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Books

Hot reads for those cold days and nights

With cold weather blowing in, and thoughts of snow coming our way, it can get a little chilly in our reading lives. The snow piles up, and the cabin fever sets in. When you get tired of the winter weather, there are several wonderful books that can temporarily transport you to a warmer climate.

Meghan Doenges of Maria’s Bookshop recommends Euphoria, by Lily King. Based on the life of Margaret Mead, Euphoria follows three anthropologists in the territory of New Guinea: Andrew Bankson, a british anthropologist trying to come to terms with his brothers’ deaths; Nell Stone, a controversial American anthropologist; and her mysterious husband, Fen.

“The location is so exotic that you feel like you’re there,” Doenges says. “The novel is so well written and the culture the characters are studying is so different that it feels like you are there. The story paired with the sensual writing makes it feel as if you are on vacation.”

Doenges also recommends Tracks, Robyn Davidson’s memoir of her journey across the Australian Outback with three camels and her dog. Her vivid prose helps the reader experience one of the hotter and drier locations on the planet.

“When she is training the camels, you can just feel the dust on your skin and smell the camel dung.” Doenges says. “It is a fantastic adventure story with an incredibly strong female lead.”

Kirbie Bennett of Maria’s Bookshop also has a book he routinely goes to to escape the cold weather.

“Ask the Dust by John Fante is my go-to summer read,” says Bennett. Following an aspiring writer from Colorado. “It is set in Skid row, California, in the 1930s. There’s a very memorable scene between the protagonist and a girl he falls in love with at the beach. Its full of absurd, tragically comic situations and very human moments.”

When you tire of shoveling snow in your driveway and need a break from the winter weather, these books can take you away to the distant and warm lands of Australia, Hawaii, New Guinea. Snowy days are a great time to curl up with a book; the stories found in these novels can help whisk you away to warmer locales.



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