The Artist
My 3-line (ish) book review:
A quiet, atmospheric novel set in 1920s Provence, exploring the cost of creativity and the pursuit of art.
It's a slow-burn kind of read: cinematic and slightly ominous.
Did I like it? hmm… I appreciated it. It was well written and insightful. It’s objectively a good book - but I think I was in the mood for something more escapist.
My 3-line (ish) book review:
A quiet, atmospheric novel set in 1920s Provence, exploring the cost of creativity and the pursuit of art.
It's a slow-burn kind of read: cinematic and slightly ominous.
Did I like it? hmm… I appreciated it. It was well written and evocative of time and place. It’s objectively a good book - but I think I was in the mood for something more escapist. This book is almost claustrophobic in its depiction of living in that house.
Everything is Tuberculosis
My 3-line book review: A beautiful, accessible blend of personal story, social history and medical ethics.
If you enjoyed The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, this book is right up your alley.
Here’s hoping John Green’s work will shine a light on a disease that could be eradicated - if we collectively decided to make it so.
My 3-line book review:
A beautiful, accessible blend of personal story, social history and medical ethics.
If you enjoyed The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, this book is right up your alley!
Here’s hoping John Green’s work will shine a light on a disease that could be eradicated - if we collectively decided to make it so.
My Favourite Books of 2025
My favourite books of the year - featuring literary fiction, memoir, and food writing - plus a three-line book review for each.
A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
Of all the books I read about India, this one was my favourite! Set in 1970s India, four people from vastly different backgrounds find their lives intersecting in a city dominated by political violence and poverty. I loved how the book slowly reveals an interconnected social web, turning an unfamiliar history into a story that was intimate, fragile, and deeply human. If you enjoy historical fiction—or are interested in India—you should absolutely read this!
The Silence in Between by Josie Ferguson
Spanning WWII Germany and Cold War Berlin, this novel follows a mother and daughter whose lives are divided by war, music, and eventually the Berlin Wall. I’m a sucker for dual-timeline historical fiction, and this book takes the genre to a whole new level. Gorgeous writing - and the musical elements are to die for. If you read a lot of WW2 fiction and/or love novels about resilient women - this book is for you. I’m jealous you get to read it for the first time.
Heart the Lover by Lily King
Set between an unnamed New England university and Paris, France - the story follows an American woman whose intense love affair fractures her sense of self, ambition, and emotional stability. I love reading about the lives of writers—the pretension! The anxiety! The crushing disappointment! Throw in a steamy love affair and Paris and I’m in. Read this if you liked Writers & Lovers by the same author. (I liked this one better.)
James by Percival Everett
This is a brilliant retelling of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from the point of view of enslaved Jim. This novel is outstanding. The first 10% of the book is fine - it establishes us in place/time. But then at about 12% into the book we learn something that reframes everything else that follows. It’s so good. Maybe you’re worried you don’t remember enough of Huckleberry Finn to truly appreciate this book? No need to re-read the whole thing. Ask ChatGPT for a summary and dive into James.
The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
Told entirely through letters, the novel follows an elderly woman in New England whose long life is revealed through decades of correspondence with friends, lovers, and strangers. This was utterly delightful to read! When I finished, I immediately began looking for other epistolary novels to read. Looking for a fast, sweet book? This is it.
The Glassmaker by Tracy Chevalier
Spanning hundreds of years in Venice, the novel centers on a glassmaking family struggling to preserve their art as the world around them changes. I loved the strong female characters (of course) and the way the author plays with time. It’s quite a long novel, so I got the kindle and audible version so I could go back and forth. This helped so much, because the Italian accent on the audio version is beautiful and it makes the story that much more immersive. Read it if you love sweeping historical novels. Did you read The Girl with The Pearl Earring? It’s the same author.
Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain
Set in the sweaty, lawless kitchens of New York restaurants, the memoir traces Bourdain’s life as a young cook fueled by ambition, addiction, and adrenaline. I’m late to Anthony Bourdain and how sad for me! Because WOW what a voice. He narrates the audible version and it feels like he’s talking directly to you while drinking a beer. A must-read if you’re a foodie—or if you just love a great, unapologetic voice.
Some books for daily inspiration.
And a Few Daily Readers…
I really got into daily readers this year - books you can read in short, satisfying chunks, without needing deep immersion or long stretches of focus. Here are the three that still live on my desk:
A Book of Days by Patti Smith
A brilliantly idiosyncratic visual book of days. If you loved Just Kids - this feels like a companion piece.
How to Live an Artful Life by Katy Hessel
Artistic inspiration for everyday of the year. If you loved The Story of Art Without Men — or if you’re an artist of any stripe - you’ll love this.
Life is Meals by James Salter and Kay Salter
I keep coming back to this book, even though the title rubs me the wrong way. It’s beautifully illustrated and tidy - a little nugget of food knowledge for every day of the year.
xo, L
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The End Times
I just started reading the most unusual and innovative “book” I’ve ever discovered. The End Times is a post-apocalyptic story that unfolds over a series of monthly newspapers. If you live in the US, you can actually get the tabloid-sized papers mailed to you! I’m so jealous. I had to suffice with the digital version, which I printed out to read.
