4th Day of Christmas

I drove home today. Stew and I stayed up too late last night doing random things like investigating steam clouds coming from college buildings and watching episodes of castle. That meant that I woke up at 11 am instead of 9 am, as I had originally planned, and ended up getting on the road around the same time I had been planning to arrive. It didn't really make a difference though. The 3.5 hour trip went by pretty quickly... I listened to my ipod and got to sing really loudly to songs I probably wouldn't play if stewart had been with me... but I still missed driving with him :)

My dad got home pretty soon after I did and we drank tea and made a fire and chatted until my mom got home. Then the three of us ordered some take out from Chi's, our fave chinese place. We all picked it up together and ate (sooo delicious...) and talked for a bit. Now they're out in the family room watching an episode of The Good Wife and I'm in my bedroom being a good blogger and posting my day of christmas post :)

Since today was a long day of travel (and I'm sure it was for some of you, or will be in the next few days), I'm planning on having a nice, cozy, warm night in. And what better to go with that idea than a good book to read? In tonight's post I'm going to recommend five different books to you that I find to be particularly enjoyable to read during the holidays or when I want to curl up inside away from the cold weather. Pick one or more of them up at the public library and bring it along to read on the airplanes/car ride, during downtime on christmas, or whenever the weather outside is particularly frightful.

1. Any Agatha Christie Book

There's nothing quite like curling up in bed with a good murder mystery novel, is there? I love getting absorbed in the intricate stories and trying to put together the pieces of the puzzle. My fam has a huge box of these because my mom and her sisters were big fans when they were younger. They're short but very good reads.

2. Rumi's Book of Love

 Poetry can be really wonderful to read on a calm, quiet night. My mom bought this book for me a couple years ago and I just love it. Rumi's poetry is so beautiful and doesn't have the excessive frills that can make some poetry difficult to understand or enjoy. His words are simple and full of wisdom.

3. The Notebook

Who doesn't like a good romance novel? Most people have only seen the film version of The Notebook, and everyone has an opinion about it that they're determined to stick to. I encourage you to forget about these opinions for a moment and go pick up the book, because, as is usually the case, it has much more to offer than the movie. I first read it when I was 14 and I absolutely loved it, but I don't think this book is restricted to adolescent girls alone (the movie on the other hand...). Anyways, it's the kind of guilty pleasure novel that anyone with a general fondness for romance can enjoy.

4. Rootabaga Stories

My Aunt gave me these books when I was younger and I loved them. They're meant for children, but they're so fun and quirky and interesting that I think adults could enjoy them too. I still do, anyways. I think reading a couple on a cold wintery night would be a very pleasant way to pass the time.

5. The Time Traveler's Wife

I just had to include this book because it's what I'm going to be curling up with tonight! I have less than a hundred pages left (it has about 550 I believe) and I'm pretty sure this is going to become my new favorite book. It's such an amazing story- the movie makes it mostly about henry and clare's love story, which is definitely present (and then some) in the book, but it's also a story about their family, their separate lives, henry's condition, their friends, chicago... so many things. It's so beautiful. It's the kind of book that makes me want to become a writer and create something just as beautiful of my own. Agh. It's just so good, and so captivating, and so enjoyable to read.

I hope out of those few books you can find one to spend some time with this season... or, maybe you already have a book you're enjoying! if you do, tell me what it is so that I can check it out :)

<3 Em