Choosing a Winter Break Read

By Professor Lauren Wilwerding and members of her ENGL1080 Pleasure Reading class

At some point in early January, it’s likely to cross your mind that there is nothing on Netflix. May I suggest cracking a book for fun? 

My section of Lit Core, focused on “Pleasure Reading,” spends the semester thinking about what makes reading enjoyable. Is it suspense? Relatability? Escapism? Something else? After considering the question from historical and theoretical angles, students select their own reading for an end-of-term independent project where they have the chance to explore those questions individually and develop an identity as an adult reader. 

While many students had initial ideas of books they would enjoy, we add some structure and reflection to the book selection process. Students often discovered something they were excited about by consulting just one resource they might not normally check. Some of these ideas may be useful for those looking to discover a good read over winter break. 

Searching

Students brainstormed together about how to find new titles. Familiar strategies included conversations with friends, classmates and parents; browsing a bookstore or library; online suggestions from resources like TasteDive.com or StoryGraph; videos on #BookTok; or even asking ChatGPT. 

We also consulted professional readers, librarians Steve Runge and Cindry Frueh, who shared some resources and hacks for navigating O’Neill with leisure pursuits in mind. One resource is the POP Collection, displayed on the right-hand side of the O’Neill lobby. This rotating selection of contemporary, popular fiction and non-fiction includes over 200 titles you might not expect to find in O’Neill. A current often-checked out book is Glossy: Ambition, Beauty, and the Inside Story of Emily Weiss's Glossier by Marisa Meltzer which is available in hardback and also as an ebook on Overdrive. You can also find seasonal Staff Picks recommendations behind the reference desk in O’Neill and listed online. 

Choosing

According to some back-of-the-envelope math Runge shared with our class, if you’ve got 85 years of lifetime reading and read 50 books a year, you’ll be able to read 4,250 books in a lifetime. That’s about one shelf in O’Neill. In other words, you’ve got the prerogative to be picky about the titles you choose for enjoyment.  So once you’ve located a title, how do you decide if it’s worth your time? 

One way to assess books is by reading reviews - either those crowdsourced on Amazon or Goodreads or professional reviews in periodicals. Don’t have a New York Times subscription? This is another place where O’Neill could come in handy - Runge shared that you can search the title of your book as an article in the main library website search bar to quickly access a handful of reviews. Another way to assess books is by considering prize-winners. While you may be aware of the Pulitzer Prize or the Booker, genre-specific prizes like the Hugo for science fiction or fantasy, the Edgar for mystery, or the Vivian or Rita for romance can lead you to new authors or titles in a favorite genre. 

Using these techniques, students in my Lit Core shared how and why they picked a title for the Pleasure Reading Project.

Laila Rosenquist, Ocean State by Stewart O’Nan.

“I chose this book after browsing around a local bookstore in Newton Centre. The first thing that really grabbed me was the title of the book Ocean State. I have a personal connection to Rhode Island and honestly there aren’t many books set within the smallest US state. I have a beach house in Narragansett, Rhode Island, that I have been going to every summer since before I can remember. Living there is one of my very favorite times of the year. Another reason I chose this book was because of the staff recommendation card hanging right in front of it. Describing a lot of aspects I look for in a pleasure reading novel, especially a quick start, Quinn said “it will grab you immediately”.

Lexi Patton, The Dangers of Smoking in Bed by Mariana Enriquez.

“I chose this book randomly. It was very unexpected. Before discovering this book, I had three other books in mind, which I already owned. I was going to choose one of the three since they were books from last year that I haven't read yet. However, I decided to buy and read The Dangers of Smoking in Bed, a completely new book, genre, and author from what I'm used to. This is because, over the weekend, I was out in Coolidge Corner and stopped by the Brookline Booksmith because I was bored. While browsing for some books, I read the synopsis of this one since it was in the horror and psychological thriller section. I liked the summary, noticed it had good reviews and that it was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. Overall, I'm very excited to start reading this book.”

Balint Czaha, Liar’s Poker by Michael Lewis

“I was recommended Liar's Poker by my Finance Professor. I choose to read it because I expect that I will work in the financial industry one day and I wish to get a better understanding of its inner workings. I am curious about the author's experiences on Wall Street and hope to learn some from them while I enjoy the tale he spins for us.” 

Ava Pellegata, Absolutely Not in Love by Jenny Proctor

“I found Absolutely Not in Love in a desperate search for my next read on Goodreads, after none of my other searching places (TikTok/BookTok) produced what I was looking for. I was looking for a light fall romance to read over break. As someone constantly consuming romance books it's easy to feel like there can’t possibly be any more good romance books to read, but there always seems to be one that shows up when you least expect. 

Absolutely Not in Love happens to be a hockey romance which is a favorite of mine and perfect for the season as the weather transitions from fall to winter (and hockey season starts up). It’s also a romantic comedy making it nice and light to speed through over break, or something to read on the plane ride home. Additionally, like many romance novels, this book is part of a stand alone series, so I won’t get dragged into a whole series if I get attached to the characters and I can pick up another book in the series if I like it.”

Carly Kopelman, Never Never by Colleen Hoover and Tarryn Fisher

“I have chosen to read Never Never, by award-winning authors Colleen Hoover and Tarryn Fisher. I chose this book because it was recommended to me on Taste Dive. It was the first time I had ever used a website to suggest books to me. I have read many of Colleen Hoover’s other books, and liked them a lot, so I’m hoping this one will be just as enjoyable for me. I have always loved romance novels because I find the characters to be so vulnerable and real. Even if the plot sometimes feels unrealistic, Colleen Hoover has always created characters that have the potential to grow and learn. I’m anxious to see if this will be another one of her books I can add to my collection of ‘favorite reads’!”

Kevin Uriate, The God Equation by Michio Kaku

“I chose my novel because it was suggested to me by my girlfriend and I have been interested in theoretical physics as a field to study but ultimately settled on a different field. However, this field has always been very important to me.”

Professor Lauren Wilwerding, Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll

“My recent reading has included a recommendation from my sister (Pineapple Street by Jenny Jackson,) a book authored by the cohost of a podcast I enjoy (The Christmas Orphan’s Club by BC alum Becca Freeman ‘08) and Zadie Smith’s latest novel, The Fraud. I’ll read anything she writes. As Cindy Frueh showed us around the POP Collection, I noticed a title I’d been on the waitlist for at my local library for weeks, Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll. I read a review of it in The New York Times Book Review and was intrigued by the mix of historical fiction and thriller that addresses some of the ethical dilemmas of true crime. The novel focuses on the victims of a serial killer, elevating their stories over his.”

Happy reading!