“It’s the most wonderful time of the year…”
Andy Williams
- Hogfather – Terry Pratchett. Christmas books should be fluffy and warm and envelop you in a cloud of comfort and familiarity, which is basically what all of Pratchett’s books do. Hogfather just happens to be festively-themed, as well as featuring the wonderfully acerbic Susan Sto Helit.
- The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams. Another duvet of a book, to curl in and inhale for a few lovely hours: witty and warm-hearted and just a lot of fun.
- The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making – Catherynne Valente. Just delightful.
- The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society – Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. Actually more of a love story than a story about books, but the characters are carefully drawn, the voice is compelling, and the novel is as welcoming as a mug of tea on a cold day.
- Northanger Abbey – Jane Austen. A frothy, witty, short novel that would just be wonderful to hoover up in one sitting.
- A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens. Well, of course. This is possibly the Christmas classic. The only one.
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone – J.K. Rowling. I am in a minority here, but I honestly think that the early books of the series are tighter, funnier and more promising than the bloated, hormone-heavy later ones. This first one is the perfect mix of action and humour, and I just find it really festive for reasons I cannot explain.
- The Time Traveler’s Wife – Audrey Niffenegger. Well-written, light, cleverly plotted, easy to read in a few hours.
- House of Leaves – Mark Z. Danielewski. I mean, it’s a horror story; but I can’t think of one better to read by a roaring fire, cosied up against the dark. The trouble starts when you put it away to go to bed, of course.
- Redwall – Brian Jacques. What better for this festival of feasts and fun than a book which is obsessed with banquets? This tale about an order of mice in an ancient stone Abbey will make you want to go vegetarian.
(The theme for this post was suggested by the Broke and the Bookish’s weekly meme Top Ten Tuesday.)
The English Student 