Time for a catch up post on what I have been reading and what I am currently stacking up either physically next to my bed or virtually on my Kindle. We’ve had issues with the software we use at work recently, so having books available on my Kindle at home and on my desktop computer has been useful. How else would I be able to fill the hours I have to sit between answering phones and a few other office ninja jobs? A good book (preferably an undemanding one that is easy to pick up and put down) helps.

These are the books on my TBR list for August: some chick lit, some literary fiction including at least one prize winning book, some non-fiction, some devotional/spiritual and a couple of books set in the next big city I’m due to visit… Amsterdam.

The top few rows are the ones I’ve downloaded for the next few weeks. I say August, but they are just as likely to slide into my September reading as well. It depends if I grab a few weekends to escape from daily life and just read. It has taken me a month and a half to finish In This House of Brede, partly because I fall asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow and partly because I detoured past a different book for a couple of weeks. Sometimes I get easily distracted.

Keeping Place by Jen Pollock Michel is about home, our longing for it and the great hope that Christians have in an eternal home. “Many of us seem to be recovering the sacred, if ordinary, beauty of place,” says the author. Whether we’re Christian or not, our homes are the bases from which we move and act within the world and this book seems to be a why-to on home, not a prescriptive list of things to do to create a home. I’ll let you know whether it’s useful after I’ve read it.

Wedding Days at Halesmere House by Susanna Snow is a bit of light refreshment: something sweet and undemanding to sink down into on a quiet, wet Saturday or a Wednesday night when nothing else appeals. It’s set in the Lake District about a lady called Lizzie who organises a new location for her best friend’s wedding which, unfortunately for her, brings her back into contact with a blacksmith called Cal with whom she seems to have a past…. I’m expecting something terrible at 65% and a resolution at 87%. We’ll see.

Fairy Tale is Stephen King’s latest book. I have a love-hate relationship with his work. Some of them absolutely capture teenage angst, borderline mania or unsettled misbelonging while others are unnecessarily nasty, brutish and violent. I swore after reading the book of It that I wouldn’t read another one… but this one appealed to me so much I capitulated. The blurb reads “King’s storytelling in Fairy Tale soars. This is a magnificent and terrifying tale about another world than ours, in which good is pitted against overwhelming evil, and a heroic boy—and his dog—must lead the battle.” At least the dog gets a leading role.

The Weaker Vessel by Antonia Fraser. My husband reads historical non-fiction as if he’s studying for a Masters and the Hounds of the University were on his heels. Me, I don’t read that much, but sometimes a book appeals. We were in Worcester at the Commandery last week (excellent place, really enjoyed it) and they had a whole room set aside for reading. I picked this one up idly to thumb through, and next thing I knew was two chapters in. Women in 17th Century England lived such a different life from us. I’ll know a lot more about it by the time I’m finished.

Barbara Kingsolver is an excellent writer, and when I saw that Demon Copperhead had won a prize it wasn’t a massive surprise. The idea… a reimagining and re-setting of David Copperfield to the Appalachian mountains and a novel told from the point of view of Demon Copperhead himself… appealed, so this is definitely one I’m looking forward to spending a few weeks inside. What would Dickens be writing about if he were alive now? Well, definitely drug abuse and the fate of children left outside of society. Not a happy or easy read, I am thinking, but one that I hope lives up to the hype.

The next two books hare a location: Amsterdam. I’m travelling there for a weekend in September/October to celebrate 30 years of marriage. I like matching reading to reality, so I’ve collected a couple of books set there. A Cold Death in Amsterdam by Anja De Jager is the first in a series about a Dutch policewoman, Lotte Meerman, investigating a cold case in Amsterdam in the winter. Hopefully the canals won’t be frozen when we’re there… and in a bizarre twist of coincidence, The Light of Amsterdam by David Park is also set in the winter. It’s about several sets of travellers to the city, all there for different reasons and purposes. I’m hoping to read any descriptions of the locations and recognise them when we get there in a couple of months.

The Notekeeper by Hannah Treave seems to be a peculiar mix of chick lit and meaningful life-altering idea. It’s described as ‘perfect for fans of JoJo Moyes’, so I’m not expecting a laugh a minute. The idea… that a young Australian nurse takes it into her own hands to record the dying words of the residents in the Hospice she works in… was intriguing. Famous Last Words seem so crucial for Important people, so why would they not matter for most of us? Anyhow, it was a 99p special so very little ventured for what might be great gain.

