I can’t even begin to rank these because they’re so different in many ways so I’m going to try and categorise them so you can read what you’re interested in!

British stuff

Sunburn – James Felton a really interesting and funny read on how much damage the sun newspaper has done in its time! Shocking, unbelievable and mind boggling…

52 times Britain was a bellend – James Felton actually barely knew any of this history which clearly got lost in the curriculum at school, I wonder why?

Appeasing Hitler – Tim Bouverie another history lesson I missed at school! Its all in the title, and I had no idea of Britains part in this!

Natives – Akala an incredibly important read about race and culture in the UK and the history of empire. I wish I’d read it sooner. Again, I learnt more about UK history in the first few pages than I ever did in school. This ‘Empire’ I was told to love, turns out its not so great huh?

Go big – Ed Miliband I love him and wish he was prime minister and that’s all I need to say. He literally understands what we need to do for the planet and society.

Mental & physical health

Head first – Alistair Santhouse very interesting for anyone into psychology, anyone living with a chronic illness or mental illness (or who cares about someone who does).

The Dr will see you now – Dr Amir Khan a really brilliant, insightful, funny and informative book about being a GP in the NHS from a doctor who really cares. It will leave you wishing he was your doctor though.

A monks guide to happiness – Gelong Thubten this is a book I keep going back to, because it really does help me. Thubten uses personal experience to illustrate his own journey through meditation.

The Art of Happiness – Dalai Lama & Howard C Cutler I learnt a lot about conditioning, happiness, suffering, self-created suffering, guilt, pain, anger, anxiety and self esteem.

Unwell women – Eleanor Cleghorn a brilliant book about the history of womens medicine, from Ancient Greece to the present. Incredibly interesting.

Anger – Thich Nhat Hanh from consuming anger to compassion and mindfulness. A really insightful and introspective book.

Finding peace – Lama Yeshe Losal Rinpoche a wonderful book which I found healing in many ways. Through meditation, mindfulness, compassion and forgiveness, I think most importantly though for me impermanence.

Non-fiction

Human kind – Rutger Bergman I loved this book so much, it changed my view of people so much; all we see in the news is the bad things, but good, kind people outnumber the bad. We are inherently good.

The only plane in the sky – Garrett Graff what a read. An immersive glimpse into what 9/11 was like for people all over the US and in the sky.

I’m still here black dignity in a world made for whiteness – Austin Channing Brown a really important read.

Incredible journeys (non-fiction)

From a mountain in Tibet – Lama Yeshe Losal Rinpoche honestly I’m finding it hard to describe this book because I’m lost for words; at some points it’s a hard read, because you know it’s a true, real story, and the difficulties faced are heart wrenching. But what an absolutely incredible story.

The Sheep Stell – Janet White I picked this for the cover and my love of sheep; when I started reading it I had my doubts; it really was a book about a shepherdess, I thought, how exciting could this be? Well actually, very. And knowing it was a true story too, and this incredible woman lived this life at such a time, was amazing. What an absolute inspiration. I really enjoyed living my life vicariously through her and sharing her adventures.

Incredible Journeys (fictional)

All the light we cannot see – Anthony Doerr this is one of those books I wish I could read again from scratch. A story that runs parallel following two protagonists during the progression of the war: a German orphan and a blind French girl. It’s so well written and immersive, I couldn’t put it down.

The beekeeper of Aleppo – Christy Lefteri a heartbreaking, haunting read. Really well written and leaves a huge impact. Brings deeper understanding of what refugees go through and a book I wish some unsympathetic people would read.

The Long Song – Andrea Levy a really interestingly written book, the story follows a woman asked to write a memoir by her son, to describe her life on a sugarcane plantation in Jamaica during 19th century.

Feminist

Girls on the verge – Sharon Biggs Waller a heartbreaking story follows an American girl in need of an abortion and her difficult journey to find help. A difficult read following the recent end of Roe vs Wade.

Women don’t owe you pretty – Florence Given a really empowering read.

Fiction

Anne of Green Gables – L. M. Montgomery written in 1908, about an orphan with a quirky personality. I’m in love with Anne, and living in her world.

Northanger Abbey – Jane Austin as a lover of Bridgerton I did enjoy this, but I don’t think I’d read this kind of book all the time.

The yearbook – Holly Bourne I love all of her books, and this one was no different. Always relatable.

The bookshop on the corner – Jenny Colgan I’m not so into the romance books anymore, as a teen it was all I read. But I did really enjoy how this was written and ended up buying more of her books.

There is no dog – Jess Rosoff this has to be one of the weirdest books I’ve read, but originality is great. God is a teenage boy, I think that’s all I need to say.

Crooked heart – Lissa Evans it’s so weird that I like this book, because the protagonists are awful. Set during ww2, about an evacuee. But it’s just really good and so well written.

The haunting season – some really good stories, some pretty creepy ones! I was sad that I got to the end of the book.

Anxious people – Fredrik Backman I LOVE this book, so much so I refuse to watch the new tv series, just in case they spoil it.

Tuck Everlasting – Natalie Babbitt what a wonderful tale, I read it in one sitting, it was brilliant.

The last letter from your lover – Jojo Moyes wow, what an incredibly cleverly written book, it follows two women and their tales of love and loss, a journalist exploring letters found from 40 years ago written between lovers. Was pretty much impossible not to cry.

The Bear and the Nightingale triology – Katherine Arden my favourite books. Full of Russian mythology. Absolutely in love with them.

This might seem like a lot of books but I’ve actually read 60 so I only picked out the best haha!

Merry Christmas! Louise x