What are you up to this weekend? Around here, we’re planning on watching football and enjoying a last family meal or two before another daughter heads back to college. Plus I just started a great book last night, and I’m hoping to finish it before the weekend is over.
I hope you have something to look forward to these next few days, and that this collection of interesting reads and favorite things helps ease you into that weekend frame of mind.
My favorite finds from around the web:
I offer gift links for articles whenever possible (you may still need to create an account with the publication); if there’s no gift link and you’re not a subscriber, check to see if your library carries the publication or use a bookmarking service.
250 years of Austen, 200 million TikTok views, and one very skeptical fifth-grader. (LA Times) “Austen novels encourage reading and rereading, as well as contemplation. She makes ordinary women feel extraordinary, that we are the main characters of our own story. She formalizes that and gives us a reason to believe it.”
What worked for me in 2025. (MMD) A simple year-end reflection that produced a long list of good things from a rough year.
A Virginia woman’s epic paper napkin collection is being preserved. (Washington Post) I love reading about people’s bonkers collections. “LaRoy built a collection that is head-shaking in its scope, from the elegant to the everyday, offering an intimate view into the life of one woman and a remarkable window into decades of American history and social change.”
Tayari Jones’s Healing Words. (Publishers Weekly) “After An American Marriage was released, Jones worried she’d peaked. ‘I believe that to write a book is a gift from God,’ she says. ‘I thought, Who am I to ask God for another one?'” I’m so excited for her new novel Kin, coming in February.
One Weird Trick to Feel More Relaxed at Home. (Atlantic gift link) “I have a very modest proposal—a quick, easy solution that I swear will have the highest emotional payoff for the least physical effort: Clear your countertops.”
I shared my personal favorites in this week’s episode of WSIRN: Anne’s best books of 2025. (What Should I Read Next?)
Repeat After Me: Aquaphor Is Not a Moisturizer. (NYT Wirecutter) “Think of it as the cling wrap of skin care.” This is strongly related to a personal care entry in what worked for me in 2025.
This Creamy Cajun-Style Chicken Pasta (NYT Cooking gift link) was easy to make on a weeknight but felt like special occasion food.
What is ‘being old,’ and what is just ‘movement debt. (She’s a Beast) “I believe a lot of people would jump to age as the problem here, but permit me some space to cope. I’ve been wanting to put this idea into words for a while, but I’ve wondered lately how much of ‘feeling old’ in the body is due to just having a debt of practice, versus some actual ceiling of ability.” This is an old piece but seeing as I was just telling Will I think about it constantly, I’m finally linking it here.
TV Show Book Adaptations Arriving In 2026 So Far. (Deadline) Which ones are you looking forward to?
Poppy’s ‘People We Meet on Vacation’ Costumes Combine Vintage, Rom-Com References, and Emily Henry Easter Eggs. (Marie Claire) “Designer Colin Wilkes treated each destination like a “character”—and a chance to show off Poppy’s character development.”
Keeping SAD at bay. (MMD) Shannan’s hard-earned tips for coping with Seasonal Affective Disorder.
The Unexpected Benefits of Reading at Random. (Literary Hub) “I started off by picking up books from the library in the tube station near my house, swapping ones I’d read for whatever caught my eye.”
What To Do If You Miss Your Christmas Tree. (Nesting Place) I’ve read this every January for several years now. Do you notice your house feeling sad, empty, or lifeless with the tree gone? Here’s why, and what to do next.
Don’t miss these posts:
7 cozy fantasy novels for when you need a comforting escape. For you want to cozy up with a good read.
10 books with satisfying endings that come full-circle. I love when an author sticks the landing.
20 extra-long audiobooks so you can get the most out of those credits.
Have a great weekend!
12 comments
I just love your photo at the top of this post!
Agree! The photos that go with Links I Love are always lovely, but this one is especially nice. Whoever chooses these has a great eye for design and composition.
I have just finished the very long and excellent nonfiction audiobook of Douglas Brinkley’s “American Moonshot: John F. Kennedy and the Great Space Race,” which I never would have finished in print, and have started a lighter nonfiction audiobook, Mariah Fredericks’ “The Wharton Plot.”
What great book are you reading?
That question came to me too! Hopefully we are going to read about it soon!
Love the picture at the top, as well.
I hate to be coy but it’s potentially for the Summer Reading Guide so mum’s the word for now! But it’s by one of my favorite authors. 🙂 -a
Nothing to do with today’s post, but I’m listening to an audio book – “Entitled to Kill” by ACF Bookens and was startled to hear the main character say she was considering starting a book match-making service which was inspired by a favorite podcast – What Should I Read Next. Anne is not mentioned, but this tickled me so much, I had to share. 🙂
Re cozy fantasy, I just listened to The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar and it was a lovely start to my reading year. Audio is absolutely the way to enjoy this lovely fairytale-esque book! It’s not so much a narration as it is an immersive performance with music, singing, and sound effects. According to the description, the author and her sister play all the music and the narrator does all the singing. And did I mention that the magic in this world is *grammar*?! I love the underlying theme that love between sisters is more important than that between lovers. There’s also a compelling short story from the author’s next book.
Anne,
I just read this article from NPR and am wondering whether you have additional insight on this: https://www.mprnews.org/story/2026/01/09/npr-libraries-books-distributor-closing?utm_campaign=The_Thread_Newsletter+20260109&utm_medium=email&utm_source=sfmc_&utm_content=
I feel so seen on missing my Christmas tree!! I thought it was just me. Thank you for sharing.
The article about “aging” vs. being out of practice resonates with me. I was just listening to a podcast that was discussing how, if we continue with the same movement/diet/habits from our younger years as we get older, there’s no biological reason that we shouldn’t be able to do the same reps, distance, time, etc. in our 40s, 50s, 60s that we did in our 20s. It’s simply a change in lifestyle and habits. That was eye-opening for me.
I enjoyed several of these literary links, but Aquafor (what?!), & clean countertops, so fun. “A Fine Balance” is a huge, beautiful book, love seeing it mentioned.
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