On Our Radar: Fall Books To Peruse Now

Managing editor Brooke Klauer is sharing the books she is currently coveting—the list is long and full of thought-provoking reads to take us well into fall. 

Can you feel the crisp air? The turning of a season may mean many things, but one I always look forward to is a crop of new books to delight in. From personal essays to investigative journalism at its finest to delightful and delicious cookbooks, here are a few new reads on the proverbial bedside list:

The Testaments
by Margaret Atwood
My mom and I attended the one-night-in-theaters live interview with Atwood this week, and I can now confirm that she is one hell of a woman. Smart, sassy, well-spoken, unfettered, and eternally optimistic, she is perpetually relevant. Atwood's work is a dialogue with the world and The Testaments is no different. This one tops the to-read list. (And if you haven't already, may I implore you to read The Handmaid's Tale, a modern classic.)

Enough: Notes From A Woman Who Has Finally Found It
by Shauna M. Ahern (released 10/7)
A collection of fierce and oftentimes funny personal essays on finding joy and living in the world of mostly enough. Ahern chronicles her life's arc of submitting to feeling "not good enough" and what she discovers when she finally rages against this refrain. Her enduring motto is found: enough pretending. (Same!) I can't wait to absorb her candor and truth.

Cannelle et Vanille: Nourishing, Gluten-Free Recipes for Every Meal and Mood
by Aran Goyoago (released 9/24) 
Our beautiful friend Aran Goyoago has created a delightfully elegant cookbook brimming with 100 recipes that explain how to bring more joy and mindfulness into the kitchen. She encourages connection around the table through family-friendly meals that are unfussy yet oh-so-satisfying. Very her, as you well know—revisit the wisdom and recipes she's shared with us over the years. 

She Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a Movement 
by Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey
From the Pulitzer Prize-winning reporters who broke the news of Harvey Weinstein's sexual harassment and abuse for the New York Times, this engrossing read goes behind-the-scenes to tell their version of the events leading up to the story's break. Their investigation and its consequences for the #MeToo movement are explored— and I found myself holding my breath even though I knew well the outcome. 

Where to Begin: A Small Book About Your Power to Create Big Change in Our Crazy World
by Cleo Wade (released 10/8)
Wade, as always, says it best: "Where to Begin is a collection of the ideas, mantras, and poems I turn to when I feel like I am losing it. I wrote this so that I could put them all in one place when I felt overwhelmed by worry, fear, anxiety, or helplessness." She is one of my go-to authors for a solid dose of perspective and pick-me-up, of beauty and strength. I for one cannot wait for this release—and plan on gifting it to many. 

The Only Plane In The Sky: An Oral History of 9/11
by Garrett M. Graff
Like many, I can tell you exactly where I was when I watched the towers fall. As a freshman in college, newly shipped off across the country to a unknown domain with barely-there friends in a new community, it felt devastating and deafeningly alone. Which is barely a scrape compared to the many who experienced real loss. Graff's visceral oral history of the attacks is emotional and telling, terrible and confusing—just like the day itself. A poignant read for all.

For The Love of Men: A New Vision For Mindful Masculinity
by Liz Plank
With activism on my mind, I picked this up vaguely interested, but was instantly intrigued—especially by Plank's anecdote about equality: "I just think there's a better way of talking about gender equality that makes men feel like they have a stake in the fight too." Agreed. Looking forward to reading more, and sharing with the men in my life.

American Royals
by Katharine McGee
And for a bit of fun, I can't wait to dive into the fantastical—and completely addictive, says book reviewers—world of an American royal family, where "the glittering age of monarchies has not yet faded—and where love is still powerful enough to change the course of history." Count me in.