• Try: This neat little writing tool we’d forgotten about until recently if you’re also trying to create a daily writing habit.
• Listen: To this You’re Wrong About episode on online shopping featuring Amanda Mull as we’re rethinking our own shopping habits.
• Swap out your clunky water filter pitcher for this sleek, minimalist pitcher that removes microplastics, bacteria, and 30+ other contaminants. As a bonus, every purchase provides a year of safe drinking water to a child in need. Use code GNI for 20% off LifeStraw Home products.  *Sponsor 
• Burn: A genius rec from reader Chelsea B., following up from last week’s newsletter:

  “As a fellow fancy candle lover, I want to share a recent GAME-CHANGING discovery for me. At the recommendation of Mallory from @reserve_home, I bought a candle warmer (this one, to be exact). I tried one because I love burning a candle at my desk (I WFH full time) but sometimes panic that I've forgotten to blow out the flame. This warmer I bought comes with a built-in timer you can use or not, and the MOST important benefit is that you get the exact same benefit of lighting the wick but with a much slower burn rate so those pricey candles get a longer life!”

• Wear: A couple o' WFH fashion picks that feel like pajamas….
  • Searching for the perfect elevated sweatpants vibes, and these might be it (size goes to XXL). These are a great shape and go to 5XL.
  • These slightly oversized graphic tees from Abercrombie are cheesy but so soft and the best for lounging (size goes to XL).
  • Life hack: These Alex Mill wide wale cords feel like pajamas (size goes to 38).
• Watch: Catherine Called Birdy, a movie based on the popular 90’s historical children’s novel about a teen girl growing up in medieval times, and feeling surprised and delighted by it! (This podcast episode includes some fair critiques and context on Lena Dunham’s involvement.)
• Listen: Ahead of Midnights, we're all listening to this podcast episode on “The Cult of Taylor Swift,” right? !!
• Cook: “This post inspired me to make tomato soup and grilled cheese for dinner this past week, though I ended up following Smitten Kitchen’s recipe. An easy, cozy meal!” -Alisha

• Lol: “Show me your dog’s author photo.”

You know that book that you've read a bunch of times, yet beckons a re-read each fall because it makes you feel cozy inside and like you could curl up by a fire? We asked some of our favorite book people to share their best book recommendations for those perfect "fall/spooky vibes." Happy reading!
 

Sarah Coquillat, Bookish & Black

When No One Is Watching by Alyssa Cole
If you like a psychological thriller with a side of social justice, you'll love this story about gentrification in a Brooklyn neighborhood that takes on a sinister edge. I would recommend this fast-paced novel to fans of Get Out. Thrillers automatically equate fall to me (hello spooky season!) and I think this is the perfect book for curling up with a cup of tea.
 
Legendborn by Tracy Deonn
Anything taking place on a school campus evokes immediate fall vibes for me and this book is no different. A retelling of the King Arthur legend, this novel is full of magic and mystery with some romance on the side. A fantasy novel that weaves together southern Black folklore, this is a must-read!
 

Natasha Miñoso, Book Baristas

Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel
There's something about reading haunting dystopian books in the fall, the need to be completely covered in throw blankets with a story that questions humanity, but also has such beautiful moments, too. This book had me on the edge of my couch, trying to get to the next bit faster than my eyes could keep up. From start to finish, this was such an amazing read. 
 
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
If a book keeps me up past my bedtime, it is an automatic win for me. This story is about friendship at its core but touches on how trauma can change your life, and how beneficial games are to your inner child. It made me so nostalgic for games in a way I didn’t think was possible. Whether you’re a gamer, or just love stories about friendship that span across the most formative years of our lives, this is the book for you.
 

