Welcome to The Tearoom

    • 5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      Some novels remind us that starting over can take many forms. From unexpected adventures to difficult transformations, these five books explore characters whose lives are changed by circumstances they never expected—and the possibility of…

    • How to Choose Your Next Book

      How to Choose Your Next Book

      You’ve finished a book you loved, and now you’re staring at your shelves wondering what could possibly come next. When you have dozens—or hundreds—of unread books, choosing can become surprisingly difficult. Here are a…

    • How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      Want to read more books without turning your reading life into another obligation? A few simple changes can make it easier to find your way back to the stories you love—from letting yourself read…

    • 5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      Some novels do more than tell us a story—they take us somewhere. As summer gives way to September, these five literary holidays offer a little more time in Italy, France, Guernsey, the English countryside,…

    • Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      As a woman without children, I felt many times that I have no voice in the matter, either way. But I have friends with children who are very happy, and childfree friends who are…

    • No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      The Light on Farallon Island is a Gothic story about disappearance, reinvention, and the impossibility of leaving the past behind. But its remote island setting made me think of something stranger than ghosts: the…

    • You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      When a reader becomes accustomed to devouring novels over the course of hours, it becomes something of an expectation that every book which sounds promising will have the same effect. When we come across…

    • A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      Have you ever felt a little out of place when telling someone that your idea of a vacation is curling up in bed with a paperback? Have you ever had the sensation that few…

    • Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Before writing Into the Light, Carstens spent time as an au pair in Paris—a chapter of her life that would become part of the story she tells. In this interview, we talk about her…

    5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

    5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

    Some novels remind us that starting over can take many forms. From unexpected adventures to difficult transformations, these five books explore characters whose lives are changed by circumstances they never expected—and the possibility of…

    • 5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      Some novels remind us that starting over can take many forms. From unexpected adventures to difficult transformations, these five books explore characters whose lives are changed by circumstances they never expected—and the possibility of…

    • How to Choose Your Next Book

      How to Choose Your Next Book

      You’ve finished a book you loved, and now you’re staring at your shelves wondering what could possibly come next. When you have dozens—or hundreds—of unread books, choosing can become surprisingly difficult. Here are a…

    • How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      Want to read more books without turning your reading life into another obligation? A few simple changes can make it easier to find your way back to the stories you love—from letting yourself read…

    • 5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      Some novels do more than tell us a story—they take us somewhere. As summer gives way to September, these five literary holidays offer a little more time in Italy, France, Guernsey, the English countryside,…

    • Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      As a woman without children, I felt many times that I have no voice in the matter, either way. But I have friends with children who are very happy, and childfree friends who are…

    • No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      The Light on Farallon Island is a Gothic story about disappearance, reinvention, and the impossibility of leaving the past behind. But its remote island setting made me think of something stranger than ghosts: the…

    • You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      When a reader becomes accustomed to devouring novels over the course of hours, it becomes something of an expectation that every book which sounds promising will have the same effect. When we come across…

    • A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      Have you ever felt a little out of place when telling someone that your idea of a vacation is curling up in bed with a paperback? Have you ever had the sensation that few…

    • Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Before writing Into the Light, Carstens spent time as an au pair in Paris—a chapter of her life that would become part of the story she tells. In this interview, we talk about her…

    How to Choose Your Next Book

    How to Choose Your Next Book

    You’ve finished a book you loved, and now you’re staring at your shelves wondering what could possibly come next. When you have dozens—or hundreds—of unread books, choosing can become surprisingly difficult. Here are a…

    • 5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      Some novels remind us that starting over can take many forms. From unexpected adventures to difficult transformations, these five books explore characters whose lives are changed by circumstances they never expected—and the possibility of…

    • How to Choose Your Next Book

      How to Choose Your Next Book

      You’ve finished a book you loved, and now you’re staring at your shelves wondering what could possibly come next. When you have dozens—or hundreds—of unread books, choosing can become surprisingly difficult. Here are a…

