Ten Books for the Long Dark

Every October I make a list for the dark half of the year. These are not difficult books, exactly, but they reward the kind of attention that long evenings make possible.

For the first cold week

• A slim Scandinavian novel about a ferry crossing.

• A collection of essays on walking at night.

• A book of letters between two old friends.

For the deepest weeks

In December I want books that take their time: a thousand-page family saga, a translated epic poem, a field guide to winter birds I will never see but like to imagine.

A long book in winter is a lamp you carry from room to room.

How to read them

Slowly, with a pencil, and preferably with a pot of tea that goes cold because you forgot about it. Read the good passages twice. Read the best ones aloud, even if nobody is listening.

If you only read one book from this list, read the letters. They remind you that friendship, like reading, is mostly a matter of showing up.