6 Funny and Heartfelt Books to Make You Fall in Love With Reading Again

Aside from being the designated time of the year to be merry and happy, the holidays are also the perfect time to kick back and relax. While the kids are busy playing with their cousins or enjoying their new gifts, take this chance to curl up with a good book. Here are a few page-turners you should check out: 

1. Stay With Me
By Ayobami Adebayo

Moms will be moved by this fictional tale of a couple from Nigeria, Yejide and husband Akin, who has tried everything — from the medical to the religious and superstitious — to have a child. It comes to a point where Akin's mother suggests to her son to find a second wife, leading Yejide to become desperate. Written in the first person, the book makes you come to terms with the fragility of married love, the burden of grief, and the all-consuming bonds of motherhood. 

Available for download on Kobo for Php41.59

2. Etiquette for Soshal Climbers
By Camille Buhain, Faye Condez, and Vivian Dela Cruz

We’re pretty sure this will be the book you keep in your handbag when you tire of the chismis at the many handaans you’re attending. You’ll find no heavy blocks of text here, but pages of laugh-out-loud tips and lists alongside fun graphics and photos from Vivian, Camille, and Faye, the hilarious women from The Shoshal Network. For example, never, ever say palengke. Say you’re going to the “Sunday market.” O, soshal ‘di ba? 

Available in major bookstores for Php250

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3. Pachinko
By Min Jin Lee

The book's title sets the place of the story, Japan, where a Korean family feels like they can never get off shaky ground. (Pachinko are similar to pinball game machines in arcades but in this country, it is also used in gambling.) In the book, which The New York Times describes as a stunning novel, you'll find an arranged marriage, an unexpected pregnancy, and a mother who is simply trying to raise her two sons in a foreign, hostile country.

Available for download on Kobo for Php822.99

4. The Book Thief
By Markus Zusak

The Book Thief was first published in 2005, but even today “it's the kind of book that can be life-changing,” says The New York Times. The novel is the story of foster child Liesel Meminger and set in the time of World War II in Germany. It is her warm, accordion-playing foster father who teaches her to read at night, a skill that leads her to steal books and earns her the title of “book thief.” Also, there is a Jewish man hidden in her basement. 

Available at Fully Booked stores for Php455

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5. Spoonbenders
By Daryl Gregory

Laugh your way through the holidays with this wacky, heartfelt novel about a family with... superpowers? Teddy Telemachus is a charming con man who falls in love with Maureen, a psychic. Together, they have three very gifted children: Irene can tell if a person is lying, Frankie has telekinesis, and Buddy can see the future. But, just like other, more ordinary folks without powers, they have to deal with very real problems on relationship, career, and family. 

Available at Fully Booked stores for Php782

6. The Changeling
By Victor Lavalle

Who says fairy tales are only for children? Apollo and Emma are parents to a new baby. But his wife, Apollo notices, is beginning to act odd and, one day, she vanishes. His journey to find his family takes him to a forgotten island, a graveyard of secrets, and a forest with odd inhabitants. The Changeling is included in The New York Times' Notable Book list, if you need further convincing.

Available for download on Kobo for Php1,011.69

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