Erica Ezeifedi, Associate Editor, is a transplant from Nashville, TN that has settled in the North East. In addition to being a writer, she has worked as a victim advocate and in public libraries, where she has focused on creating safe spaces for queer teens, mentorship, and providing test prep instruction free to students. Outside of work, much of her free time is spent looking for her next great read and planning her next snack.
Find her on Twitter at @Erica_Eze_.
I have several cardigans in different shopping carts and I’m looking at reinforcing my blankie and teddy jacket inventories. Suffice to say, it is Fall, and I’m ready to hand myself over to the coziness of it all.
And I’m not alone! The bookish type seem especially reinvigorated by autumn, and I recently spoke to our Managing Editor Vanessa Diaz about why she thinks this is. Her answer was one part antiquated publishing industry practices (ships were involved, somehow), the other part detailed how we experience a sort of need to nest that seems to overtake us when the temperature officially reaches Comfortably Crisp.
Below are books to aid us in our nesting activities. Join witches, amateur sleuths, and even bodega baddies and take a load off.
Deja Brew by Celestine Martin
Let me just say that this is aumtumned down. It is so thoroughly fall, and just a great book to set the mood of this list off with. In it, ex-celebrity chef Sirena Carawy is having a Bad October. Her cooking powers aren’t powering like they should, she didn’t land a job she really needed, and she even has some Halloween party regrets. As a result, she makes a wish at midnight that has her waking up to a repeat of the month that had just passed. (So, this is like a pumpkin spice-flavored Groundhog Day, basically). Her running into reality star Gus starts to set her back right. He’s in Freya Grove to repair his reputation and his heart after a breakup, and his magic might be just what she needs to fix her own. And fix something else, if you know what I mean.
The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna
Witches are few and far between in the UK, which is why Mika Moon and her group of witches meet only so often — safety is the priority, and too many witches in one place tend to draw attention. Even though Mika is used to the loneliness, a big part of her rejects it, and she posts videos on a YouTube-like site where she shares magic tips, pretending to be a witch. But someone sees her for what she really is and invites her to a house out in the middle of nowhere to tutor three young witches into their magic. Somehow, she agrees and finds with the inhabitants of the house — especially a grumpy librarian—a family like none she’s ever experienced. But the transition from being a loner orphan witch to a loved one isn’t easy, and she’ll have to make some changes to adjust.
Mandanna also has A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping, which, though it shares some similarities with The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches, isn’t listed as a follow-up.
It’s Elementary by Elise Bryant
Ever read a cozy murder mystery centered around school PTA meetings? Well, in It’s Elementary, Bryant serves up just that with Mavis Miller, who low-key gets suckered into joining the PTA at her 7-year-old daughter’s school. Surprisingly (it’s not a surprise), PTA president Trisha Holbrook wants her to head the school’s new DEI committee, but then the principal — who had pissed off the intimidating Trisha — doesn’t show up to work one day. And Mavis remembers how she saw Trisha moving huge trash bags and cleaning supplies out of her car the day before…
We’ll Prescribe You a Cat by Syou Ishida, translated by E. Madison Shimoda
I’ve never been to Japan, but from the multiple cat islands (!) to all the cozy, cat-centric literature they release, I know Japanese people know how to party. In this award-winning novel, the Nakagyō Kokoro Clinic for the Soul — a place that is tucked into the fifth floor of an old building and can only be found by people who are struggling — offers a very unusual remedy. They prescribe cats as medication, and everyone from disheartened businessmen to mourning geisha to lonely elementary school girls gets prescribed a cat that will comfort them and even challenge them for the better.
Bodega Bakes: Recipes for Sweets and Treats Inspired by My Corner Store by Paola Velez
The purple! The alliteration! I live!
In this new cookbook, Bronx native and James Beard-nominated chef (and activist!) Paola Velez translates her love for the bodegas that enriched her childhood into very accessible and comforting recipes. She remixes American classics like sticky buns, gives her own take on traditional Caribbean desserts like golden rum cake, and even includes recipes for internet-famous treats of hers like Thick’ems cookies (which speak to me on a spiritual level).
Hirayasumi by Keigo Shinzō, translated Jan Mitsuko Cash
This follows 29-year-old Hiroto, who doesn’t fit into what Japanese society says he should be doing at his age. He doesn’t have a wife or girlfriend, a full-time job, or even a concrete plan for the future. None of it seems to bother him, though. He just goes to work and minds his business. One day, he meets an older lady, who he affectionately calls Granny, and they become friends. Heads up that this gets sad early on, though. She dies and we find out that she leaves him her house because she doesn’t have any living family.
He figures with this new house, he could help out a younger cousin of his, Natsumi. The 18-year-old got accepted to art school and needs a place closer to classes. So then the story changes to one where we follow the two of them, who are at very different stages of life and who have different personalities. This is a slice-of-life manga, which means it is very chill and calming by nature, but it still explores things like loneliness, grief, and even work culture.
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English (US) · 