Illuminating Letters: A reading story
Dear reader,
When I thought about making work to share online again, there was one thing I wanted to talk about more than anything else - books.
In the past I’ve shared annual reading lists, with illustrations and quantitative breakdowns, and favourites with reimagined covers. But I’ve never shared anything about my relationship with reading, because it’s been quite tumultuous.
As well as sharing these visual essays digitally here, I’m making extended versions of each one as physical zines so I’ve got something tangible to hold onto.
It’s quite hard to do a print run of one, so I’m selling the rest on my site.
Each extended zine version is stamped and numbered and all profits will go to a related charity, so for this reading zine I’ll be making a donation to the National Literacy Trust who empower people with the literacy skills they need to succeed in life. I’m really proud of how they’ve turned out, and I’ve love for them to find good homes and do some good too.
I couldn’t end a letter about my love of reading without sharing some recommendations, so here are five recent favourites:
Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton - had me on the edge of my seat throughout, I bring it up in conversations about how the literary thriller is making a come back and what it means to stand by your environmental morals in the modern world.
The Trees by Percival Everett - a dark but deeply funny read to get you thinking about race and inheritance and the violence of both.
The Gigantic Beard that was Evil by Stephen Collins - a graphic novel that got me wanting to get back into visual storytelling. It’s part fable, part domestic drama, and every page is absolutely gorgeous and richly packed with detail.
Humanise: A Maker’s Guide to Building our World by Thomas Heatherwick - my first non-fiction read this year got me thinking about how we connect to our built environment and the difference a bit of care and human-centred design makes.
Penance by Eliza Clark - I was chronically online and perpetually uncomfortable so Penance struck so many chords for me. Be prepared to lose sight of where the edge between fact and fiction is, where reliable narration is possible, and where horror becomes spectacle.
Heads up there should be another (fun!) bonus newsletter later this month.
Write soon,
Natalie
This is fantastic, Natalie, thank you for sharing! Long-time admirer of your work, and love what you’re doing here.