Esther Fung, BookToker & Bookstagrammer

The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa
An eerie dystopian novel, The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa is about an unnamed writer living on an island where people's memories are slowly disappearing one by one. With the help of her editor, she continues writing as a way to preserve the past, even as her own memories fade away. The Memory Police speaks eloquently to trauma-induced loss and reminds us that, in the face of dehumanizing tragedies, connecting with each other restores our humanity. This is a great read for writers, lovers of slow-paced novels, and George Orwell or Kazuo Ishiguro stans.
 
Gods of Want: Stories by K-Ming Chang
K-Ming Chang's short story collection, Gods Of Want, explores queerness, family, anxiety, and female relationships in a surreal and visceral way. In "The Chorus Of Dead Cousins," a woman is plagued by her needy ghost cousins. In "Anchor," a young woman and her aunt are haunted by the girl her aunt accidentally killed years ago. In "Nuwa," two sisters follow a rope of blood to the train tracks and speculate about a girl whose dismembered body was found by the tracks. This book is the perfect read for anyone learning to own their sexuality, fans of the grotesque, and Gabriel Garcia Marquez or Eka Kurniawan enthusiasts.

From Becca:

The Cloisters by Katy Hays
I'm calling it now, this book is going to be everywhere when it comes out on November 1. It's pitched as The Secret History meets Ninth House, and it lives up to the hype. A recent art history grad takes a prestigious position at The Met Museum and gets sucked into a hunt for the first tarot deck from Renaissance times and also into the interpersonal drama of the quirky staff at The Met Cloisters. You're going to want to have this one on your radar.

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna
If you're looking for something more heartwarming than heart-pumping, but with all the fall feels, this is it. Witches are real, but they must live in secret to avoid persecution. When Mika Moon responds to a mysterious Instagram DM, she finds herself moving into a crumbling English manor as she accepts a position to tutor three orphaned witches. In addition to teaching the young witches to control their power, she must also gain the trust of their eclectic assortment of caretakers—a retired stage actor, a grouchy librarian, and a protective housekeeper. There's found family, a love story, and (of course) a good deal of magic.

From Olivia:

Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
This book always makes me think of Halloween and fall. It's one of the most atmospheric and flat-out creepy books I've read, but it's a really immersive reading experience (which I love in the fall!) and took me by surprise. It's gothic-horror by description, which isn't usually my thing, but still worked for me. It centers on a young woman investigating her cousin's claims that her husband is trying to murder her, so it's thriller-y, too, but has spooky details that are hard to see coming and OOZE fall/autumn/Halloween. 
 
City of the Lost by Kelley Armstrong
This is a book that helped me fall in love with reading again and truly fall in love with thrillers for good! It's a little supernatural, a little dystopian, a little mystery, and has a fun romance in there, too. It centers around a community for people who want to disappear from their lives for good, and the setting is the perfect balance between spooky and cozy, which is why I think it's such a good fall read. It makes you want to light a fire and stay inside and read all night (it's pretty much impossible to put down). I didn't love the other books in the series as much, but for those that are always looking for multi-book series, it could be a good option!
 

Ingrid Nilsen, The New Savant

The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty
I love mystery books that explore the underbelly of idyllic, suburban life. This one is one of my favorites. A woman discovers a shocking secret about her husband and it turns her seemingly perfect world upside-down. There’s murder, plot twists, and lots of suspense. Definitely a page-turner!

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
The first book in the All Souls trilogy is full of witches, vampires, demons, romance, and a little bit of history – all of my favorite things! It’s a totally engrossing read that’s great for a little fantasy escapism. Plus, the author is actually a scholar and historian, so a lot of the references she uses (like the Ashmole manuscripts) are real texts that exist outside the novel. 

​Thanks for the recs, friends! As always, you can browse books mentioned in this newsletter right here in our Bookshop.

1. In the Land of Too Much Television, This Nerd Is Queen (NYT, paywalled) — The lovely profile treatment Mallory Rubin deserves!
2. I Am Tired of Watching People Go to Italy (Eater) 
3. The Little Rituals That Keep Us Going (NYT, paywalled)
4. Tech can make relationships shallower (The Atlantic)