Is there anything better than a stack of books and a comfy couch (except for maybe a stack of books and a warm beach)?

I’m in deep winter mode — snow, ice, cold — and starting the new year burrowed in fiction, poetry, memoir, self-help, and more. Some of the books were gifted to me and many were gifts to myself. Have a book lingering on your want-to-read list? Go ahead, treat yourself.

Here are a few of my latest favorites:

All the Words by Magda Kapa
Poet and photographer Magda Kapa has created a beautifully designed and stunning “poetic dictionary” comprised of aphorisms, epigrams and short “naked verse.”

Mistake: mostly done again and again until it has a name.

Night: sight to the inside.

Sanity: one bank of the river

Whereas: Poems by Layli Long Soldier
This poetry collection has earned a long list of awards, including the National Book Critics Circle Award — and for good reason. Through a variety of poetic forms and styles, Layli Long Solider confronts government responses, treaties, and apologies to Native American peoples and tribes. With astounding restraint and emotional power, this poet offers song and scream with bolts of essential light.

While we’re just over a week into the new year, this book (published in 2017) is now my favorite poetry collection of 2022.

Small Beauties: Poems by Ann Staley
With six books in just ten years, Oregon poet and teacher Ann Staley is a prolific writer, and a master of small moments. She’s an inspiration, a light, and a friend to all.

What saves us is our love for each other
and the moments we recall
at the end of any ordinary day.
What went well? Maybe this poem.

Your turn: What are you reading in this new year?