This week I went to a talk by the author Anthony Doerr, who wrote All the Light You Cannot See, a book I absolutely loved - as did many of you. It was inspiring to see and listen to someone I admire and whose book was so beautiful and memorable. I’m looking forward to reading his new book, Cloud Cuckoo Land.

Sometimes I don’t remember the exact details of a book years later, but I remember the way it made me feel. All the Light  pulled me in and along, and I was immediately transported to the small town of Saint-Malo in France during the war. I was living there with the characters. Books do that to you. That transport, and at times transformation, is so powerful you are moved to talk about it with others. And so, the reason for the book group.

Reading is a solitary activity that becomes communal with friends in book groups. They are starting up again which is very happy news. Fall in New England is the perfect time to curl up with a good book, and there are lots out there. Books also make a great gift and wrap up beautifully in minutes with Rapt reusable gift wrap. Is it ok to regift a book? We think so - though maybe not one that’s dogeared or has a broken spine? These are the books on our bedside tables right now: Cloud Cuckoo Land, Anthony Doerr; Harlem Shuffle, Colson Whitehead; The Lincoln Highway, Amor Towles  - author of A Gentleman in Moscow, one of our all time favorites; Anxious People, Fredrik Backman; The Word is Passed, Clint Smith; Crossroads, Jonathan Franzen; Caste, Isabel Wilkerson; and Twilight of Democracy, Anne Applebaum.

Happy reading! Enjoy the long weekend!