And finally: In This House of Brede by Rumer Godden took me nearly two months to read. It definitely won’t appeal to a lot of people, since it’s the story of Philippa, a successful businesswoman who chucks everything up to take Holy Orders and lock herself away in a Benedictine monastery of Nuns. I found it intriguing how much went on behind the quiet facade. There is intrigue, hints of immoral passions, a whole sub plot about the establishment of a Japanese off-shoot and so much quiet spirituality seeping through the whole book. I’m not sure I’m cut out to be a Nun, but the book definitely sets out to show that the women who do take the veil have not always chosen an easy path, although they find rewards in ways I couldn’t begin to dream of. The descriptions of the plainsong, the slow turning of the years, the significance of their choice: it was a fascinating look at a way of life that, probably, will never be again. Vatican II Council happens towards the end of the book, and it has a massive effect on the monastery in terms of clothing, Offices of worship and even the fact that the mass ceases to be in Latin and is now in English. As a lapsed Catholic, I found I had more sympathy for it than I expected. Perhaps I’m mellowing in my middle age.

And there you have it: my bookshelf for the season ahead. What are you reading? What books have given you joy? Or is there a volume, much hyped and lauded, that you just *didn’t* get and would recommend avoiding? I am the woman who would look at a bookshelf in someone’s house ahead of anything else as a way to see into a person’s heart. It’s sad, in a way , that Kindle stops people from doing that, but we do have Goodreads now: everybody’s bookshelves on show, including past, present and future. I’m on Goodreads as Jo Kneale, do come across and introduce yourself!

How to Hygge the British Way is my gift to the world. I don’t get paid for writing it, I’m not in it for the kudos, financial rewards, to become an influencer, work with brands or otherwise make any money from the blog. That’s why there are no ads, and any products I mention and recommend have either been gifted to me or bought by me with my everyday wages or donations from supporters. Every book I review has been bought and read by me, unless stated otherwise.

I do get a couple of pennies each time someone buys from the Amazon links on my page, as an Amazon Affiliate, but otherwise if you’d like to support me, I like to give something back in return. That’s why I write books. It always feels good if you get a book back in return for some money. You can find a full list of my books at my Author’s Page on Amazon, but especially recommended for this time of year are:

Cosy Happy Hygge: Setting up a rhythm to life and rituals to enjoy it to make for a more balanced life that handles waves and storms better. Lent is a season of rituals and resets. The book has small and easy ways to make your life flow with grace and happiness, which lead to more hygge.

Happier: Probably my most personal book, it’s the story of how I used hygge and the little things in life to help boost my happiness. I still go back and reread to remind myself what I need to do to be a happy human. And it’s always the little things.

How to Hygge Your Summer is my book about making the most of summertime. Hygge is so often seen as a winter pastime, and yet the principles of hygge (good food, good friends, time to be) are just as applicable to days when you can gather in a park or garden as when you gather round the fireplace. This book only scrapes the surface of what you can do, but hopefully sends you off with inspiration to make your own summer hygge.

I’m currently working on two book projects: I have a hankering to rewrite 50 Ways to Hygge the British Way, so it’s not available at the moment, but even dearer to my heart and my next stated aim is to finish and publish my next book, Simple Plus Cosy = Hygge. It will be about homemaking and how the home we create shapes the hygge we have. Hopefully it will be finished by the end of summer/autumn/winter.

If you’d like to support me, but don’t want to buy a book, I have a Paypal.Me account as Hygge Jem. Every little helps, so even a few pence goes towards the books, goods and courses I use and recommend on the site. I’m grateful for every little bit that brings me closer to my dream of full-time writing, and I know I couldn’t still be writing if it weren’t for the support of many readers and friends out there. Thank you all for every little bit of support, emotional, physical and financial, you give me.

If you’ve enjoyed this article, don’t forget to share it or save it so others can enjoy reading, thinking about and living hygge as well.

The photo between post and promotions is by Arno Smit on Unsplash. I wish I had a garden shed like this one! I chose it because I love the colours of the windowframes, the tantalisingly inviting open door and the comfy chair within. Perfect spot for a cup of tea and a good book. And the header today is my reader on my desk, along with a cup of coffee and all my planned books on show.