JS Editors’ Travel Book Club: 10 Great Reads We’re Loving Now

"I was thrilled when my book club chose Asymmetry to read this month. It's Lisa Halliday's first novel, and the writing and prose is fantastic. The book is told in three parts, all of which tackle differences in age, power, wealth, geography and more. I highly recommend it." 

Clara Sedlak, Executive Editor

"I absolutely fell in love with the Call Me By Your Name film last year, so I decided to finally read the highly-praised book, too. Set in the summertime in 1980s Italy, the book’s vivid scenes of romance on the sun-soaked countryside are everything I need to get through the final weeks of winter in NYC."

Jackie Homan, Editorial Assistant

"I spend, admittedly, too much of my day listening to true crime podcasts and nearly all of them have praised I’ll Be Gone in the Dark.  The posthumously released memoir covers writer Michelle McNamara’s obsessive investigation of The Golden State Killer. I’m sure this book will cause many sleepless nights, but I'm willing to take the risk."

David Hattan, Photo Editor

RELATED: The Best Carry On Luggage Now 

"I can’t wait to get my hands on this darkly funny debut novel from Nigeria-based writer Oyinkan Braithwaite, which follows two sisters Ayoola and Korede. Ayoola has developed a nasty habit of killing off boyfriends, and Korede is the only one that knows. She (begrudgingly) keeps her younger sister’s secret safe—that is, until Korede’s crush becomes Ayoola’s newest beau. If that plot doesn’t pull you in, I don’t know what will!"

Lindsey Olander, Editor

"This cozy read is a great one to curl up with on a chilly day. It’s a quirky rom-com with just a dash of gravitas that follows Laurie, Jack, and Sarah over the course of ten years, and explores fate, choices, friendship, and love triangles. It captures your attention, but doesn’t make you think too hard."

Elizabeth Mullen, Associate Marketing Manager

RELATED: 10 Packing Mistakes to Avoid 

"A short story going viral on the Internet is not something I thought would ever be possible, but Kristen Roupenian broke all the rules when her story "Cat Person" was published by the New Yorker. I was also recently so enthralled by another story of hers "The Good Guy", that I actually had to stop on a park bench mid-commute to finish reading it. Personally, I love carrying a book of short stories while I’m traveling, because you can actually finish something during those rare bursts a free time, which is especially easy to do when the writing is as gripping as Roupenian’s."

Jamie Ditaranto, Editor of Video and Content

"Lately I’ve been really into the classics, and a few months ago I finally read One Hundred Years of Solitude. Not knowing much about the book I was expecting something serious and tedious, and I was pleasantly surprised to find just the opposite. I loved the element of magical realism, how suddenly something fantastical would take place like it was nothing out of the ordinary. Next on my list is another Gabriel García Márquez novel, Chronicle of a Death Foretold, a non-linear story of a not-so-secret murder committed by two brothers."

Gretchen Dorosz, Senior Photo Editor

"Although there is minimal reading to be done in this book, I can't wait to get my hands on Ben Evans’ new art tome “Suspects”. Witty, satirical, and dark, the book uses various characters to light-heartedly poke fun at people from all walks of life. It’ll be a unique addition to my coffee table."

Tyler Schoeber, Photo Intern

"Buy. This. Book. The story chronicles the lives of the four Gold children in NYC’s Lower East Side. One day, they visit a psychic who predicts the dates of their death. As the four navigate the next few decades, they struggle with whether or not to let the reading dictate their lives. You’ll walk away with one lingering question: how would your life change if you knew when you would die?"

Cara Sweeney