book recommendations

Winter book club picks

In Entertainment, Style by Angela AmmanLeave a Comment

With the new year in full swing, we’re starting to talk about book club meetings again. We don’t judge if your friends meet to dive into bestsellers or into everyone’s favorite bottle of bubbly. Either way, we have eight book recommendations you won’t want to miss.

2017 Winter Book Club Picks

If you worry about the pressures of competitive sports

Megan Abbott explored the world of glittering, competitive cheerleading in Dare Me. She returned this summer to stare down the explosive ambition behind Olympic-caliber gymnastics. You Will Know Me tells the story of Olympic-hopeful Devon Knox, whose icy eyes and powerhouse vaults catapulted her into the darling of her gym. In addition, the novel explores the effect of prodigal talent on a family — and the lengths to which ambition will stretch in the face of unthinkable circumstances.

You Will Know Me by Megan Abbott

If you’re looking for a heartstring-pulling love story

A story beginning with a romantic dinner doesn’t promise to end with the same. Kailey Crain feels like the luckiest woman alive when she hands her doggie bag to a homeless man on the sidewalk, coming face-to-face with someone from her past. Suddenly, Kailey’s present and future don’t seem as certain as she expected. Always: A novel by Sarah Jio gifts Kailey Crain with two great romances — and the gripping decision about how much she’s willing to sacrifice for true love.

Always by Sarah Jio

If you’re a little suspicious about that perfect marriage

Newlyweds Grace and Jack live a charmed life. Wealth, good looks, impeccable manners promise a future that’s sure to be the envy of all their friends. Getting to know Grace, though, is harder than it seems. She and Jack live inseparable lives, which seems incredibly romantic — until it doesn’t. Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris will make you glad for the imperfections that make your life exactly your own.

Winter Book Club Recommendations

If you need to escape the cold

Reading a book seeped in sunshine during the winter months is either torture or the best sort of escape. The Rumor by Elin Hilderbrand deals with the way gossip spreads in a sleepy, buzzing beach town and how those rumors test the bonds of previously unshakeable friendship. Though perhaps not her strongest novel to date (we loved The Island!), this queen of romance again spins a tale that will take you off your couch and onto a sandy beach.

Books to Read to Get You Through Winter

If you’re trying to understand your teenager

The minds of teenage girls can be mysterious land mines of secrets and unrealized longings. Navigating the space between childhood and adulthood means trying to figure out who you are, and trying to extricate yourself from the people who want to define you. The Girls by Emma Cline chronicles how one girl, Evie Boyd, becomes entangled in a 1960s cult marked by free love, freedom from parental expectations and the specter of an unfathomable crime.

Best Books to Read in 2017

If you like to sleep with the lights on

Travel writer Lo Blacklock accepts her latest assignment in a heartbeat. After all, what could go wrong during a vacation on an exclusive, luxury cruise ship? The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware answers that question. Ware keeps you turning pages until you find out exactly what happened the night Lo sees a woman being thrown overboard.

Mystery Novels for Readers Who Love to Travel

If you read in bits and pieces

What is Not Yours is Not Yours by Helen Oyeyemi gifts readers with a series of stories about keys. Her figurative and literal keys unlock doors between parallel realities while keeping others locked — for good reason. The stories can be read consecutively or in bits and pieces over time, the perfect reading experience for busy moms.

Short Stories for Book Clubs

If you can’t get enough memoir

Most of us have time to grow into parenting an eight-year old. College senior Dave Eggers inherits his younger brother after his parents both die of cancer in a five-week span. A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius unfurls true events through fantastic scenes that highlight Eggers’ vast storytelling ability.

Memoirs to Read this Winter

Do you have a favorite book you think we should add to our list?

Meet the Author | Angela Amman


Angela Amman is a short story and essay writer. Collecting her family's stories is a gift-in-progress for her daughter and son, and she blogs at Playing with Words, capturing the craziness and beauty that weave together to create something extraordinary. As the co-director of Listen To Your Mother Metro Detroit, Angela is thrilled to bring others' stories to the stage and to celebrate the magic of words, storytelling, and the courage to share that magic with an audience. When she should be sleeping, she works on her latest short story collection. Her writing has been featured on Mamalode, Peacock Journal, and Scary Mommy. Her personal essays and short stories have appeared in her collection, Nothing Goes Away, and various anthologies.

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