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Books to Match Your Taylor Swift Era: Evermore (2020)

There's always a perfect time for these books

By Kristen BarenthalerPublished 8 months ago 4 min read

Permanent Record by Mary H. K. Choi

College dropout Pablo Neruda Rind works a graveyard shift at an upscale, twenty-four-hour deli in Brooklyn. He's up to his eyeballs in credit card debt, never mind his student loans. Pop juggernaut Leanna Smart graduated from child stardom, became an international icon, and has enough social media followers to populate whole continents. When Leanna and Pablo meet at 5:00 a.m. at the bodega in the dead of winter it's absurd to think they'd be A Thing. But as they discover who they are, who they want to be, and how to defy the deafening expectations of everyone else, Lee and Pab turn to each other. Which, of course, is when things get properly complicated.

To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han

Lara Jean writes love letters to all the boys she has loved and then hides them in a hatbox until one day those letters are accidentally sent.

We'll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han

The summer after her first year of college, Isobel "Belly" Conklin is faced with a choice between Jeremiah and Conrad Fisher, brothers she has always loved, when Jeremiah proposes marriage and Conrad confesses that he still loves her.

Shine by Jessica Jung

Six years ago Korean American Rachel Kim was recruited by DB Entertainment, one of Seoul's largest K-pop labels. The rules are simple: Train 24/7. Be perfect. Don't date. Now, as the dark scandals of an industry bent on controlling and commodifying beautiful girls begin to bubble up, Rachel wonders if she is strong enough to be a winner, or if she will end up crushed. When she begins to develop feelings for K-pop star and DB golden boy Jason Lee, it's not just that he is charming, sexy, and ridiculously talented. He's also the first person who really understands how badly she wants her star to rise.

Slay by Brittney Morris

Kiera Johnson is an honors student, a math tutor, and one of the few Black kids at Jefferson Academy. At home she joins hundreds of thousands of Black gamers who duel worldwide as Nubian personas in the secret multiplayer online role-playing card game, SLAY. When a teen in Kansas City is murdered over a dispute in the SLAY world, the game is labeled a racist, exclusionist, violent hub for thugs and criminals. No one knows Kiera is the game developer-- until an anonymous troll infiltrates the game, threatening to sue Kiera for "anti-white discrimination." Can she protect her game without losing herself in the process?

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

The Bell Jar chronicles the crack-up of Esther Greenwood: brilliant, beautiful, enormously talented, and successful, but slowly going under—maybe for the last time. Sylvia Plath masterfully draws the reader into Esther's breakdown with such intensity that Esther's insanity becomes completely real and even rational, as probable and accessible an experience as going to the movies. Such deep penetration into the dark and harrowing corners of the psyche is an extraordinary accomplishment and has made The Bell Jar a haunting American classic.

My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante

The story begins in the 1950s, in a poor but vibrant neighborhood on the outskirts of Naples. Growing up on these tough streets the two girls learn to rely on each other ahead of anyone or anything else. As they grow, as their paths repeatedly diverge and converge, Elena and Lila remain best friends whose respective destinies are reflected and refracted in the other. They are likewise the embodiments of a nation undergoing momentous change. Through the lives of these two women, Ferrante tells the story of a neighborhood, a city, and a country as it is transformed in ways that, in turn, also transform the relationship between her protagonists, the unforgettable Elena and Lila.

The Echo Wife by Sarah Gailey

'When they said all happy families are alike, I don't think this is what they meant...' Evelyn Caldwell's husband Nathan has been having an affair - with Evelyn Caldwell. Or, to be exact, with a genetically cloned replica. After a morning that begins with a confrontation and ends with Nathan's body bleeding out on the kitchen floor, the two Caldwell wives will have to think fast-before sharing everything includes sharing a jail cell. The Echo Wife is a non-stop thrill ride of lies, betrayal, and identity, perfect for fans of Big Little Lies and Killing Eve.

The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton

The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton is a classic novel set in New York City at the start of the 20th century. It chronicles the life of Lily Bart, a young woman of high society who finds herself in a precarious position between the traditional expectations of her class and the modern freedoms of a new age. Through complex characters and captivating events, The House of Mirth explores the social and moral consequences of ambition, as Lily must decide between love, money, and her own sense of self-worth. By painting a portrait of a stunning beauty slowly becoming undone as she fails to meet society's expectations and is relegated to a tragically lonely exitence on the margins of society, The House of Mirth serves as Wharton's most stinging attack was she saw as the "irresponsible, grasping and morally corrupt upper class" she knew so well. With its sharp dialogue and vivid descriptions, Edith Wharton's novel is a timeless classic with a sharp, modern edge.

Evermore (2020)

Willow

Champagne Problems

Gold Rush

’Tis The Damn Season

Tolerate It

No Body, No Crime (Featuring Haim)

Happiness

Dorothea

Coney Island (Featuring The National)

Ivy

Cowboy Like Me

Long Story Short

Marjorie

Closure

Evermore (Featuring Bon Iver)

Bonus track – Right Where You Left Me

Bonus Track – it’s time to go

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About the Creator

Kristen Barenthaler

Curious adventurer. Crazed reader. Librarian. Archery instructor. True crime addict.

Instagram: @kristenbarenthaler

Facebook: @kbarenthaler

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  • Joseph Christensen7 months ago

    This article has some interesting stories. I like how different characters' lives unfold. Like Pablo with his debt and Leanna from stardom. It makes me wonder how they'll handle their growing connection. And the K - pop story with Rachel sounds intense. How do you think she'll balance her feelings for Jason with the industry's rules?

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