There are books for the train. Books for the beach. And then there are books for candlelight — the slow, atmospheric kind that ask you to put your phone in another room and not come back for a while. Here are six of my favourites.
1. The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim
Four English women, one crumbling Italian castle, and the gentle unraveling of all their tiredness. There is nothing in this book that is not warm.
2. A Little History of the World by E. H. Gombrich
Originally written for children but utterly enchanting for adults. Each chapter is a perfect twenty-minute candlelit companion.
3. Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
Ostensibly about writing. Truly about how to be alive without flinching. Funny, soft, and very wise.
4. The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
Mole, Rat, and Badger by a riverbank. Tea by a fire. Picnics on the grass. There is no better book to fall asleep on the sofa with.
5. H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald
A grief memoir, but also a deeply tender book about training a goshawk in the English countryside. Slow in the best way.
6. Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke
Ten short letters of impossible beauty. Read one a night. Let the rest of the day arrange itself around them.
What are you reading by candlelight this season? I would love to know.
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