What's on Our Bookshelf? Autumn Reading List

Photo by Jędrzej Ugorenko on Unsplash

One thing we all love at Hearts+Minds is a good book and so we’re always on the hunt for another read to add to our bookshelf. In this new series on the blog, we’re delighted to share our reading recommendations with you. Whatever your genre of choice, we’ve tried to include something for everyone.

Fiction

There are so many novels out there that make perfect autumnal reading; the kind that makes us want to curl up in front of the fire, tea in one hand, book in the other. 
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott could easily be dismissed as a children’s classic but it’s a great autumn read set in the Civil War era of American history. It follows the twists and turns of the family life of the four March sisters but it’s much more than just a sentimental and domestic read. The journey into womanhood of these four girls (and all the complexities that come with it) is one the reader becomes heavily invested in. 

When we head into October, you might want a read with a spooky edge. Everyone knows the famous detective Sherlock Holmes, even if you’re never read one of Arthur Conan Doyle’s books. One of his most famous mysteries, The Hound of the Baskervilles, is a good place to start; a tale of a savage, ghostly hound on the wild and misty English countryside.

Personal development 

The self help genre has exploded in recent years and there are excellent reads out there if we know where to find them. We might find we need to filter through those reads that promise instant results but are actually mostly filler. 

Atomic Habits by James Clear is one of the self help classics and on reading you’ll see why. I’m revisiting it again this month as we head into another school year - a time of year I always associate with starting afresh.

Spiritual reading

Why not consider adding some spiritual reading to your list to feed your soul as well as your mind? Reading has made many saints and no matter where you are on your spiritual journey, there is a book out there for you. 

An excellent one to start with is Home Again: A Prayerful Rediscovery of your Catholic Faith by Fr John Henry Hanson. His writing is both practical and poetic and in this book he offers us the chance to rediscover not only what it means to be human, but what it means to be a child of God.

For some steps to get started on your spiritual reading plan, check out this episode of the podcast and download our FREE spiritual reading guide.

Children’s reading

“It was a fine autumn. The blackberries were ripe and the nuts were ready, and the mice of Brambly Hedge were very busy.”

We’ve featured the Brambly Hedge series by Jill Barklem before in previous reading lists and Autumn Story is no less beautiful than its other seasonal counterparts. Nothing says cosy like the world Barklem creates for these little mice in the glorious illustrations in Brambly Hedge. Your child will adore pouring over the detail in the illustrations, and the adventures of Primrose the mouse (with just the right amount of risk for tiny readers) will leave your child longing for their own Autumn adventure through the woods.

We’d love to hear your reading suggestions for this season? What’s on your list?