Love this! Since the start of the pandemic, which coincided with the start of a tricky family support worker job, I’ve only read romances. I was feeling overwhelmed and anxious and the genre made me feel good. Hopeful, comforted.
My annual reading has increased exponentially (think 90-130 books a year), which makes me excited. When friends and family ask what I’m reading, though, I feel embarrassed. I never want to mention a book by name (often I can’t remember their names, admittedly, as I listen to them so fast on Libby), and when asked what I’m into I say sheepishly, “the equivalent to fluffy rom coms,” as though they’re indulgent junk food. I really dislike that I do that, as I admire the work of the authors when I come across such a book that makes me swoon, feels unexpected, or is especially creative. I wish that the genre received greater respect, not only from the wider public, but also myself, their avid reader.
Yes, I’ve read Zadie Smith and Dave Eggers and Toni Morrison and Abraham Verghese and other books that I display proudly on my bookshelf and recommend frequently. (Actually, not the Zadie Smith; I never could get into Swing Time…) But just Friday, as I walked through an airport display, I found myself pretending not to look at the romances. Next time, I want to do so unabashedly. Life is short and I want to read/listen to the books I enjoy.
I keep my embarrassing books on their own shelf in the bedroom (far from the cool books) with their spines turned inwards so even I don't have to see them.
I am a full blooded Scorpio and I do not believe in guilty pleasures. If you like it, you like it. Authenticity is the most important thing to me, and books are the last thing we should feel guilty about! You are reading words that someone labored over, and that’s a mitzvah to them. (I am not Jewish but that word is applicable here.)
Love your books! And I’d be down for joining a Book Club.
We are in the process of staging our home to sell and I had the arduous task of thinning the bookshelf of anything political, religious, or otherwise polarizing. Not too many books fell into those categories but I did cull Come as You Are, You Can Heal Your Life, and The Menopause Manifesto. I'm not ashamed of these titles nor do I want them front and center for strangers to judge.
I feel you on all three of those (and likely would've made the same call)! I currently have not one but two copies of You Can Heal Your Life (a very old paperback and a special illustrated collector's edition) and both of them live...in the closet. I'm not ashamed! Louise changed the world. But it's too tender and important to expose to a visitor's scrutiny.
I have a book-related question... Can you please do a post on bookshelves? Where are these from? So hard to find good ones! I remember your wood shelves from one of the earlier NY apartments... those were nice too... :-)
Sure! I'd love that. I'm planning to share an apartment tour of sorts in the near future and I'll be sure to incorporate a focus on bookshelves. These are from CB2 (the tall stairway bookcase, I believe). The wood shelves are still here, too, and even my old Ikea Billy bookcases! :) Thanks for asking.
Totally on board for an embarrassing book club! I make a living writing embarrassing books (under a pen name which I will not reveal) -- and it's always fun to find out what readers consider "embarrassing."
YES to this book club! I'm so in! And no shame in anything indeed...just finished Ina's memoir and am working my way through All Fours, which is delighting me in unexpected ways.
What's embarrassing is how I let my minimalism get so out of hand, I DONATED most of a book collection roughly the size of yours. And now I have a complex that people visit and think I never read. LOL. I kept only my favorites and those I frequently reference. But at any given moment, there are 3-5 I'm reading concurrently on my Kindle...because that's just how my mimimalist GenX self (I hear Gen X'ers are the biggest Kindle readers?!) rolls.
Absolutely, count me in! I would love to embrace any and all embarrassing book suggestions. I’ve always wanted to be part of a book club but they all seemed so damn earnest, this sounds like much more my thing!
I'd be up for an embarrassing books book club. Might I suggest storygraph as a potential way to host an in progress read chat? The app has a feature that allows people to add their comments to a page number/% read of the book and then hides people's comments until you read that point of progress. It's very fun!
In in in! My recent foray into sexy fantasy is feeling embarrassing but lucky for me a couple friends are on the same “journey,” so it’s nice to dissect scenes together. Would love to engage with this fantastic group of Caroline followers.
I would love a book club :) I am realizing that I have *never* considered self-help books even remotely embarrassing but then again I've read about 50 of them. lol. (Should I be embarrassed?) Whenever I see someone out and about reading "The Power of Now" I think, good for them! The only book I have ever hidden in my house has not to do with me, but with others. (Very enneagram type 2 of me.) It was Lindsay Gibson's excellent but harshly titled "Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents" hidden for obvious reasons when parents or in-laws visit.
We recently edited our bookshelf and I found “He’s just not that into you” and was SO embarrassed not only that I had it but that I could not get rid of it! I remember my embarrassment in the early aughts but omg how revolutionary was it?!? I’m saving it for when my girls start dating! 😂😅
A bookstagrammer I follow recently described these types of books as "potato chip books" and it may be my favorite name for them—delicious, decadent, you can eat a whole bag if you want, but there's always that acknowledgement that there are other, perhaps more "nutrient dense" choices out there. It takes away the judgement and just makes it another choice.
All of that being said, YES to this book club idea.
And also thank you for the Queen of Cups. Everything about your interpretation was what I needed to hear.
Love this! Since the start of the pandemic, which coincided with the start of a tricky family support worker job, I’ve only read romances. I was feeling overwhelmed and anxious and the genre made me feel good. Hopeful, comforted.
