You may not know me, so I will wave a virtual “Hello, Nice to meet you” hand, and then get into the good part- books to read!

Hi. I am Ashley, one of the three co-founders of Plenty Downtown Bookshop. I have a background as a licensed professional counselor (LPC-MHSP), and writer/editor. (I know what you’re thinking: this letter is rife with errors! Yes it is. That’s because we’re friends. I don’t edit my letters to friends. I write casually. I'm a Millennial. Although, I am an "older Millennial," so I think that's a little bit different. Anyway...) I am married to a very handsome guy, who happens to be a therapist as well, and we have four children that are the poor unfortunate souls who have to put up with two therapist parents. We also have two Aussie Doodles who keep trying to climb onto my laptop as I write this, even though they are gigantic and most certainly not lap dogs.
From what I understand, there is a thing called “mood readers”, who change what they read based on the mood that they’re in at the moment. To be honest, that sounds like that could be everyone. We all are probably mood readers, unless we’re students staring at a pile of required reading (what a killjoy). As I thought about this, though, I came to realize that my life phase greatly dictates my reading mood. My current reading mood is best described as: “ books that are not too depressing because I have small children and I don’t need anything to bring me down to the depths of despair.” I call it Fun Fiction. Fun fiction is funny, but not “too” funny. Exciting, but not frightening. Sad, but not Nicholas Sparks. It’s just the right level to be a joy and a comfort to read. Whether mystery, thriller, literary, or romance (especially from authors like Emily Henry, Katherine Center, Melissa Ferguson or Sarah Adams), I enjoy a little bit of any of it. Even science fiction on occasion.
Besides fun fiction, I also love reading theology (Tim Keller is a favorite), children’s books (all of them), and cookbooks (also all of them). Sometimes a bit of business/leadership as well.
I hope that helps give a bit of a picture of me, so you will know who is recommending books to you. It’s also important to know that not every book is for every person. I’m excited to share some books that I’ve enjoyed, and I hope they find other readers who will enjoy them. But it’s okay with me if you don’t share my thoughts about them! We can most definitely be friends, regardless of our TBR list.
NOW FOR THE BOOKS!
For January, I’m going to focus on some of the mystery/thriller/crazy family dramas I’ve read. We’ll balance it out in February, don’t worry. Then I also throw in two nonfiction books that I truly love- a memoir, and what we at Plenty call a “beautiful living” book. They are both so good! (Note- the links to the books below go to our online storefront- you can purchase books online from Plenty!)
The Queens of Crime, by Marie Benedict. This book was meant for me!! I’ve never read Marie Benedict before. She is a prolific historical fiction author, many of our staff love her novels. I picked this one up because I’m trying to read outside of my normal genres, honestly. I had no idea it would be about Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, and other female novelists of the day. I was absolutely giddy! One of our booksellers (who is quite well-versed in Benedict’s books) says this was a bit different from her other novels. I cannot speak to that since this was the first of hers that I've read, but I can certainly say that I loved it! Part mystery, part historical retelling of what it was like to be an author in the 1920s and 30s, this novel is set largely in London in the early 1930s, starring five of the greatest protagonists who have lived in real life, and I wish there would be a sequel. I have recommended this book to my mom, to my teen- it’s a great read.
Strong Poison, by Dorothy Sayers. This is not new, and I didn’t read it this month. But I couldn’t pass a chance to mention it! Because if you do read The Queens of Crime, you ought to read some Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers as well. Dorothy Sayers is an absolutely brilliant writer, similar to Agatha Christie in some ways, but Sayers is less well-known in our current culture. Although funnily enough, she has a better style to her writing, and more interesting characters, quite frankly. While Christie perfected the challenging riddles, Sayers was arguably the better writer. Give one of her novels a try! Strong Poison is not her first novel, but it’s the one in which we meet Harriet Vane, a strong female lead who goes toe-to-toe with the male protagonist, Lord Peter Whimsey, in Sayers’ stories.
What Happened to the McCrays, by Tracey Lange. Readers who like protagonists with messy backstories, looking for a second chance in life, this is the book for you! It’s a lovely picture of the impact a community can have, of love, hope, long-held secrets, questionable life choices. And a bit of middle school ice hockey. And, if this sounds good to you, and you HAVEN’T read it yet, you should definitely also read Colton Gentry’s Third Act, by Jeff Zentner, who is a Tennessee-based author and is coming to the bookshop on January 28! It’s a super big honor to host him, he’s been a great supporter of this little nonprofit bookshop almost since day 1, and we can’t wait to celebrate the paperback release of his latest novel! (FYI, we invite authors to the shop often. There are usually two or so every month! These are also typically free events! But we love for you to sign up on our website, so we’ll know how many people to prepare for, and if you want a signed copy of a book you’ll definitely want to sign up online.)
Penitence, by Kristin Koval. I have started this, but have not finished it, so don’t spoil it for me please, and accept my apologies if it ends up being terribly gruesome and depressing. I don’t think it will be! But it sure is a novel that grabs you from the getgo. Parents are grappling with the sudden loss of their teenage son, who appears to have been killed by their daughter. Wow. And to top it off, the attorney they call in to help them is the mother of the former best friend of the mom in our story. There is so much drama tucked into the corners of this book. I’m a little bit afraid. My mamma heart is nervous. But there’s been a lot of hype around this book and I wanted to give it a try. Book clubs, I think this is going to be a winner of a pick for your discussions!
Cabin, by Patrick Hutchison. Y’all this book is so funny. I know I’ve listed a lot of mystery and murder novels, and that’s not for everyone. Have you read Bill Bryson before? He was more well-known a decade or two back, but “A Walk in the Woods” is not to be missed. Anyway, Patrick Hutchison reminds me of him. Humorous accounts of the journeys they’re on in life. “Wit’s End isn’t just a state of mind. It’s the name of a gravel road, the address of a rundown, off-the-grid cabin, 120 shabby square feet of fixer-upper Patrick Hutchison purchased on a whim.” Yes, sign me up for fixer upper misadventures. Although, The Cabin is more than that. There were so many paragraphs I underlined because I wanted to remember their plea for us to slow down and enjoy the world around us, and the people we come across. So good.
English Country House Style: Traditions, Secrets, and Unwritten Rules, by Milo and Katy Campbell. This beautiful coffee table book inspired some of our choices as we set out to create an even more wonderful bookshop than the one we had before. Yes, I should mention here in case you missed it, we have moved the bookshop! Just a little hop across the street, to a wonderful location! It was scary, though, to leave a shop that we loved, because we knew the bar was so high. We didn’t want to disappoint anyone walking through our new red doors, who had once loved and walked through our beautiful large wooden door in the old shop across the street. I’m thankful for this gem of a book and its beautiful inspiration! Fun fact: the authors also wrote a book called, “At Home in the Cotswolds,” which is now moving to the top of my wishlist for my birthday in April. In case anyone wants to shop for me.
That’s it for now. I hope to highlight a few books for you each month! I do a lot of the buying for Plenty, which means I get to help select a lot of the books and other items that we bring in. There are millions of options, literal millions. This is my way of bringing a few into the light. We do it every day at the bookshop, actually! I do hope you’ll find a minute to stop by and slow down a bit. We really do believe that spending time in bookshops is a balm for the overextended (e.g. all of us). Come browse around, talk books, work on a puzzle- we just opened up one themed around Mr. Rogers Neighborhood! And soon we’ll have our new cafe up and running as well. I’m generally there during the week while my kiddos are at school, please come say hi and tell me what good things you’re reading! I love to hear recommendations from you.
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