The Reading Life

Autumn Is the Best Season for Reading (And We Can Prove It)

Sure, summer reading is fine. The days are longer, and you can match your paperbacks to your vacation spot. But autumn, with its rich colors and brisk air, is truly the best season for reading. Don’t believe me? Here are three very important reasons why:
1. The Aesthetic
By the end of August, you’ve probably realized that all of your summer reads have sand packed into the binding—what’s so great about beach reading again?—and pages whose edges have been softened by a deadly mix of humidity and sweat and sunscreen. You know when that doesn’t happen? Autumn. You know what you’d rather fill those pages with? The crisp smell of freshly fallen leaves.
Even if you’re not going back to school, it’s hard not to give in to that itch to fill a backpack up with brand-new books every fall. Cozied up with sweaters, reading in front of a fireplace or under a nice orangey-red tree, blanketed with paperbacks—what’s not to love? So grab your plaid shirts, your candles, and your sense of self-discovery and get ready for fall.
2. The Snacks
There’s one thing that all true book nerds know: if you’re settling in for a long day of reading, you’re going to need proper sustenance. And you know what pairs perfectly with a nice, new hardback? Tea, coffee, hot chocolate, a nice chai latte—all worldly pleasures that are hard to appreciate when you’ve got summer sweat rolling down the back of your knee. Toss in some fresh-baked cookies, a slice of pie, an after-dinner glass of brandy, and anything pumpkin, and you have to admit that fall reading snacks are the best reading snacks.
3. The Books
Food and aesthetics are all well and good, but the true reason that autumn reading surpasses all other reading? The books.
Summer books sound good when you make the initial approach: a quick fling you can speed through and then forget. But after months of light reading, you can’t help but crave something a little more serious. Enter fall reading. Between long-awaited new releases from favorite authors (helllllloo Swing Time) and beloved re-reads (Night Circus is a must), you’ll have more books to read than pumpkin spice lattes to drink. Plus, as the air turns chillier, you can’t help but be drawn to those dark, thrilling reads, perfect for matching your Halloween decorations.
Still need some convincing? Here are some upcoming autumn books that will have you craving sweater season:

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets: The Illustrated Edition (Harry Potter Series #2)

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets: The Illustrated Edition (Harry Potter Series #2)

Hardcover $35.99 $39.99

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets: The Illustrated Edition (Harry Potter Series #2)

By J. K. Rowling
Illustrator Jim Kay

In Stock Online

Hardcover $35.99 $39.99

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets: the Illustrated Edition, by J.K. Rowling and Jim Kay
Arguably the most “autumn” of the Harry Potter books (I mean, there’s a party. With ghosts), Chamber of Secrets is the perfect classic back-to-school read—it starts off light and gets gradually creepier until finally you’re left standing on a pile of bones. Which makes this fall the perfect time to re-read this book, and even more perfect when accompanied by Jim Kay’s wonderful, rich, autumn-hued illustrations.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets: the Illustrated Edition, by J.K. Rowling and Jim Kay
Arguably the most “autumn” of the Harry Potter books (I mean, there’s a party. With ghosts), Chamber of Secrets is the perfect classic back-to-school read—it starts off light and gets gradually creepier until finally you’re left standing on a pile of bones. Which makes this fall the perfect time to re-read this book, and even more perfect when accompanied by Jim Kay’s wonderful, rich, autumn-hued illustrations.

Swing Time

Swing Time

Hardcover $27.00

Swing Time

By Zadie Smith

Hardcover $27.00

Swing Timeby Zadie Smith
You only have to wait a few more months to fill the hole in your chest reserved for Zadie Smith’s beautiful, brilliant writing. Swing Time tells the story of two mixed-race girls, both in love with dancing. One of them, Tracey, is talented. Our narrator is not. They meet in a dance class as children, become friends, and are pulled apart by their divulging futures—but they never forget each other. Is it November yet?

Swing Timeby Zadie Smith
You only have to wait a few more months to fill the hole in your chest reserved for Zadie Smith’s beautiful, brilliant writing. Swing Time tells the story of two mixed-race girls, both in love with dancing. One of them, Tracey, is talented. Our narrator is not. They meet in a dance class as children, become friends, and are pulled apart by their divulging futures—but they never forget each other. Is it November yet?

Crooked Kingdom (Six of Crows Series #2)

Crooked Kingdom (Six of Crows Series #2)

Hardcover $22.99 $24.99

Crooked Kingdom (Six of Crows Series #2)

By Leigh Bardugo

In Stock Online

Hardcover $22.99 $24.99

Crooked Kingdom, by Leigh Bardugo
The much awaited sequel to Six of CrowsCrooked Kingdom resumes with Kaz and his crew struggling to survive after a betrayal ruins all their hopes of retiring rich and happy. There’s something about this magical heist novel that just screams fall (besides its release date, of course). If you, like us, are dying to find out what happens to our six favorite criminal misfits, welcome to your autumn kick-off read.

Crooked Kingdom, by Leigh Bardugo
The much awaited sequel to Six of CrowsCrooked Kingdom resumes with Kaz and his crew struggling to survive after a betrayal ruins all their hopes of retiring rich and happy. There’s something about this magical heist novel that just screams fall (besides its release date, of course). If you, like us, are dying to find out what happens to our six favorite criminal misfits, welcome to your autumn kick-off read.

Today Will Be Different (Signed Book)

Today Will Be Different (Signed Book)

Hardcover $27.00

Today Will Be Different (Signed Book)

By Maria Semple

Hardcover $27.00

Today Will Be Different, by Maria Semple
If you loved Where’d You Go, Bernadette?, this new book from Maria Semple should have you clamoring for October. Eleanor is ready to take back control of her life, starting with getting her son to school on time and working on her relationship with her husband. She even has a plan. But, like most plans, life gets in the way. For everyone who wanders into a new season hoping to improve themselves and “finally do things right,” Today Will Be Different is your next autumn almost-coming-of-age read.
What books are whetting your appetite for chillier days?

Today Will Be Different, by Maria Semple
If you loved Where’d You Go, Bernadette?, this new book from Maria Semple should have you clamoring for October. Eleanor is ready to take back control of her life, starting with getting her son to school on time and working on her relationship with her husband. She even has a plan. But, like most plans, life gets in the way. For everyone who wanders into a new season hoping to improve themselves and “finally do things right,” Today Will Be Different is your next autumn almost-coming-of-age read.
What books are whetting your appetite for chillier days?