5 Books For Your News-Amplified Winter Blues
By Nina Luther
The winter blues are here, and some people, like myself, a woman with chronic depression and anxiety, feel it deeply. The antidepressants may not give you the usual cheer-up you need, or you may miss the free vitamin D of summer. All you have the energy to do is lie around and stare at your phone and see what new horrors await our country…
There’s value in rest, though. So while you’re lounging with a hot cup of cocoa, here is a list of five books that you can read instead of doomscrolling. I have found these to be comforting and hopeful during these cold, scary times.
1. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
I read this novel while I was in Spain during the transition from fall to winter. I would sit in front of a nice Gothic castle daily, and it was the perfect atmosphere for a gloomy book like Jane Eyre. Though it may be moody and somewhat creepy (especially one particular scene in the novel), it has a beautiful ending, and life could never be as hard for us as it was for a sad orphan like Jane Eyre. Even with the tragedies of Jane Eyre, Brontë creates such beautiful scenery that you’ll find yourself romanticizing the brutal cold.
2. Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times by Katherine May
May’s own personal tragedy sets the score for tough lessons on the importance of taking care of yourself, especially after it’s too late. Her life changes almost overnight (relatable), and she gives a fresh perspective on winter and the necessity of transformation. We’re but animals, and this is our hibernation where we accept the oncoming emotions of sadness, feeling stuck, and needing a change.
3. Writers & Lovers by Lily King
I bought this book while taking a solo trip to New York City in the fall. It was still warm and humid, to be honest, but Writers & Lovers honestly felt like a godsend. I was mourning a life I would never have and feeling particularly lonely in my early 20s. It’s been years since I opened the book, but I think about it frequently and how much I resonated with Casey and her ability to turn grief into hope.
4. Fair Play by Tove Jansson
Jansson is just the best, and if you haven’t watched any of the Finnish cartoon she wrote and illustrated, Moomin, you really must (it’s free on YouTube)! This novel of short vignettes is mostly based on her and her partner's late-life living on an isolated island. They are writers and artists, and to be honest, it’s generally not eventful– they take a trip to Phoenix, get lost in the fog on their boat, and find themselves stuck in their home during a seasonal storm. It’s comforting, like watching a married couple traverse life where nothing could go that wrong.
5. How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy by Jenny Odell
This is for the hopeless activists unsure of where to go from here. I have read this book twice and will surely read it a third time before the end of this election term. Odell gets down to the nitty-gritty of the toll newer technologies have taken on our attention and ability to fight back. She digs back into history, like how during the Vietnam War, “hippies” all over America attempted to start their own communes, ultimately butting up against a lifelong indoctrination of hierarchies and prejudice. She also tells us how to battle this, especially with the power of nature, our best example of resistance. I guarantee you’ll walk away from this book fresh, suddenly aware of your surroundings and the practices we keep that ultimately leave us detached from injustice and our communities.
