7 Books for Winter Holiday Reading

7 Books for Winter Holiday Reading

It’s school holidays, so for those people with school age kids, it might be time for a welcome break. If so, it’s a perfect chance to take time off with a compelling read – even if it’s only for a few hours after the kids have gone to bed. If not, give yourself a break and read a book anyway. We’ve chosen some new books that are great reads for a long trip or just to while away some hours indoors:

Karen Collier, Art Director: Darjeeling by Jeff Koehler

During a recent trip to the subcontinent, the enchanting tea culture and charm of tea parties inspired me. For my next trip, I’d like to read Jeff Koehler’s Darjeeling – an enthusiastic study of the history of tea

Cheryl Akle, Director: The Other Side of the World by Stephanie Bishop

Stephanie Bishop is a promising young Australian voice who has already been shortlisted for the Vogel Literary Award and highly commended for the Kathleen Mitchell Award. The Other Side of the World is about a woman who struggles with motherhood and a move from one side of the world to the other – 1960s England to Western Australia. It’s about nostalgia and longing for home. It sounds like the sort of book I love to immerse myself in.

Lizzie Durnan, Website Editor: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr and Troubletwisters by Garth Nix and Sean Williams.

I’m not going away but I’ll be working from home during the school holidays and I intend to do lots of reading in between that and day trips out with kids (a little optimistic perhaps). I need a compelling read and I’m hoping All the Light We Cannot See will be just that. It won the 2015 Pulitzer Prize and is about a little French blind girl and a German orphan boy in World War 2 whose lives eventually converge.  I also want to start reading YA hence the Garth Nix. My daughter is transitioning from younger books so I figure it’s time we can start reading the same books together over the holidays and Better Reading’s Children’s specialist, Liz Bray, recommended Troubletwisters as being perfect for her age group (See more on this topic here).

Liz Bray, Children’s Specialist: Life After Life by Kate Atkinson

The sheer number of people who have raved to me about this book would have been enough to convince me to read it, even if I wasn’t already a Kate Atkinson fan. I’ve found every one of her previous books intriguing and uniquely atmospheric, so can’t wait to have some time off to enjoy Life After Life.

Jessica Horton, Marketing Co-Ordinator The Truth According to Us by Annie Barrows

I loved The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, and I’m a big fan of the 1930s period, and small-town life. The Truth According to Us looks like it will be a solid and enjoyable read.

Todd Alexander, Social Media Manager: Orient by Christopher Bollen.  

Two people who read voraciously have both told me this book is outstanding and I cannot wait to read it. A fascinating location (small town on Long Island) and a writer who’s been compared to Franzen and Eugenides – I’m hooked before I’ve even read a word.

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