Top 12 December Book Club Picks

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Here are the Top 12 December Book Club Picks!

Listed below are the Top 12 December Book Club Picks. They’re sectioned up into cookbooks, interior design, fascinating lives, and must-reads. I hope they give you joy, inspiration, and above all, knowledge!

Cookbooks: Top 12 December Book Club Picks

The Plain Cake Appreciation Society, by Tilly Pamment

This is a beautiful book. Its premise is a cake for every week of the year, 52 weeks of cakes. There is a deep feeling of home comfort within these pages. The cakes of course are mouth-watering, and the photographs are simply stunning, but what I so love as I leaf through these pages is the ethos. This is almost a coffee table book, a book in which you will find something new each time you dip into it. Honestly, this gorgeous book is like a sugar-coated hug!

The Secret of Cooking, by Bee Wilson

I love this book, it’s down to earth, no-nonsense, and delivers some wonderful recipes. It demystifies cooking and chunks it down into something manageable and delicious. Reading it, you could imagine Bee is in the kitchen with you, calmly talking you through each recipe. There’s something for everyone here in an extremely helpful and knowledgeable packet.

A Table Full of Love, Skye McAlpine

Skye McAlpine has style! Lots of it. The wonderful thing about this book is it’s all about LOVE. So many of us show our love through food and cooking. Skye provides us with elegant, delicious food for any occasion. From a very sexy cocktail (and who doesn’t love one or two of those) to a soul-soothing magical chicken soup. I like to keep this book close:)

Big Heart Little Stove, Erin French

Erin French is a survivor who has triumphed in her kitchen. She is the owner of The Lost Kitchen in Maine. You may have already watched the TV series, but just in case, here’s the LINK. I could write a lot about her, but honestly, it’s best you watch the series. Let me just say her creativity and quest for beauty are boundless, her food is exceptional, her talent extraordinary and her grit is admirable.

Here are her other books, all of which I have and treasure:

Has this made you hungry? Here are some delicious recipes

Interiors: Top 12 December Book Club Picks

A Kind of Magic, the Kaleidoscopic World of Luke Edward Hall

What a beautiful book. Luke Edward Hall is a British artist, designer and columnist. He is young, bursting with talent, creativity and eccentricity. I adore him. This book is a delight to have close at hand on your coffee table.

Enjoy the enchanting you-tube video from Design Notes featuring Luke and his partner Duncan enjoying their house at Christmas

The One Day Box, Flora Soames

This book spoke to me. So many of us collect items that speak directly to our hearts, packing them carefully away, knowing that “one day” they will find the perfect place within our home. We follow Flora (who is Winston Churchill’s great-granddaughter) from heartbreak after the death of her partner to finding peace decorating her new home, a cottage in the woods.

Using her gifts as a talented interior designer, Flora talks us through the process of creating a new home, instilling comfort, love, and peace after the tragedy of losing her soulmate. By creating this safe haven, she gave herself a place to heal, in the final section of the book she talks about a new energy that began to emerge. With this energy blossomed an interior design business and a new romance, culminating in marriage and an adorable little girl.

This is a beautiful documentation of hope through interior design. At times when I was reading it, I was moved to tears. I felt an understanding, as having lost my precious daughter at the age of 25, I too moved to a cottage in the woods to attempt to heal a shattered heart. Creating a home that is filled with love, support, and comfort, set deep in nature has truly been the most healing action I could have taken. Reading about the experience of another, although a very different loss, I experienced a heartfelt understanding, a sense of hope, and ultimately love. Love, after all, is the answer.

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Fascinating Lives! Top 12 December Book Club Picks

Evelyn Waugh, A Life Revisited, by Philip Eade

I loved this book and was completely drawn into the life and times of Evelyn Waugh. It was another age, and not necessarily a better one. However, Evelyn’s life, experiences, adventures, wit, and sharp tongue, created a world that most of us long to be a part of!

Other books by Philip Eade that you may be interested in:

A Private Spy, The Letters of John le Carre, Edited by Tim Cornwell

If you are a La Carre fan, this is a fascinating book. It gives a glimpse into the man himself, his wit, his talent, and his failings. Letter writing is a lost art, but one that can be admired by reading La Carre’s. He wrote thousands of letters over his lifetime, to lovers, politicians, family members, and all manner of public figures. Miraculously many have survived and they are a veritable treasure trove.

Miss Dior, by Justine Picardie

Wow, this is an amazing book. It wasn’t what I expected, I had no idea of the extraordinary bravery of Catherine Dior, Christian Dior’s sister. Catherine joined the French resistance during World War II, was captured by the Nazis, and sent to Ravensbruck concentration camp. This exceptional book, written by Justine Picardie the former editor-in-chief of Harper’s Bazaar UK and Town and Country UK, is an experience. Don’t undertake it lightly, it is a deep testimony to the survival of the human spirit.

Other books you may enjoy by Justine Picardie:

Justine Picardie has the most charming Instagram account which is a delight to follow. You can find it by clicking HERE

Elizabeth & Philip: A Story of Young Love, Marriage, and Monarchy, Tessa Dunlop

In another life, I would like to have been Tessa Dunlop! She’s a historian, writer and broadcaster who is not afraid to say it as she sees and believes it. She has written three other books – listed below, but this is my favorite. Billed as a story of “Young Love, Marriage and Monarchy” it’s a fresh look at one of the world’s most famous marriages.

Tessa Dunlop’s other books are as follows:

Must Reads: Top 12 December Book Club Picks!

We’re Here to Help: When Guardianship Goes Wrong, Diane Dimond

This very special book was written by a very dear friend of mine. Award-winning investigative journalist, Diane Dimond has turned her attention to the state-run guardianship system, the abuses that exist, and the reality of the system which most of us are completely unaware. Dimond provides us with the education to protect our loved ones from guardianship, which can happen to anyone at any time. A must-read.

The Sisterhood: The Secret History of Women at the CIA by Liza Mundy

The last, but by no means least, book on the list of 12 Top December Book Club Picks, is Liza Mundy’s captivating book on the early days of women’s role in the CIA. Mundy charts the history of three generations at the CIA, and the women who fought to become operatives, transformed spycraft, and ultimately tracked down Osama bin Laden. It is an inspiring read. These women sacrificed families of their own and dealt with extraordinary sexism and abuse in the workplace. They are inspirationally tough ladies.

We hope you have enjoyed Top 12 December Book Club Picks, 2023! What have you been reading lately? Have you read any of the above? Did you enjoy them? Please do leave a comment and leave the title of your favorite book of 2023. Happy reading!

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