A memoir that lingers, a Prix Goncourt winner set across twentieth-century Italy, and a novel built entirely from letters.
Three books have kept me company lately — different in almost every way, but each one the sort I finished and immediately wanted to talk about. If you are looking for something to carry you through a quiet week or a long flight, start here.
Belle Burden · 4.2 on Goodreads
Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage
Belle Burden's memoir is a candid and moving exploration of love, loss, and the complexities that can exist within a marriage. Written with remarkable honesty, she reflects on the life she shared with her husband while uncovering painful truths that emerged after their relationship unravelled.
Rather than simply a story of heartbreak, it becomes a meditation on identity, resilience, and the unknowable aspects of the people closest to us. Thoughtful, elegant and deeply human — a memoir that lingers long after the final page.
Jean-Baptiste Andrea, tr. Frank Wynne · Prix Goncourt
Watching Over Her
Winner of the Prix Goncourt, Watching Over Her is a sweeping and beautifully constructed novel following the life of a gifted sculptor navigating twentieth-century Italy. Rich in atmosphere, history, art and emotion, it tells an unforgettable story of ambition, creativity and enduring love.
Andrea's storytelling is immersive and transporting, while Frank Wynne's translation captures both the novel's lyricism and its warmth. A remarkable literary achievement, and one of the most memorable novels I've read this year.
The one for a long flight. You will not notice the hours.
Virginia Evans · 4.5 on Goodreads
The Correspondent
Virginia Evans delivers a charming and deeply satisfying novel built around the art of letter writing. Through the correspondence of the unforgettable Sybil Van Antwerp, the story explores friendship, family, regret, forgiveness, and the ways we connect across emotional distances.
Warm, witty and quietly profound, it celebrates meaningful communication in an increasingly hurried world. Readers who love character-driven fiction will find a great deal to enjoy in this intelligent and heartfelt debut.
“A meditation on identity, resilience, and the unknowable aspects of the people closest to us.
Read whichever matches your week — the memoir for a quiet one, the Goncourt for a long flight, the letters for when you need cheering.
And tell me what you're reading. I'm always looking for the next one.
— Reyna Harilela
Cover images courtesy of the publishers