    • How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      Want to read more books without turning your reading life into another obligation? A few simple changes can make it easier to find your way back to the stories you love—from letting yourself read…

    • 5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      Some novels do more than tell us a story—they take us somewhere. As summer gives way to September, these five literary holidays offer a little more time in Italy, France, Guernsey, the English countryside,…

    • Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      As a woman without children, I felt many times that I have no voice in the matter, either way. But I have friends with children who are very happy, and childfree friends who are…

    • No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      The Light on Farallon Island is a Gothic story about disappearance, reinvention, and the impossibility of leaving the past behind. But its remote island setting made me think of something stranger than ghosts: the…

    • You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      When a reader becomes accustomed to devouring novels over the course of hours, it becomes something of an expectation that every book which sounds promising will have the same effect. When we come across…

    • A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      Have you ever felt a little out of place when telling someone that your idea of a vacation is curling up in bed with a paperback? Have you ever had the sensation that few…

    • Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Before writing Into the Light, Carstens spent time as an au pair in Paris—a chapter of her life that would become part of the story she tells. In this interview, we talk about her…

    How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

    How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

    Want to read more books without turning your reading life into another obligation? A few simple changes can make it easier to find your way back to the stories you love—from letting yourself read…

    • 5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      Some novels remind us that starting over can take many forms. From unexpected adventures to difficult transformations, these five books explore characters whose lives are changed by circumstances they never expected—and the possibility of…

    • How to Choose Your Next Book

      How to Choose Your Next Book

      You’ve finished a book you loved, and now you’re staring at your shelves wondering what could possibly come next. When you have dozens—or hundreds—of unread books, choosing can become surprisingly difficult. Here are a…

    • How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      Want to read more books without turning your reading life into another obligation? A few simple changes can make it easier to find your way back to the stories you love—from letting yourself read…

    • 5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      Some novels do more than tell us a story—they take us somewhere. As summer gives way to September, these five literary holidays offer a little more time in Italy, France, Guernsey, the English countryside,…

    • Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      As a woman without children, I felt many times that I have no voice in the matter, either way. But I have friends with children who are very happy, and childfree friends who are…

    • No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      The Light on Farallon Island is a Gothic story about disappearance, reinvention, and the impossibility of leaving the past behind. But its remote island setting made me think of something stranger than ghosts: the…

    • You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      When a reader becomes accustomed to devouring novels over the course of hours, it becomes something of an expectation that every book which sounds promising will have the same effect. When we come across…

    • A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      Have you ever felt a little out of place when telling someone that your idea of a vacation is curling up in bed with a paperback? Have you ever had the sensation that few…

    • Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Before writing Into the Light, Carstens spent time as an au pair in Paris—a chapter of her life that would become part of the story she tells. In this interview, we talk about her…

    5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

    5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

    Some novels do more than tell us a story—they take us somewhere. As summer gives way to September, these five literary holidays offer a little more time in Italy, France, Guernsey, the English countryside,…

    • 5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      Some novels remind us that starting over can take many forms. From unexpected adventures to difficult transformations, these five books explore characters whose lives are changed by circumstances they never expected—and the possibility of…

    • How to Choose Your Next Book

      How to Choose Your Next Book

      You’ve finished a book you loved, and now you’re staring at your shelves wondering what could possibly come next. When you have dozens—or hundreds—of unread books, choosing can become surprisingly difficult. Here are a…

    • How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      Want to read more books without turning your reading life into another obligation? A few simple changes can make it easier to find your way back to the stories you love—from letting yourself read…

    • 5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      Some novels do more than tell us a story—they take us somewhere. As summer gives way to September, these five literary holidays offer a little more time in Italy, France, Guernsey, the English countryside,…

    • Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      As a woman without children, I felt many times that I have no voice in the matter, either way. But I have friends with children who are very happy, and childfree friends who are…

    • No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      The Light on Farallon Island is a Gothic story about disappearance, reinvention, and the impossibility of leaving the past behind. But its remote island setting made me think of something stranger than ghosts: the…

    • You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      When a reader becomes accustomed to devouring novels over the course of hours, it becomes something of an expectation that every book which sounds promising will have the same effect. When we come across…

    • A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      Have you ever felt a little out of place when telling someone that your idea of a vacation is curling up in bed with a paperback? Have you ever had the sensation that few…

    • Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Before writing Into the Light, Carstens spent time as an au pair in Paris—a chapter of her life that would become part of the story she tells. In this interview, we talk about her…

    Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

    Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

    As a woman without children, I felt many times that I have no voice in the matter, either way. But I have friends with children who are very happy, and childfree friends who are…

    • 5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      Some novels remind us that starting over can take many forms. From unexpected adventures to difficult transformations, these five books explore characters whose lives are changed by circumstances they never expected—and the possibility of…

    • How to Choose Your Next Book

      How to Choose Your Next Book

      You’ve finished a book you loved, and now you’re staring at your shelves wondering what could possibly come next. When you have dozens—or hundreds—of unread books, choosing can become surprisingly difficult. Here are a…

    • How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      Want to read more books without turning your reading life into another obligation? A few simple changes can make it easier to find your way back to the stories you love—from letting yourself read…

    • 5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      Some novels do more than tell us a story—they take us somewhere. As summer gives way to September, these five literary holidays offer a little more time in Italy, France, Guernsey, the English countryside,…

    • Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      As a woman without children, I felt many times that I have no voice in the matter, either way. But I have friends with children who are very happy, and childfree friends who are…

    • No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      The Light on Farallon Island is a Gothic story about disappearance, reinvention, and the impossibility of leaving the past behind. But its remote island setting made me think of something stranger than ghosts: the…

    • You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      When a reader becomes accustomed to devouring novels over the course of hours, it becomes something of an expectation that every book which sounds promising will have the same effect. When we come across…

    • A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      Have you ever felt a little out of place when telling someone that your idea of a vacation is curling up in bed with a paperback? Have you ever had the sensation that few…

    • Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Before writing Into the Light, Carstens spent time as an au pair in Paris—a chapter of her life that would become part of the story she tells. In this interview, we talk about her…

    No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

    No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

    The Light on Farallon Island is a Gothic story about disappearance, reinvention, and the impossibility of leaving the past behind. But its remote island setting made me think of something stranger than ghosts: the…

    • 5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      Some novels remind us that starting over can take many forms. From unexpected adventures to difficult transformations, these five books explore characters whose lives are changed by circumstances they never expected—and the possibility of…

    • How to Choose Your Next Book

      How to Choose Your Next Book

      You’ve finished a book you loved, and now you’re staring at your shelves wondering what could possibly come next. When you have dozens—or hundreds—of unread books, choosing can become surprisingly difficult. Here are a…

    • How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      Want to read more books without turning your reading life into another obligation? A few simple changes can make it easier to find your way back to the stories you love—from letting yourself read…

    • 5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      Some novels do more than tell us a story—they take us somewhere. As summer gives way to September, these five literary holidays offer a little more time in Italy, France, Guernsey, the English countryside,…

    • Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      As a woman without children, I felt many times that I have no voice in the matter, either way. But I have friends with children who are very happy, and childfree friends who are…

    • No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      The Light on Farallon Island is a Gothic story about disappearance, reinvention, and the impossibility of leaving the past behind. But its remote island setting made me think of something stranger than ghosts: the…

    • You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      When a reader becomes accustomed to devouring novels over the course of hours, it becomes something of an expectation that every book which sounds promising will have the same effect. When we come across…

    • A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      Have you ever felt a little out of place when telling someone that your idea of a vacation is curling up in bed with a paperback? Have you ever had the sensation that few…

    • Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Before writing Into the Light, Carstens spent time as an au pair in Paris—a chapter of her life that would become part of the story she tells. In this interview, we talk about her…

    You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

    You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

    When a reader becomes accustomed to devouring novels over the course of hours, it becomes something of an expectation that every book which sounds promising will have the same effect. When we come across…

    • 5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      Some novels remind us that starting over can take many forms. From unexpected adventures to difficult transformations, these five books explore characters whose lives are changed by circumstances they never expected—and the possibility of…

    • How to Choose Your Next Book

      How to Choose Your Next Book

      You’ve finished a book you loved, and now you’re staring at your shelves wondering what could possibly come next. When you have dozens—or hundreds—of unread books, choosing can become surprisingly difficult. Here are a…

    • How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      Want to read more books without turning your reading life into another obligation? A few simple changes can make it easier to find your way back to the stories you love—from letting yourself read…

    • 5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      Some novels do more than tell us a story—they take us somewhere. As summer gives way to September, these five literary holidays offer a little more time in Italy, France, Guernsey, the English countryside,…

    • Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      As a woman without children, I felt many times that I have no voice in the matter, either way. But I have friends with children who are very happy, and childfree friends who are…

    • No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      The Light on Farallon Island is a Gothic story about disappearance, reinvention, and the impossibility of leaving the past behind. But its remote island setting made me think of something stranger than ghosts: the…

    • You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      When a reader becomes accustomed to devouring novels over the course of hours, it becomes something of an expectation that every book which sounds promising will have the same effect. When we come across…

    • A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      Have you ever felt a little out of place when telling someone that your idea of a vacation is curling up in bed with a paperback? Have you ever had the sensation that few…

    • Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Before writing Into the Light, Carstens spent time as an au pair in Paris—a chapter of her life that would become part of the story she tells. In this interview, we talk about her…

    A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

    A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

    Have you ever felt a little out of place when telling someone that your idea of a vacation is curling up in bed with a paperback? Have you ever had the sensation that few…

    • 5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      5 Novels That Felt Like Fresh Starts

      Some novels remind us that starting over can take many forms. From unexpected adventures to difficult transformations, these five books explore characters whose lives are changed by circumstances they never expected—and the possibility of…

    • How to Choose Your Next Book

      How to Choose Your Next Book

      You’ve finished a book you loved, and now you’re staring at your shelves wondering what could possibly come next. When you have dozens—or hundreds—of unread books, choosing can become surprisingly difficult. Here are a…

    • How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      How to Read More Books (Without Making Reading Another Chore)

      Want to read more books without turning your reading life into another obligation? A few simple changes can make it easier to find your way back to the stories you love—from letting yourself read…

    • 5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      5 Novels that Felt Like Romantic Holidays

      Some novels do more than tell us a story—they take us somewhere. As summer gives way to September, these five literary holidays offer a little more time in Italy, France, Guernsey, the English countryside,…

    • Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      Hello Baby: The Women in the Chatroom

      As a woman without children, I felt many times that I have no voice in the matter, either way. But I have friends with children who are very happy, and childfree friends who are…

    • No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      No One Disappears on an Island: Thoughts on Remote Literary Settings

      The Light on Farallon Island is a Gothic story about disappearance, reinvention, and the impossibility of leaving the past behind. But its remote island setting made me think of something stranger than ghosts: the…

    • You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      You Don’t Actually Have to Finish the Book

      When a reader becomes accustomed to devouring novels over the course of hours, it becomes something of an expectation that every book which sounds promising will have the same effect. When we come across…

    • A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      A Well-Read Woman is Not a Snob

      Have you ever felt a little out of place when telling someone that your idea of a vacation is curling up in bed with a paperback? Have you ever had the sensation that few…

    • Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

      Before writing Into the Light, Carstens spent time as an au pair in Paris—a chapter of her life that would become part of the story she tells. In this interview, we talk about her…

    Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

    Tea with Deborah Svec-Carstens, Author of Toward the Light: A Year in Paris

    Before writing Into the Light, Carstens spent time as an au pair in Paris—a chapter of her life that would become part of the story she tells. In this interview, we talk about her…