Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

Set in the Puget Sound, Remarkably Bright Creatures, is a delightful story about Tova Sullivan and an Octopus named Marcellus. The story takes place at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, Sullivan’s home that has been in the family for generations, and along the water in this small tourist town in Washington State. Partially narrated by the eight-legged invertebrate, this is a story about family, friendship, and connection, all in a single delightful package.

Backyard Bird Chronicles by Amy Tan

In this beautifully illustrated book, Amy Tan welcomes readers into her backyard, embedding readers into the avian ecosystem that is right beyond her door. While not necessarily about a historic place, it is about a place that is meaningful to Tan, and her ruminations, as she looks for peace amidst a complicated world, provide a level of comfort for those looking for balance.

The Bookshop by Evan Friss

Ever wanted to learn more about your local bookstore? In this charming history by Evan Friss, readers are immersed into the history of these neighborhood institutions. Beginning with Benjamin Franklin in Philadelphia and ending with the transformation of bookstores in recent years, we are taken on a journey across the United States, exploring the people and the places that carry the written word. In addition to sharing the overarching history, Friss pulls from specific examples (some of which you may know and love), which makes this personal and relatable. I read this book as an audiobook and found the narration to be just as soothing as the history itself.

A Short Walk through a Wide World by Douglas Westerbrooke

While this story may not seem to fit in the “comfort” category, trust me on this. In 1885 a young woman is cursed to wander the earth after a condition forces her to not stay in one place for longer than a few days--on pain of death. The result is a journey of determination and survival, one that asks us to consider what is important as we define our lives. With some fantastical elements, Aubry Tourvel’s story was just what I needed on a cold winter night.

You Are Here: Poetry in the Natural World Edited by Ada Limón

Edited by Ada Limón, the former poet Laurette of the United States, this compilation includes fifty previously unpublished poems from contemporary writers. The focus of this short volume is landscapes, but despite the title, it is not limited to the landscape as nature, rather it examines the power of place in all its forms. My particular favorites are “Terroir” by Paul Tran and Carrie Fountain’s “You Belong to the World,” but really the entire collection offers respite with every page.

Human Nature by Kate Marvel

What I liked about Human Nature is that it is not your typical book about climate change. Instead of just focusing on science, Marvel digs deep into emotion, focusing each chapter on feelings such as fear, grief, wonder, and love. The result is a chronicle that draws on mythology, history, and the natural world while also giving us space to be curious about living on this changing planet.

Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers and Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man) by Jesse Q. Sutanto

For those of you who are a fan of our Backing Historic Small Restaurant program, these mysteries are for you. While not set in a historic restaurant per se, there are a lot of food references as tea shop owner Vera Wong navigates murders on the streets of San Francisco. The cast of characters are quirky, and while not entirely in the cozy mystery genre, there is a lightness about them. Book two was released in 2025.

The Lost Bride Trilogy by Nora Roberts

One of the most prolific authors out there, Nora Roberts is also a preservationist—there isn’t a single book of hers that doesn’t engage deeply with history, place, and in many cases, outright preservation work. This three-book series (The Inheritance, The Mirror, The Seven Rings), which recently concluded, follows Sonya MacTavish, who learns she has inherited a 200-year-old Victorian house in Maine. What ensues is a ghost story with a sizable mystery, stories of found family and friendship, and a little spice. The part I nerded out about? Roberts made sure that the inheritance came with a sizable trust to cover all maintenance and taxes. A preservationist’s dream!

The Harlem Trilogy by Colson Whitehead

With the third book in Colson Whitehead’s Harlem Saga due out in 2026, we thought revisiting the first two books this winter might be a good idea. This series (Harlem Shuffle, Crook Manifesto, The Cool Machine), which Bookshop describes as “Kaleidoscopic portrait of Harlem,” follows Ray Carney, a small business owner in the 1960s, and his family through three different decades. Filled with historical beats, this trilogy is perfect for anyone who wants to dig into the stories of a single neighborhood over time and the people who gave it life. Book 3 will be released in 2026.

All the Beauty in the World: The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Me, by Patrick Bringley

While set inside one of the most well-known art museums in the world, this book is for the curious and for those who love old buildings and museums of all kinds. Following his older brother’s cancer diagnosis, Patrick Bringley joins the Met’s museum guard team to escape and process, and over the next ten years builds a community while expanding his understanding about art and history. With an audiobook narrated by the author, this memoir covering his ten years as a guard is also, by the nature of the institution’s collection, global in scale as it talks about how places can provide meaning in unexpected ways.

Psychopomp and Circumstance by Eden Royce

Eden Royce’s novella is more than it seems. Set in an imagined Post-Reconstruction era South, this is a story of a young woman, Phee St. Margaret, who goes against her family’s wishes to organize the funeral for an estranged aunt. If that sounds simple, it isn’t. This story is complex (and if you like learning about new worlds with little explanation, this is for you) and touches on important themes such as family, ritual, tradition, grief, and an understanding that places can change you.

Nothing More of This Land: Community, Power, and the Search for Indigenous Identity

In Nothing More of This Land, Joseph Lee uses his own story as a member of the Aquinnah Wampanoag tribe to share a different side of Martha’s Vineyard, known as Noep by his people. Having grown up in Boston, Lee would visit Martha’s Vineyard in the summers when he worked at his parent’s store. His search for identity (which includes being a descendant of Japanese and Chinese immigrants), serves as a jumping off point to other stories of Indigenous life around the world, building connections while also emphasizing the diversity within Indigenous communities.

Accidental Vineyard by Richard Moran

This book is for everyone who dreams of owning their own historic house. Richard Moran’s memoir chronicles his family’s adventure of owning their own vineyard, a place they stumbled upon during a drive intended to soothe their young son. After a year of consideration they made the leap, changing their lives forever. But shifting from days in Silicon Valley to hands-on-preservation isn’t easy, and the Accidental Vineyard shares the Morans’ journey from restoring the home to planting the vines, and the connections they build along the way

North Woods by Daniel Mason

North Woods is at once incredibly expansive, but also deeply personal. Following the threads of history surrounding one place, Mason explores the story of generations of humans throughout history. This is at times a detective novel feeding us information using documents and letters, but is also about the changing natural world. However, don’t expect a straightforward story, as the North Woods holds a spark of fantasy and magic that reveals itself in unexpected ways.

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