Monthly Archives: December 2018

There’s nothing like curling up with a good book on a snowy day…even better is a book that totally immerses you in a winter world from the comfort of your own home!

These 13 books do just that. From snowy countrysides to magical far-off places, these 13 books are perfect for reading on a snowy, blistery winter night.

13 Books to Read on a Snowy Day

The Snowman, Jo Nesbø

When dozens of women show up murdered on the day of a first snow fall, investigator Harry Hole is put on the case. As his investigation deepens, something else emerges: he is becoming a pawn in an increasingly terrifying game whose rules are devised—and constantly revised—by the killer. This one is long, but worth it in the end.

The Road, Cormac McCarthy

A father and his son walk alone through burned America. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape, save the wind. It is cold enough to crack stones, and when the snow falls it is gray. The sky is dark. Their destination is the coast, although they don’t know what, if anything, awaits them there. They have nothing; just a pistol to defend themselves against the lawless bands that stalk the road, the clothes they are wearing, a cart of scavenged food—and each other. A heartbreaking story of love and survival.

The Girl with Glass Feet, Ali Shaw

Strange things are happening on the remote and snowbound archipelago of St. Hauda’s Land. Magical winged creatures flit around the icy bogland, albino animals hide themselves in the snow-glazed woods, and Ida Maclaird is slowly turning into glass. Ida is an outsider in these parts who has only visited the islands once before. A visitor to this land before, she has returned in search of a cure.

Chocolat and The Girl With No Shadow, Joanne Harris

The delicious story about Vianne Rocher and her chocolate shop begins with Chocolat and continues with The Girl With No Shadow. Two whimsical, romantic books that will warm your heart and soul (and make you hungry for some delicious hot cocoa!).

Memoirs of a Geisha, Arthur Golden

In Memoirs of a Geisha, we enter a world where appearances are paramount; where a girl’s virginity is auctioned to the highest bidder; where women are trained to beguile the most powerful men; and where love is scorned as illusion. It is a unique and triumphant work of fiction—at once romantic, erotic, suspenseful—and completely unforgettable.

The Book Thief, Markus Zusak

By her brother’s graveside, Liesel’s life is changed when she picks up a single object, partially hidden in the snow. It is The Gravedigger’s Handbook, left behind there by accident, and it is her first act of book thievery. So begins a love affair with books and words, as Liesel, with the help of her accordion-playing foster father, learns to read. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor’s wife’s library, wherever there are books to be found.

Little Women, Louisa May Alcott

A family of ladies, including talented tomboy and author-to-be Jo, tragically frail Beth, beautiful Meg, and romantic, spoiled Amy, unite in their devotion to each other and their struggles to survive in New England during the Civil War.

The Harry Potter Series, J.K. Rowling

No real description needed here! This entire series is always a fun one to re-read in the winter (or anytime, really!).

The Snow Child, Eowyn Ivey

Alaska, 1920: a brutal place to homestead, and especially tough for recent arrivals Jack and Mabel. Childless, they are drifting apart – he breaking under the weight of the work of the farm; she crumbling from loneliness and despair. In a moment of levity during the season’s first snowfall, they build a child out of snow. The next morning the snow child is gone – but they glimpse a young, blonde-haired girl running through the trees. What they eventually learn about this girl they call Faina will transform all of them.

The Night Circus, Erin Morgenstern

The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night. Beautiful winter scenes pepper this book with a magical landscape, and the rich, seductive prose, makes this spell-casting novel a feast for all the senses.

Snow Falling on Cedars, David Guterson

San Piedro Island, north of Puget Sound, is a place so isolated that no one who lives there can afford to make enemies. But in 1954 a local fisherman is found suspiciously drowned, and a Japanese American named Kabuo Miyamoto is charged with his murder. In the course of the ensuing trial, it becomes clear that what is at stake is more than a man’s guilt. Gripping, tragic, and densely atmospheric, Snow Falling on Cedars is a masterpiece of suspense that will leave you shaken and changed.

The Golden Compass, Philip Pullman

Can one small girl make a difference in such great and terrible endeavors? This is Lyra: a savage, a schemer, a liar, and as fierce and true a champion as Roger or Asriel could want–but what Lyra doesn’t know is that to help one of them will be to betray the other. The first in a magical series of books that will stay with you long after you’re done.

Looking for a new book to read? Check in every Friday for a “Bee Happy” post, where I share reviews of books I’ve read or other book-themed lists.