Rainy days come in many shapes and forms. Life can be tough and things happening around you may bring you down to drown but books can be a source of solace and light. It can lift your spirit high. Here are five books for those kinds of rainy days.
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke won the Women's Prize for Fiction in 2021 and rightly so. This book tells the story of Piranesi in a world that is strange with many big halls. The world has a sea that runs beneath the halls which comes high during the tides. The misty world above is a blur and uncharted territory. Piranesi spends most of his time in the halls with the statues. There are rooms that he is yet to explore and discover in this world.
The story starts with such intrigue and the world is totally strange. We wonder how Piranesi got there and why is he alone? As the story moves on, we see 'the other' come into the picture.
What I love about the book is our hero Piranesi. He is one of my favourite characters in a book. I've never come across a person who is so endearing and lovely. The way he appreciates and adapts to the situation or places he is in is something we need in our own life. Indeed like Piranesi says time and again, 'the beauty of the house is immeasurable, its kindness infinite'. Read this and you will comprehend its meaning.
A fantasy book can be an amazing escapism. The world it takes you to and the journey of our heroes, one can never get tired of it. The Mistborn series consists of three books: The Final Empire; The Well of Ascension; and The Hero of Ages. This series is well-loved by many fantasy nerds on YouTube and rightly so. This book is simply amazing.
We are introduced to a world that is dark, sombre and almost medieval. Ashes fall from the sky, plants are brown, the sun cannot be seen, and the evil Lord Ruler rules the world with an iron fist. Among the Skaa, enslaved for thousand years, rebellion ensues and hope for a new world is at the heart of our heroes.
Once you start on this epic journey, it is very difficult to put a break. This book has a huge cast of characters, all important. At the heart of it is Vin, a Mistborn, who ties all of them together.
The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki won the Women’s Prize for Fiction in 2022. Her books have a unique blend of fiction and non-fictional world coming together. The Tale of Time Being does that excellently.
This book is about a young boy Benny and his mother, overcoming loss and grief in their own ways. It's also a story about Benny and his book. The book, who is strangely the narrator of the story we read.
While Benny’s mother resorts to hoarding, Benny starts hearing voices from things. The fact that there are so many things in their home does not make it easy for Benny.
Ruth being a Zen Buddhist, we see elements of Zen teachings woven into the story.
While the story of grief and loss is most of the time melodramatic and never an easy read, this book is very uplifting, playfully narrated and almost fantastical.
Going into this book, I had no idea what it was all about. ‘Why Fish don’t exist', a very strange and enticing title.
In this book, Lulu Miller explore the story of David Starr Jordan, a taxonomist. He is an important figure who is credited for discovering nearly a fifth of the fish known to humans in his day. The story explores the good, the bad, and the ugly. However, when I came out of this book, I felt a fresh new perspective and a sense of burden removed from me. I had a similar feeling when I read ‘Tracks’ by Robyn Davidson. I don't know if it was the intention of the book, but I started feeling hope and connection with the world and everything and every being in it.
This may not be a book for everyone. It is very graphic and extreme. It takes what we do in depression to an extreme point, therefore I recommend this with much caution.
The story starts with Lucy hitting rock bottom with her relationship and her career coming to an end. A series of mishaps follow. She moves in with her sister who charge her with the task of caring for their sick dog. She also meets with Dominic, an eerie and mysterious swimmer.
As we watch her go from one extreme to another, the question remains, will she find peace? Will she come to the other side? I couldn’t help rooting for her despite one very despicable thing she does (not spoiling anything here).
This book is written so amazingly that all pages jump into life leaving a lasting image in your head, be them good, be them bad.
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