I was sitting in my living room, watching the rain fall from the sky. I longed for a window seat in the bay window so I could be closer to the sound of it as it drizzled down. Instead, I sat on the couch with a cozy blanket that I had bought my parents earlier that year in Mexico and let my mind wander. I was thinking, not about the hustle and bustle that was going on in our house, but instead of a girl who lived hundreds of years ago yet she wasn’t real. I thought about how she lived and the trials she went through and how I was so grateful for my family and my life. I had a warm mug of hot cocoa, a long weekend off from school for Thanksgiving, and a book in my lap. I sighed and told myself I had homework to do. I smiled and kept reading about my new friend, Jane.
Reading has always been one of my favorite pastimes. I love how a story can transport you to different times and places. You can live a hundred different lives and go on countless adventures! As reading is one of my favorite things to do, each of my books becomes a treasure. For those who know me can attest, I have lots of books and need to expand to a 4th bookshelf in my living room. This does result in having to give a disclaimer to those who ever help us move, as there are over a dozen heavy boxes dedicated to my collection. However, each book holds a story and the characters are like dear friends. I vividly remember reading Jane Eyre that Thanksgiving my sophomore year in high school and I remember thinking it was so fun that my homework was actually reading a book I enjoyed. I read the entire book in less than 4 days. It was a really good weekend.
In last months Fall Series post, I talked about some of my favorite things about Fall. And one of them was reading on an overcast, chilly day all cozied up with a blanket, hot chocolate and a good book! It might be because of that Thanksgiving that I love reading on crisp, rainy, Autumn days. So today, I wanted to share with you some of my favorite Fall Reads. Granted some of these books do not take place entirely in the fall time, but there is something about this time of year that makes those types of books so special!
The Classics: These books make for great Fall reading. During the summer, I like my fast reads, but then the fall comes and I like books that make you think more.
- Jane Eyre by Charolette Bronte: It’s the story of an orphaned girl who grows up with no one who loves her and goes through trial after trial. Each one making her stronger.
- Pride And Prejudice by Jane Austin: The most well known of the Jane Austin books and of all the film versions, the Kiera Knightly one is my favorite. This story is about Elizabeth Bennett and her sisters as their mother tries to marry them off. It takes place in England in the early 19th century.
- To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee: This is the story of a little girl named Scout, who grows up with her widowed father who is a lawyer and learns more about humanity and race as her dad defends an African American man who was falsely accused. She realizes that people aren’t always how they appear.
Fantasy: During October, I love to read fantasy books. Maybe its because of Halloween and Count Chocula 😉
- Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling: Even though I read most of these books in the summer when they were released, they make the Fall list because each one starts as Harry starts school in the fall. Each year he is happy to get away from his uncle’s house and be with his friends, where he belongs. It is a classic story of good verses evil and the light always wins! All the books in the series are so good and remind me of Fall.
- Wicked by Gregory Maguire: I read this book the Fall I studied in San Francisco. I have fond memories sitting under the color changing leaves reading the back story of the Wizard of Oz’s Wicked Witch of the West, and how she was treated because she was different.
- Interview With The Vampire by Anne Rice: The movie of this book with Brad Pitt started my obsession with vampires. And lets be real, Brad Pitt 😉 The story follows Louis, a young plantation owner in the 1700’s who meets a vampire and with nothing to live for becomes someone he despises.
Historical Fiction: As with the classics, I really enjoy period books and love being transported to a previous time.
- The Luxe by Anna Godbersen: If you are a fan of Gossip Girl, then this series is for you! Set in Manhattan in the late 1800’s, it is filled with love, jealousy and scandal.
- Vienna Prelude by Bodie Thoene: This book takes place in Europe during the Holocaust. It tells the story of Austrian Concert Violinist, Elisa and American journalist, John Murphy; how they meet, their war efforts and how they fall in love.
- A Walk To Remember by Nicholas Sparks. I think we can all remember Mandy Moore and Shane West as they stared in this movie. It’s pretty much a modern day Pride and Prejudice where two unlikely high schooler’s meet and change each other’s lives. It was very heartwarming and takes place in the 1950’s.
Thank you for letting me share some of my favorite Fall reads with you! What books do you like reading in the Fall??
