When my four siblings and I were little we had “quiet time” during the summer months. Our Mom would call us in from playing in the woods into the cool basement to read. We all remember “quiet time” with such tenderness. It fostered our love of books and reading. And so of course, I am so excited to compile a list of home-y books for you!
1. House as a Mirror of Self by Clare Cooper Marcus. Probably the best book about home and psychology that I have ever read. I love it, I reread it, I give it as gifts, I give it as prizes. It will help you understand your home as a psychoanalyst would understand a dream. There are case studies, drawings, photographs. Oh my, go get this one!
2. A Pattern Language by Christopher Alexander. OK, so this may not be a beach read per se, unless you are like my family members and lug five pound books to the beach. It’s a chunk of a book, but so interesting and easy to read. Alexander writes a very short ‘pattern’ for every facet of our living spaces, from super micro (shelves) to super macro (the cities in which we live), and gives a kind of Jungian description of how each facet should be designed or arranged along with the deeper emotional or psychological meaning. It’s not a cover-to-cover read, but so fun to just flip through and explore.
3. Cottage For Sale, Must Be Moved: A Woman Moves a House to Make A Home by Kate Whouley. Here’s the beach read! A sweet memoir about a woman who bought a small beach cottage and moved it 20 miles to attach it to her three room house on Cape Cod. I read this book years ago and it’s stayed with me. Lots of heart, intimacy, and construction details (for those interested in that kind of thing)!
4. The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. I resisted reading this book for a long time (what else could really be said about clutter clearing?). But, whoa! I’m glad I did. Kondo is all about asking “Does it spark joy?” and encourages us to ask it about our clothes, papers, kitchen tools, photos, jobs, relationships, and lives. And she says if it doesn’t spark joy, let it go. Amazing.
5. The Flower Recipe Book by Alethea Harampolis and Jill Rizzo. I don’t have a ton of time to read these days so I’ve taken to checking out books like this one from the library and paging through them while I drink tea and watch my baby crawl around the kitchen. The authors break it down into about 20 different varieties of flowers and tell you how to arrange them by themselves or as part of a bouquet. Flowers are the quickest and easiest way I have found to make my home feel amazing. My favorite tip from the book was to get little one-stem flower tubes and make bouquets in old vintage tins or wooden boxes. So fun.
Do you have other home-y book to add to the list? If so, drop me a line!
Happy Summer Reading!
In Home and Heart,
Anne
Anne, thanks for the summer reading list! You have a knack for recommending good reads 🙂
You betcha! Let me know if you check any of them out! 🙂