The first paper (installment?) just dropped and it’s a super fun read. It’s written by Benjamin Percy and some other guy named Stephen King.
If you grew up reading your town’s local paper, this will be so nostalgic. Except for the post-apocalyptic part.
Here’s an excerpt:
5 Novels Told Through Letters
I read The Correspondent by Virginia Evans and I loved it! It inspired me to read more novels told through letters. Which, as it turns out, is referred to epistolary novels. Here’s my new to be read list.
I read The Correspondent by Virginia Evans and I loved it! It inspired me to read more novels told through letters. Which, as it turns out, is referred to epistolary novels. Here’s my to be read list.
The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
a witty and uplifting novel told through one woman's unforgettable letters. Sybil Van Antwerp: stubborn, cantankerous, opinionated. through her letters and the occasional responses we see her work through the trials of her family, her love life and her health.
84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff
A real-life correspondence between a New York writer and a London bookseller that unfolds over 20 years. Smart, funny, tender, and completely irresistible.
If you loved The Correspondent, start here.
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
Told through the heartfelt letters of Celie, a young Black woman in the American South, this novel traces her journey from pain to self-acceptance. Raw, redemptive, and deeply spiritual, it’s a testament to resilience, sisterhood, and the power of finding one’s voice.
Dear Mrs. Bird by A.J. Pearce
Written through letters and diary entries in WWII London, about a young woman answering advice letters during the Blitz.
A perfect mix of charm, bravery, and friendship.
Love, Nina: Despatches from Family Life by Nina Stibbe
Real letters from a young nanny working for a London literary family in the 1980s. Dry humor, warmth, and wonderfully ordinary details.
If you like the voicey, observational humor of correspondence, this one sparkles.
Heart the Lover, Loved the Book
On loving writers and reviewing books.
I love reading, but I hate writing book reviews. I don’t even like assigning stars on Goodreads. For one thing, do you know how hard it is to write a halfway decent book? SO HARD. To my mind, an author should get 2 stars just for finishing the damn thing. And anyway, who am I to say that a book deserves only 3 stars instead of 4 or even 5? Maybe I just wasn’t in the mood for it. Maybe if I’d read it at different time of life, I’d have said the book was life-changing. Or maybe I just wasn’t smart/cultured/worldly enough to appreciate it.
Also, tastes change over the course of a lifetime. For most of fourth grade, my favourite book Encyclopedia Brown Solves Them All. Then it was Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase. And then it was Forever by Judy Blume.
In my 20s, living in Prague, my favourite book was any free book I could get my hands on. I couldn’t afford to buy my own books, so I read what other people put in my hands: Milan Kundera, Ivan Klima, Toni Morrison, John Irving and every novel ever written set in 1920s Paris. Each new book was my favourite, like I had discovered reading for the first time. But I now realise that most of those books were my favourite simply because I was 25 years old and living in Prague.
My point is, book reviews are 100% subjective and entirely based on who you are at the time of reading.
Nevertheless, I am now going to review a book because I need to tell you that Heart the Lover absolutely wrecked me in the best possible way. Oh, Lily King — your book is extraordinary. Bless your heart and all its loves.
Heart the Lover is an achingly beautiful story about longing, becoming, and the courage to keep going when everything falls apart. It’s part coming-of-age, part existential love story.
♥️ If the title flummoxes you, not to worry. It isn’t a literary reference that you’re not educated enough to understand. Heart the Lover refers to a card game some of the main characters play in college. It’s also just beautiful and poetic. (Chat GPT suggests that it may be a play on words from Sons and Lovers by DH Lawrence, a book that the main characters read while in college. But if that’s true, it went right over my head.)
📍 I like to know the location of the story I’m reading. And I want to know where we’re going. Maybe you’re the same? This book is set in a college in New England (Harvard maybe?) - then Tennessee, Paris and New York.
🎧 I loved this book so much and think you should read it. Or better yet - listen to it! The audible version is narrated by Rebecca Lowman who generally enhances and never distracts. Let the story wash over you.
🏫 Imagine yourself studying literature at Harvard and longing for all the places you’ll go.
xo, L
p.s. I’m back on Goodreads. No stars, no reviews, just lists.
6 Books for Creative Inspiration
These books sit on my desk at all time. Collectively they serve as my personal Board of Directors for all my creative projects.
These books sit on my desk at all time. Collectively they serve as my personal Board of Directors for all my creative projects.
Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear — Elizabeth Gilbert - creativity doesn't require suffering, and you don't need permission or approval to make things.
The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity — Julia Cameron - Morning pages and artist dates—Cameron's 12-week program for unblocking your creative self. It's equal parts permission slip and kick in the pants.
The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life — Twyla Tharp - Tharp, a legendary choreographer, makes the case that creativity is about discipline, not divine inspiration. Show up, do the work, build the habit—the rest follows.
The Creative Act: A Way of Being — Rick Rubin - Less about making art, more about becoming the kind of person who can receive it.
Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life — Anne Lamott - A no-bullshit guide to writing and life: take it one small step at a time, embrace the shitty first draft, and trust the process.
Catching the Big Fish: Meditation, Consciousness, and Creativity - David Lynch - "Ideas are like fish. If you want to catch little fish, you can stay in the shallow water. But if you want to catch the big fish, you've got to go deeper."