5 Colourful Autumn Reads You’ll Fall for!

Ever since learning that Eclipse, the third book in the Twilight Series, was loosely based on it, I have avoided reading Wuthering Heights. The neediness of the characters and the contrived desperation of the ‘plot’ in Meyer’s first book, repulsed me and I struggled to finish it, never mind reading the rest. 

On the other hand, some trusted readers have said they adored this atmospheric mid-1800s classic about the forbidden yet eternal love of Catherine and Heathcliffe. They praise this gothic tale that they insist will leave you breathless with its backdrop of dark imagery in the fall on the Yorkshire Moors.

Have you read this romantic classic; what did you think?

This YA gem comes highly recommended as a feel-good novel to keep one bright and energised for the transition into darker months.

Squashed is an early-90s novel about sixteen-year-old Ellie Morgan’s attempt to grow the heaviest pumpkin for a weigh-in competition in rural Iowa, whilst simultaneously trying to shrink herself to impress a boy she likes. 

The premise could be both relatable and validating for some modern teens and offensive and triggering to others. I am curious to see if the author will address weight control without pathologising Ellie and her choices, and I wonder how the story will translate in the current climate. 

I am a fangirl of J.K. Rowling’s without ever having read Harry Potter. The Casual Vacancy was outstanding, and I have completed and tremendously enjoyed the first half of the CB Strike series under her pen name, but have not read a word of her uber-popular children’s books. 

HP was on the list of books that I had saved to read for the first time with my children. It turns out I was living a fairytale, as fast-forward to 2021, and my eight-year-old wants nothing to do with them. He says he doesn’t like magic. I think he is being contrary because he knows how long I have been excitedly awaiting the series. I made the mistake of talking them up too much, which had Mr. Independence saying ‘no way.’ 

Ah well, I will have to read this mega-hit about a wizarding orphan and his adventures at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, all by my lonesome. 

Although I recall tepidly enjoying the movie with Tobey Maguire many years ago, I have never read The Cider House Rules. A decade ago I read The World According to Garp, which I highly recommend, so I am aware of John Irving’s talent. I have had a hankering to take on another from his catalogue for too long.

It appears to be a salient time to dive into this autumn-set piece of American historical fiction. Irving manages to address the polarising issue of abortion, and adoption, sensitively. Dr. Wilbur Larch delivers unwanted babies and performs illegal abortions at an orphanage in rural Maine. We follow one orphan as he grows up to assist the doctor in delivering those babies. 

Having not read the book in full yet, I cannot be sure what my end take will be, but I have heard others assert that Irving’s story is not interested in having you pick a side, so much as it asks you to practice the lost art of looking at an issue from another’s perspective. 

Ali Smith’s first book in her Seasonal series: Autumn, takes high praise for its beautiful writing. We observe the friendship between an art history lecturer and her one-time neighbour as she visits him in a nursing home, with the politics surrounding the Brexit vote serving as a backdrop.   

This short yet thought-provoking work of contemporary British fiction confronts immigration, racism, and other prevailing themes. The complexity of this layered tale should be the perfect distraction from my countries local politics of the day, and I will be sure to line up the three remaining titles to see the series through.