Ah January, cold, dark, depressing and, unbelievably, still going on. Depending on who you listen to either yesterday or last Monday was Blue Monday, allegedly the most depressing day of the year. The date seems pretty much arbitrary but I can see their point.
So what to do to beat the January blues? It always seems to me that January is the very worst month of the year in which to form new year's resolutions, give up carbs, chocolate, alcohol or go on a fitness drive. These things should clearly be saved for the more pleasant spring months, when you actually want to go outside and do things or eat more healthily. January is a time to hunker down, eat lots of comfort food, wear cosy clothes, keep warm and, of course, indulge in a little bit of comfort reading. Preferably next to a roaring fire with a nice glass of red or a hot chocolate.
What constitutes comfort reading is a matter of individual taste but I guess it's anything you find reassuring, absorbing and will happily return to time and time again with the feeling of an old friend well-met. I would wager that old childhood classics would feature on many people's lists. Authors such as P.G. Wodehouse, Jilly Cooper, Terry Pratchett, Jane Austen, Georgette Heyer, Agatha Christie, Dick Francis and Katie Fforde probably also feature heavily. You will no doubt have your own - what's on your list?
My comfort reading holy trinity are Agatha Christie, Graham Greene and Evelyn Waugh. I obviously hanker back to a certain kind of Englishness.
Whatever yours might be, enjoy until it's safe to go outside again...
- Fiona
Image "Embraced by Words" by Robert van der Steeg
Mine would be Harry Potter Fiona :-)
Or any travel/moving abroad to somewhere warm type reads!
Posted by: Keri Gray | February 02, 2012 at 12:18 PM