they are reunited in mysterious tragedy… tragedy that reveals secrets kept for nearly fifty years about love, sacrifice, and betrayal. I won’t spoil it but it’s a great read!

11. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens:

If you haven’t read this book yet, then stop everything and pick it up now. It is a Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club pick for good reason! This novel is a little bit of everything. It’s part murder mystery, part coming of age story about a young girl, and part celebration of the great outdoors. I was so struck with the main character, Kay, and her story. Perhaps the aspect of the book that I loved the most though was the way the author described the landscape and the marsh. The marsh felt like a character in the book to me! I couldn’t put this book down!

Get my Winter Reading List 2019 books:

Happy reading books worms! xx