Finally Fall Book Tag 2020
The first days of the most wonderful time of the year are behind us, which means I’m a little overdue for this year’s edition of the Finally Fall Book Tag.
Note: As far as I know, the booktuber Tall Tales created this tag, but their channel currently has no videos listed so I cannot link the original tag video.
In fall, the air is crisp and clear: Name a book with a vivid setting.
Peace Adzo Medi’s ability to incorporate setting in His Only Wife is incredibly admirable; whether the characters were in an apartment kitchen or in an outdoor market I felt like I was right there.
Nature is beautiful… but also dying: Name a book that is beautifully written, but also deals with a heavy topic like loss or grief.
The Mountains Sing by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai deals with not just loss and grief within a family, but throughout a country.
Fall is back to school season: Share a non-fiction book that taught you something new.
I don’t read enough non-fiction for something to come to mind for this prompt. So I will refer you to my 2018 and 2019 answers: The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan and Tinderbox: The Untold Story of the Up Stairs Lounge Fire and the Rise of Gay Liberation by Robert W. Fieseler.
In order to keep warm, it’s good to spend some time with the people we love: Name a fictional family/household/friend-group that you’d like to be a part of.
Currently I want to be part of Eliana’s close circle of friends and followers (Fires of the Faithful by Naomi Kritzer), playing music, discussing faith and purpose, and fighting against injustice.
The colourful leaves are piling up on the ground: Show us a pile of fall-colored spines!
Fall is the perfect time for some storytelling by the fireside: Share a book wherein somebody is telling a story.
Based on the first and last chapters, as well as a couple of retrospective comments sprinkled throughout the narration by protagonist Charles Hayward: Crooked House by Agatha Christie.
The nights are getting darker: Share a dark, creepy read.
I’m Thinking of Ending Things by Iain Reid; although not what I would consider dark at the beginning, it gets more so as the story progresses (it is creepy throughout, however).
The days are getting colder: Name a short, heartwarming read that could warm up somebody’s cold and rainy day.
I don’t read a lot of these types of books (recommendations, anyone?), but my mind is going to Like Nothing Amazing Ever Happened by Emily Blejwas. It really shouldn’t for the fact that the book revolves around a tragic event, but the various relationships in the story are incredibly hopeful, touching, and heartwarming—I’m tearing up right now thinking back to them. Anyway, I do think it’s a great book to read on a cold and rainy day, and by the final page could bring most readers warm feelings.
Fall returns every year: Name an old favorite that you’d like to return to soon.
There are so many, and I am returning to a few “old” favorites this fall. But other than the ones on that list, I want to revisit The Italian by Ann Radcliffe (I actually wanted to read this back in January, yikes/typical). And what better time of year to read the mother of English Gothic fiction?
Fall is the perfect time for cozy reading nights: Share your favorite cozy reading “accessories”!
Once again, my favorites haven’t changed: a soft fleece blanket, a cozy sweatshirt, apple spice and pumpkin pie candles, my favorite fall/pumpkin spice coffee (not an ad), a notebook and pencil, and some fall dessert (baked by yours truly).
Spread the autumn appreciation and tag some people!
If your favorite season is Fall, consider yourself tagged!
4 Comments
Diana
Great post! You really put me into this wonderful autumn-vibe! I have recently seen the film “I’m Thinking of Ending Things” and though it did not impress me at all, I realised how ideas there could work wonderfully in the book. So, I am now looking forward to reading the book by Iain Reid. I am sure it is much better than the film. And, you are right, it is perfect time for Agatha Christie – will probably re-read “Crooked House” this autumn.
Kelsey @ There's Something About KM
I am nervous about watching the I’m Thinking of Ending Things film because I really don’t think it could live up to the book…the book is just that good. I hope you enjoy it! And this year has been a year for Agatha Christie audiobooks for me – Crooked House has been a favorite.
Diana
I haven’t yet read the book I’m Thinking of Ending Things, but don’t think the film lives up to the text – far from it. What I noticed is that the book must have a lot of internal struggles, thoughts, imagination and characters’ reminiscing – that was very difficult to translate to the screen. Kaufman, the director, tried to employ voice-overs and put forward other creative ideas, but it just came off as forced, pretentious and artificial. A pity really since it was my most anticipated film of 2020.
Kelsey @ There's Something About KM
That’s exactly where my hesitation comes from – the book narration is very internalized, and I think with a mind that is not Iain Reid’s, the story would be different in too many ways. And what makes this story so affecting is the exact way Iain Reid wrote it. Sometimes (often?) a story is just meant to be preserved in book/the original author’s form. Thank you for sharing your thoughts!!