4 Books to Get Us Through November
This time of year always makes me want to disappear into a cozy nook with a stack of books and not come out until April. With that in mind, and in the event that you might be feeling similarly, I thought I’d share 4 titles that are currently on my reading list and that I’m counting on to get me through the season of early lamps and long evenings.
It Girl: The Life and Legacy of Jane Birkin
by Melissa Meltzer
Released: October 7, 2025
The patron saint of effortless style. Mother of all muses. The blueprint for French-girl cool. I’ve been obsessed with Jane Birkin for as long as I can remember and I can’t wait to disappear into her world for a while.
“It Girl paints a vivid portrait of Birkin and her profound legacy, from her early years in 1960s London to her rise as a beloved celebrity in France, detailing personal challenges, her relationships with creative powerhouses, and the duality of her public and private selves. Based on interviews and deep archival research, Meltzer reveals the nuances of Birkin’s her famously tempestuous romantic relationships, life with her three famous daughters, and the creative energy that drove her. It Girl tells the story of her indelible impact on femininity and style, and how what we think of as French girl style grew from her. Far from being just a muse, Birkin is at last given her well-deserved due.”
Even the Good Girls Will Cry
by Melissa Auf der Maur
Release date: March 16, 2026
I’ve never met her, but many years ago, while visiting a mutual friend, I spent a few nights in Melissa Auf der Maur’s house in the Hudson Valley in New York. Her home was inspiring and intentional, much like Melissa herself. So when I recently saw that the former Hole bassist had written a memoir, I wasn’t surprised—just curious, and eager to see how her imaginative spirit will translate to the page.*
“Described as ‘part coming-of-age autobiography, part travel diary, part psychedelic scrapbook,’ the memoir documents the Canadian musician’s life growing up in Montreal to her big break touring with the Smashing Pumpkins, as well as joining Hole for the band’s 1994 Live Through This tour after the death of Kurt Cobain and succeeding Hole’s previous bassist, Kristen Plaff. It also features rare, behind-the-scenes photos spanning Auf de Maur’s career, which began with her first band, the Montreal-based alt-rock group Tinker. ”
*Melissa’s book doesn’t actually come out until next March but I thought I’d mention it all the same since most of us could use as many things to look forward to as possible.
My Twenty-Five Years in Provence: Reflections on Then and Now
by Peter Mayle
Released: May 28, 2019
Show me a book about expats in France that I would not want to read and I will show you an empty space because that is a book that does not exist.
“Twenty-five years ago, Peter Mayle and his wife, Jennie, were rained out of a planned two weeks on the Côte d’Azur. In search of sunlight, they set off for Aix-en-Provence; enchanted by the world and life they found there, they soon decided to uproot their lives in England and settle in Provence. They have never looked back. As Mayle tells us, a cup of café might now cost three euros—but that price still buys you a front-row seat to the charming and indelible parade of village life. After the coffee, you might drive to see a lavender field that has bloomed every year for centuries, or stroll through the ancient history that coexists alongside Marseille’s metropolitan bustle. Modern life may have seeped into sleepy Provence, but its magic remains.”
Cured: Strengthen Your Immune System and Heal Your Life
by Jeffrey Rediger, M.D.
Released: February 4, 2020
Last year, when I was in the thick of it with my lead poisoning, I listened to a bunch of podcasts that featured Dr. Jeffrey Rediger. His work is fascinating and surprising, and provided a ton of hope when I had very little.
If you know anyone struggling with health issues, I highly recommend sharing his work with them.
“When it comes to spontaneous healing, skepticism abounds. Doctors are taught that “miraculous” recoveries are flukes, and as a result they don’t study those cases or take them into account when treating patients.
Enter Dr. Jeffrey Rediger, who has spent over 15 years studying spontaneous healing, pioneering the use of scientific tools to investigate recoveries from incurable illnesses. Dr. Rediger’s research has taken him from America’s top hospitals to healing centers around the world―and along the way he’s uncovered insights into why some people beat the odds.
In Cured, Dr. Rediger digs down to the root causes of illness, showing how to create an environment that sets the stage for healing. He reveals the patterns behind healing and lays out the physical and mental principles associated with recovery: first, we need to physically heal our diet and our immune systems. Next, we need to mentally heal our stress response and our identities.
Through rigorous research, Dr. Rediger shows that much of our physical reality is created in our minds. Our perception changes our experience, even to the point of changing our physical bodies―and thus the healing of our identity may be our greatest tool to recovery.
Ultimately, miracles only contradict what we know of nature at this point in time. Cured leads the way in explaining the science behind these miracles, and provides a first-of-its-kind guidebook to both healing and preventing disease.Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.”
Bonus: This isn’t a book recommendation but, if you’re fond of design books, particularly the English country house variety, you may enjoy, as I very much did, this video of Kirsten of the channel Kirsten and Joerg, in which she shares her favourite English interiors’ books.