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26 days and 10:58:32
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Alone with a Book: On Reading, Writing and Looking
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Expected 5 Nov 26Win a free print copy of this book!
26 days and 10:58:32
25 copies available
U.S. only
A lively, astute essay collection about the pleasure of reading deeply and seeing our world reflected back to us in art
For as long as Tessa Hadley can remember, life has been made vivid by reading. The touchstones of childhood were the laminated pages of a Ladybird book, then the sail boats in Swallows and Amazons, then the rich and immersive The Secret Garden. Reading was not an escape as such, but rather reading about life seemed to enhance the edges and details of living: the ordinary world, with its corners, routines and small dramas, came into focus through the stories she loved.
In these precise and energising essays, Hadley turns to the books and the art that have animated her life, and asks what it means to connect with one book over another. Ranging across the works of Jane Austen, Elizabeth Bowen, Alice Munro, J.M. Coetzee and Leila Slimani and more, Hadley returns to the enduring power of realism – as a craft, a joy, and a way of relating to the world, where life is made richer, deeper, and more fully imagined through fiction.
For as long as Tessa Hadley can remember, life has been made vivid by reading. The touchstones of childhood were the laminated pages of a Ladybird book, then the sail boats in Swallows and Amazons, then the rich and immersive The Secret Garden. Reading was not an escape as such, but rather reading about life seemed to enhance the edges and details of living: the ordinary world, with its corners, routines and small dramas, came into focus through the stories she loved.
In these precise and energising essays, Hadley turns to the books and the art that have animated her life, and asks what it means to connect with one book over another. Ranging across the works of Jane Austen, Elizabeth Bowen, Alice Munro, J.M. Coetzee and Leila Slimani and more, Hadley returns to the enduring power of realism – as a craft, a joy, and a way of relating to the world, where life is made richer, deeper, and more fully imagined through fiction.
311 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication November 5, 2026
About the author
Tessa Hadley
70 books1,028 followersTessa Hadley is the author of Sunstroke and Other Stories, and the novels The Past, Late in the Day and Clever Girl. She lives in Cardiff, Wales, and teaches literature and creative writing at Bath Spa University.
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October 1, 2026
Alone with a Book by Tessa Hadley is a collection of essays that is interesting in that it explores Harley’s thoughts on reading and writing but also includes deep dives into specific writers, specific pieces of writing, and also even includes her thoughts on specific pieces of art.
It was really nice to read how specific things influenced her and shaped her as a reader and a writer.
Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor | Vintage for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
It was really nice to read how specific things influenced her and shaped her as a reader and a writer.
Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor | Vintage for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review