I imagine that many of us received a book voucher this Christmas. But what should we do with it? As the temperature drops, blankets are brought out of the cupboard and a hot cup of chocolate seems like an increasingly good idea, how about buying a book that will bring comfort too?

Why not check out the display outside room 22 for some up-to-date ‘cosy reads’ suggestions?

Here are some of our Year 12 students, sharing which ‘comfort’ reads they’ll be curling up with whilst it is winter.

I’ll start off by saying I don’t read that often, so it was hard to pick a book that was “comforting”, but You’ve reached Sam is a book about a girl called Julie who wants to go to college in the city with her boyfriend Sam, and spend a summer in Japan. But then Sam dies! Julie struggles to cope with this loss and skips his funeral, throws out his belongings, she tries everything to forget him. until she rings him and he answers. It is a really sad book, about knowing when to say goodbye and it explains how grief can be experienced differently, I liked the way the author conveyed the message that while we are busy dreaming about our futures, life will pass right by you and you end up missing the little things that you don’t think matter too much. The comforting part, I feel, is that you can understand Julie. It is a beautiful book but again, will probably make you cry!

I have loved reading the Harry Potter series since I was a kid. This book is very comforting as it has a simple, yet exciting story. It highlights the importance of friendship and always staying true to yourself. My favourite part is when Ron sacrifices himself to stop the villainous Professor Quirrel – it resonates with me as I would do anything for my friends as I really love them too!

My enchanting book, which I would recommend reading for comfort, now that the magical Christmas period is over, is the one and only ‘Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire’! This book, although lengthy, encompasses unimaginable supernatural elements that are not only astonishing, but also incredibly thrilling for me to read about, because of its great nostalgia for my childhood. I was a huge Harry Potter fan when I was younger and visited the studios for my birthday – I am still obsessed with Hermione Granger, in particular. The novel explores the tradition of the Yule Ball on Christmas Eve, filled with the magical features of swirling snowflakes which dance around the room, whilst budding romances bloom between the main characters, under the mistletoe. Frankly, this novel is crafted perfectly to allow readers to experience the wonders of Hogwarts from the comfort of your own bed, with a warm cup of hot chocolate to keep you warm and content whilst reading this simply wonderful book during winter!

I chose this book because I really enjoyed the story about Auggie. It allows us, as the reader, to sympathise with him because of the syndrome with which he was born, which he then grew up with. Through the story, we see Auggie’s ‘middle school’ experience whereby he experiences troubles, such as bullying, but also his own insecurities, which make him relatable to some younger children. Auggie overcomes the bullying and makes friends with Jack and Summer. These friends make Auggie’s experience in school easier, more enjoyable. This is heart-warming for us to read. We see his journey through school and enjoy this happy ending.

For me, I would say that this is comforting because the story makes you feel uplifted: Auggie faces his troubles, but they lead to him having friends, being happy; he doesn’t give up.