Nine Books You Need to Read This Fall, From Your Favorite Faculty
Hazel Walrod ‘22
“Death is fun,” Spanish teacher Enrique, said light-heartedly as he introduced his favorite fall read, referring to how Halloween is a unique time of year when grim subjects such as death are celebrated. If you agree and are looking for something spooky, or just at times dark, to read this Halloween season, here is a list complete with recommendations from Catlin Gabel School (CGS) faculty and myself!
As always, don’t forget about your local bookstores and libraries as great ways to pick up new reads.
Something for the cold season
A Winter’s Promise (The Mirror Visitor #1) by Christelle Dabos
(Hazel’s pick)
The Mirror Visitor series is for fantasy lovers who want something perfect for the autumnal season. Yes, the first book does say ‘winter’ in the title, but don’t be fooled: this novel’s fantastical Alice in Wonderland-like vibe goes well with a foggy fall day, and the series also packs a mysterious, and at times spooky, punch.
A Winter’s Promise is book one in the Mirror Visitor Series, originally published in French, which tells the tale of the world after “The Rupture” when the globe shattered into floating arks. These arks each have their own magical properties and the communities living there are united under a magical and mysterious family spirit. Ophelia lives on Anima, an ark where objects come to life. She herself possesses the power to bring the objects around her to life as well as travel through mirrors. Awkward and shy, Ophelia is thrown into a blood-thirsty, enigmatic world when she is promised in marriage to Thorn from a different ark.
Buy it here
City of Thieves by David Benioff
(Hazel’s pick)
Perhaps you want something more rooted in reality that still gives off fall vibes. City of Thieves is sad, dark, and unexpectedly funny. It was probably one of the most light-hearted war books I read, while still giving those somber fall and winter vibes.
During the Nazis’ brutal siege of Leningrad, Lev Beniov is arrested for looting and thrown into the same cell as a handsome deserter named Kolya. Instead of being executed, Lev and Kolya are given a shot at saving their own lives by complying with an outrageous directive: secure a dozen eggs for a powerful Soviet colonel to use in his daughter’s wedding cake. In a city cut off from all supplies and suffering unbelievable deprivation, Lev and Kolya embark on a hunt through the dire lawlessness of Leningrad and behind enemy lines to find the impossible. (Goodreads)
Buy it here
Crying in H-Mart by Michelle Zauner
(Krystal’s pick)
This book is a memoir about a woman’s relationship with her dying mother. Krystal picked Crying in H-Mart because “it’s a book that is about transition, it’s about loss and grief” which emulates the autumnal season’s somber and transitional theme. The book is also about family, and features “so much description of delicious Korean food” which makes it the perfect Thanksgiving break read.
In this exquisite story of family, food, grief, and endurance, Michelle Zauner proves herself far more than a dazzling singer, songwriter, and guitarist. With humor and heart, she tells of growing up one of the few Asian American kids at her school in Eugene, Oregon; of struggling with her mother's particular, high expectations of her; of a painful adolescence; of treasured months spent in her grandmother's tiny apartment in Seoul, where she and her mother would bond, late at night, over heaping plates of food. (Goodreads)
Read it before the movie comes out!
Buy it here
Something spooky
Security by Gina Wohlsdorf
(Hazel’s pick)
If you are looking for a thriller this spooky season, I would recommend this book. It certainly keeps you on the edge of your seat and is told from a unique perspective of the security footage. The audiobook enhances the story as well!
The terrible truth about Manderley is that someone is always watching. Manderley Resort is a gleaming, new twenty-story hotel on the California coast. It’s about to open its doors, and the world--at least those with the means to afford it--will be welcomed into a palace of opulence and unparalleled security. But someone is determined that Manderley will never open. The staff has no idea that their every move is being watched, and over the next twelve hours they will be killed off, one by one. (Goodreads)
Buy it here
Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders
(Blythe’s pick)
If you are anything like Blythe and “like suspense and a twisty tale” rather than horror for Halloween, then her recommendation of Lincoln in the Bardo may be perfect for you.
February 1862. The Civil War is less than one year old. The fighting has begun in earnest, and the nation has begun to realize it is in for a long, bloody struggle. Meanwhile, President Lincoln’s beloved eleven-year-old son, Willie, lies upstairs in the White House, gravely ill. In a matter of days, despite predictions of a recovery, Willie dies and is laid to rest in a Georgetown cemetery. (Goodreads)
Lincoln in the Bardo imagines Willie’s time after death in the graveyard amongst other ghosts. It is unconventionally written, fast-paced, and explores what happens after we die.
Buy it here
Turn of the Screw by Henry James
(Tony’s pick)
If you are looking for a more psychological and intellectual fall read, Tony recommends Turn of the Screw. He described the novella as a “psychological ghost story” and “wonderfully sort of creepy” in a gothic way. This is the book for any aspiring English Lit students, or perhaps a good addition to your Columbia University application reading list.
A very young woman's first job: governess for two weirdly beautiful, strangely distant, oddly silent children, Miles and Flora, at a forlorn estate...An estate haunted by a beckoning evil. Half-seen figures who glare from dark towers and dusty windows- silent, foul phantoms who, day by day, night by night, come closer, ever closer. (Goodreads)
Buy it here
The Meaning of Night by Micheal Cox
(Sue’s pick)
“This book is a gothic fiction masterpiece, with all of those elements that make it hard to put down, even late at night when you know you should be sleeping. It has one of the best opening lines I've ever seen in fiction. There's shadow, old houses, complicated characters, dark, wet streets with lamplight and menace, grave robbery, and a creepy romance.”
Convinced he is destined for greatness, Glyver will stop at nothing to win back a prize that he knows is rightfully his. A story of betrayal and treachery, of death and delusion, of ruthless obsession and ambition.
The atmosphere of Bleak House, the sensuous thrill of Perfume, and the mystery of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell all combine in a story of murder, deceit, love, and revenge in Victorian England. (Goodreads)
Buy it here
White is for Witching by Helen Oyeyemi
(Derek’s pick)
As a child, Miranda Silver developed pica, a rare eating disorder that causes its victims to consume non-edible substances. The death of her mother when Miranda is sixteen exacerbates her condition. And then there's the family house in Dover, England, converted to a bed and breakfast by Miranda's father. Dover has long been known for its hostility toward outsiders. But The Silver House manifests a more conscious malice toward strangers, dispatching those visitors it despises. Enraged by the constant stream of foreign staff and guests, the house finally unleashes its most destructive power. (penguin random house)
Buy it here
Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
(Enrique’s pick)
“Death is fun,” Enrique asserted, referring to how Halloween is a unique time when grim subjects such as death are celebrated. His favorite Halloween read mirrors this sentiment in its funny, light-hearted approach to the end of the world.
People have been predicting the end of the world almost from its very beginning, so it’s only natural to be skeptical when a new date is set for Judgement Day. But what if, for once, the predictions are right, and the apocalypse really is due to arrive next Saturday, just after tea?
It’s a predicament that Aziraphale, a somewhat fussy angel, and Crowley, a fast-living demon now find themselves in. They’ve been living amongst Earth’s mortals since The Beginning and, truth be told, have grown rather fond of the lifestyle and, in all honesty, are not actually looking forward to the coming Apocalypse. (Goodreads)
Bonus points if you read it in Spanish!
Buy it here