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Reading Recommendations from Literary Arts Staff

The Literary Arts team is made up of enthusiastic readers (and writers!) just like you. Now, more than ever perhaps, we turn to books for comfort, inspiration, and joy. Here are a few recent staff picks that we love. We hope you will enjoy them as well!

The Book of Delights
by Ross Gay

Recommended by:
Alanna Faelan
(she/her or they/them)

The Book of Delights is a masterclass in mindfulness, the book I turn to whenever I need to slow down and appreciate life in its everyday smallness. When I am overwhelmed, stuck in big picture stresses, Gay’s observations—of a flight attendant who calls him baby, a praying mantis dancing on the lip of a beer glass—bring me back into my body.

Order your copy of The Book of Delights from an indie bookstore!
Powell’s Books | Broadway Books | Annie Bloom’s Books | Bookshop

And don’t miss this episode of our podcast, The Archive Project, that features Ross Gay reading at Lit Crawl in Portland last November!


Sabrina & Corina
by Kali Fajardo-Anstine

Recommended by:
Emilly Prado
(she/her)

I’ve been waiting for the right moment to pick up this beautiful, lauded debut and I’m feeling especially grateful to be able to pause from the world now and find comfort alongside the stories of the many powerful indigenous women in this collection. It’s a tapestry of sweet, tender, painful, and complicated tales, all told vividly and with compassion. Best consumed: slowly and with a comforting beverage of choice.

Order your copy of Sabrina & Corina from an indie bookstore!
Powell’s Books | Broadway Books | Annie Bloom’s Books | Bookshop


The Awakened Family: A Revolution in Parenting
by Shefali Tsabary, Ph.D.

Recommended by:
Jen Gurney
(she/her)

I found this parenting book to be incredibly empowering and normalizing. Its message is a good reminder that parents already have a wealth of patience and resilience inside of themselves to tap into, to help their families weather whatever challenges may come.

Order your copy of The Awakened Family from an indie bookstore!
Powell’s Books | Broadway Books | Annie Bloom’s Books | Bookshop
Or, if you’re like Jen and love audio books, check out OverDrive or Libro.fm.


His is a voice that makes you realize that your voice is the sound of your disappearing, which is our most common song. The knowledge of which, the understanding of which, the inhabiting of which, might be the beginning of a radical love.

Ross Gay, The Book of Delights

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