Reading Week is coming up and what better time is there for sharing book recommendations? So we’ve asked our staff to share some of their all time favourite books to share!
Have any you like to share? or have a favourite book in common with one of staff? Share with us on Instagram by tagging us at @ifp_life!
Happy Reading Week!
Kendra recommends…
A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
“This is the first book in a trilogy that I re-read whenever I need something light and familiar. Witches, vampires, time-travel, history – what more could you want in a book?”
James recommends…
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
“Liesel likes to steal books. She is a little girl living in Nazi Germany at the start of World War II, who lives with her foster family. The book tells the story, narrated by Death, of what happens when the bombs start falling.”
Lily recommends…
Beartown by Fredrik Backman
Caroline recommends…
A Promised Land by Barack Obama
“This was a recent book that I enjoyed unexpectedly. It gave me a chance to re-look American politics from the viewpoint of a president and how hard it was in many cases that we never would see or hear about in the headlines. It is a insightful memoir, well-written with a great sense of humour and very vivid descriptions and easy read of running a country. Not being a politically interested person, I learnt a lot about the process and also about how collaborative Obama was and what he had to learn so quickly to make so many decisions.”
Tyson recommends…
The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood
“This is my favourite Atwood book. In fact, it’s part of a trilogy, so you too can enjoy 3x the story if you like this one. It takes place in the not-so-distant future, where a plague of some sort has changed life, but it’s not all dire. It’s a character-driven story also. I suggest reading this first, because although it’s the second in the series, it’s the first chronologically and made more sense to me to go first.”
Joanna recommends…
The Magicians Trilogy by Lev Grossman
“If you loved fantasy novels as a kid, you should read these books. If you hated them, you should also read them. These novels deal with a Harry Potter/ Narnia -like scenario, where certain characters have special powers that help them enter a magical land. However, these magic worlds are harsher and more realistic than the ones in the children’s books. Part of you will laugh at the way they satirize the Narnia style narrative; part of you will be gripped by the suspenseful plot. All in all, it’s a unique and immersive reading experience.”
Hanna recommends…
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
“Genre-bending, funny, deeply painful, and philosophical. This book changed my life when I first read it in university, and even pushed me to switch my major from science to English literature. Billy Pilgrim (the protagonist) is all of us; lost and trying to find our way through a world that feels upside down and fragmented. I read it again during lockdown and it still feels relevant today as it did when Vonnegut first wrote it.”
Tyler recommends…
Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris
“Whenever I need to laugh I go to David Sedaris, and this collection of short essays never disappoints me. It is a fun and easy read, but be careful not to laugh so hard that you wake others up in the middle of the night. I learned that lesson the hard way.”
Nao recommends…
Ghost by Paul Auster
Featured Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash
