150 Years of Nottingham City Libraries
In celebration of Libraries Week, enjoy a variety of images from over 150 years of Nottingham City Libraries.
Feel Good Reads
Chosen by our customers and reading group members during Mental Health Awareness Weeks – if you’re in need of a pick-me-up try these suggestions!
Nobody’s Fool – Richard Russo
If you’re having a bad day, there is nothing better than Nobody’s Fool whose main character Sully is probably having a worse day than you. But there is more to this than schadenfraude, as Sully is in part to blame for being reckless and has a whole town of misfits to help in his eccentricities. I regularly re-read this book, it’s funny and the reading equivalent of chatting through life with your best mate.
Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen
I re-read this during lockdown last year and was reminded how precise and witty it is. Austen was never better than when portraying snobby people and making snide asides about them, and her delicate observations of human foibles are as fresh today as they ever were.
How not to be a boy – Robert Webb
SO GOOD! Funny, interesting, and contains lots of observations about life and how we all behave that made me go “Oh, I do that, how have I not noticed that before?” Very good book for men, or for anyone who is interested in or lives with other humans and wonders why they might do what they do. Worth reading, but also fun.
The Comfort Book – Matt Haig
I don’t want to give too much away, but this book really does make you feel good inside.
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone – JK Rowling
This is the best book for a cosy night of escapism.
The Lido – Libby Page
A happy book about kindness and what can be achieved when people care and are compassionate about society
If Tomorrow Comes – Sidney Sheldon
A book I always read every few years. All about a woman who is wronged and comes back with a vengeance! Great read
A Gentleman in Moscow – Amor Towles
It quietly celebrates goodness and the human spirit during a dark period of history. I would recommend it as a book that just leaves you feeling better and happier just for having read it.
The Goblin Emperor – Katherine Addison
My comfort read: such great characters and triumph of goodness in adversity plus a great mystery.
How to Stop Time – Matt Haig
There are lots of books I would choose, but this has to be my favourite feel good read this year.
The No1 Ladies’ Detective Agency – Alexander McCall Smith
Precious Ramotswe is the first lady detective in Botswana, solving people’s mysteries and finding the best in people with the help of a good cup of (redbush) tea and the occasional slice of Mma Potokwani’s fruit cake!
The Little Prince – Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
My go-to feel good book: “One sees clearly only with the heart. Anything essential is invisible to the eyes.”
Cold Comfort Farm – Stella Gibbons
Cold Comfort Farm is a comic novel by English author Stella Gibbons, published in 1932. It parodies the romanticised, sometimes doom-laden accounts of rural life popular at the time, by writers such as Mary Webb.
Blandings series – PG Wodehouse
Blandings Castle is a recurring fictional location in the stories of British comic writer P. G. Wodehouse, being the seat of Lord Emsworth (Clarence Threepwood, 9th Earl of Emsworth), home to many of his family and the setting for numerous tales and adventures. The stories were written between 1915 and 1975.
Reading Groups
If you found this booklist helpful and are interested in meeting others who share a love for reading and discussion then why not think about getting involved with one of our reading groups. Reading groups are fun and rewarding and they change the private and personal experience of reading into a shared one. The members of the group normally agree to read a particular book and then discuss their own thoughts, experiences, and impressions at the next meeting. Joining is free and most groups welcome new members. It’s also a great way to meet people with similar interests and make new friends.
Discover More
British Newspaper Archive
An archive of digitised local newspapers from across the UK, ideal for family or local history research.
