‘Tis the season not just to give, but also to share—and nothing’s better than sharing your favorite reads. Something that touched you is likely to also impact a friend, right?
Whether it’s great fiction or an inspirational memoir, these are the kinds of books to make your bestie call or text a big “thank you.”
Five Days Left
Julie Lawson Timmer
While the subject matter is heavy—a woman considering ending her life because of her fatal illness—it’s the friendships she has with “Those Ladies” that sustain her and inspire confidence in her decision.
Slowing Time: Seeking the Sacred Outside Your Kitchen Door
Barbara Mahany
Wilmette resident and longtime Chicago Tribune columnist Barbara Mahany has curated some of her best meditations and musings on the seasons, in concert with a field guide to what’s happening outside and recipes to enhance your connection to the world around us.
How to Build a Girl
Caitlin Moran
Who didn’t want to be anything but what their parents were when they were 14 years old? Moran’s acerbic wit and wisdom is poured into Johanna Morrigan, an English teen trying to escape personal mortification with a transformation into a wild rock and roll journalist.
Big Little Lies
Liane Moriarty
Stay ahead of the trend—everyone has read Moriarty’s “The Husband’s Secret,” so grab her next one, the tale of Type-A Mommies Gone Mad. A hilarious and almost too-true look at motherhood as a blood sport.
Frog Music
Emma Donoghue
Best know for her smash hit “Room,” Donoghue’s fictional take on a real murder in 1870s San Francisco centers around a powerful friendship between two women—and the lengths to which one will go—to see justice for her friend.
The Art of Asking: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Let People Help
Andrea Palmer
It wasn’t until she added a little personal introspection into the how and why of asking for help that this rock star and TED Talk phenom was able to put thoughts to paper. What Palmer has to say on the subject could very well guide us as we navigate young adulthood, marriage, family and work.
The Andy Cohen Diaries: A Deep Look at a Shallow Year
Andy Cohen
Shut up. Just shut up. You know you watch at least one Bravo series and follow at least one Real Housewife on Twitter, so buy the book already and have a great cackle over a glass of wine this holiday season.