My annual reading has increased exponentially (think 90-130 books a year), which makes me excited. When friends and family ask what I’m reading, though, I feel embarrassed. I never want to mention a book by name (often I can’t remember their names, admittedly, as I listen to them so fast on Libby), and when asked what I’m into I say sheepishly, “the equivalent to fluffy rom coms,” as though they’re indulgent junk food. I really dislike that I do that, as I admire the work of the authors when I come across such a book that makes me swoon, feels unexpected, or is especially creative. I wish that the genre received greater respect, not only from the wider public, but also myself, their avid reader.
Yes, I’ve read Zadie Smith and Dave Eggers and Toni Morrison and Abraham Verghese and other books that I display proudly on my bookshelf and recommend frequently. (Actually, not the Zadie Smith; I never could get into Swing Time…) But just Friday, as I walked through an airport display, I found myself pretending not to look at the romances. Next time, I want to do so unabashedly. Life is short and I want to read/listen to the books I enjoy.
I keep my embarrassing books on their own shelf in the bedroom (far from the cool books) with their spines turned inwards so even I don't have to see them.
Spine in! Hiding in plain sight. I salute you.
🤣
I am a full blooded Scorpio and I do not believe in guilty pleasures. If you like it, you like it. Authenticity is the most important thing to me, and books are the last thing we should feel guilty about! You are reading words that someone labored over, and that’s a mitzvah to them. (I am not Jewish but that word is applicable here.)
Love your books! And I’d be down for joining a Book Club.
Oh, and the Queen of Cups is my favorite card.
She’s just so good.
We are in the process of staging our home to sell and I had the arduous task of thinning the bookshelf of anything political, religious, or otherwise polarizing. Not too many books fell into those categories but I did cull Come as You Are, You Can Heal Your Life, and The Menopause Manifesto. I'm not ashamed of these titles nor do I want them front and center for strangers to judge.
I feel you on all three of those (and likely would've made the same call)! I currently have not one but two copies of You Can Heal Your Life (a very old paperback and a special illustrated collector's edition) and both of them live...in the closet. I'm not ashamed! Louise changed the world. But it's too tender and important to expose to a visitor's scrutiny.
I have a book-related question... Can you please do a post on bookshelves? Where are these from? So hard to find good ones! I remember your wood shelves from one of the earlier NY apartments... those were nice too... :-)
Sure! I'd love that. I'm planning to share an apartment tour of sorts in the near future and I'll be sure to incorporate a focus on bookshelves. These are from CB2 (the tall stairway bookcase, I believe). The wood shelves are still here, too, and even my old Ikea Billy bookcases! :) Thanks for asking.
Popping in with a similar version I purchased when CB2 was out of the lovely one Caroline has. I have it in white as well and I love how everything pops like "art" against white walls, if you have those. :) https://nathanjames.com/products/6-shelf-ladder-bookshelf-white?variant=41587410829398
Totally on board for an embarrassing book club! I make a living writing embarrassing books (under a pen name which I will not reveal) -- and it's always fun to find out what readers consider "embarrassing."
YES to this book club! I'm so in! And no shame in anything indeed...just finished Ina's memoir and am working my way through All Fours, which is delighting me in unexpected ways.
What's embarrassing is how I let my minimalism get so out of hand, I DONATED most of a book collection roughly the size of yours. And now I have a complex that people visit and think I never read. LOL. I kept only my favorites and those I frequently reference. But at any given moment, there are 3-5 I'm reading concurrently on my Kindle...because that's just how my mimimalist GenX self (I hear Gen X'ers are the biggest Kindle readers?!) rolls.
Staying tuned for book club details... :)
Absolutely, count me in! I would love to embrace any and all embarrassing book suggestions. I’ve always wanted to be part of a book club but they all seemed so damn earnest, this sounds like much more my thing!
I'd be up for an embarrassing books book club. Might I suggest storygraph as a potential way to host an in progress read chat? The app has a feature that allows people to add their comments to a page number/% read of the book and then hides people's comments until you read that point of progress. It's very fun!
Great suggestion! Thank you!
In in in! My recent foray into sexy fantasy is feeling embarrassing but lucky for me a couple friends are on the same “journey,” so it’s nice to dissect scenes together. Would love to engage with this fantastic group of Caroline followers.
1) yes I'd love to book club with you!
2) screw that bookstore "friend" - she's clearly so jealous of you!
I would love a book club :) I am realizing that I have *never* considered self-help books even remotely embarrassing but then again I've read about 50 of them. lol. (Should I be embarrassed?) Whenever I see someone out and about reading "The Power of Now" I think, good for them! The only book I have ever hidden in my house has not to do with me, but with others. (Very enneagram type 2 of me.) It was Lindsay Gibson's excellent but harshly titled "Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents" hidden for obvious reasons when parents or in-laws visit.
We recently edited our bookshelf and I found “He’s just not that into you” and was SO embarrassed not only that I had it but that I could not get rid of it! I remember my embarrassment in the early aughts but omg how revolutionary was it?!? I’m saving it for when my girls start dating! 😂😅
Yes, I would love to join in too! What a liberating idea 😅
A bookstagrammer I follow recently described these types of books as "potato chip books" and it may be my favorite name for them—delicious, decadent, you can eat a whole bag if you want, but there's always that acknowledgement that there are other, perhaps more "nutrient dense" choices out there. It takes away the judgement and just makes it another choice.
All of that being said, YES to this book club idea.
And also thank you for the Queen of Cups. Everything about your interpretation was what I needed to hear.
Yes please would love an Embarrassing Book Club!