Within a few days of each other, a few colleagues shared similar versions of this sentiment: They were looking for something to read that was not full of trauma. I get it. Sometimes, you want to explore whatever it is that’s making things feel darker, but sometimes you just need to escape.
That’s where those colleagues are at the moment, and where we are today with ideas for things to read that supply pure, unfiltered joy: 'Orbital' By Samantha Harvey The current Booker Prize winner (it beat Percival Everett’s enthralling “James”) is all about shimmering prose and people living in harmony. “Orbital” is set during a day on the International Space Station, although “day” is a hazy concept there, since they speed through 15 dawns in 24 hours. Harvey’s sparkling prose describes our beautiful, border-less planet as it appears to the six astronauts, who are trained to lean into kindness and tolerance.
'Ferris' By Kate DiCamillo Honestly, any DiCamillo book is a joy machine, from her debut, “Because of Winn-Dixie,” up to last year’s “The Hotel Balzaar.” But “Ferris” (also from 2024) is my pick for her sweetest, tenderest work, in part because it’s light on conflict and heavy on a big-hearted family. Whether it’s the title character’s bonds with her grandmother, a teacher or her best pal, “Ferris” is a lovefest — which makes sense, since the writer said it was the love story she craved in the darkest days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
'Meaty'.
