The GRAZIA-Approved Reading List: Books Recommended By Inspiring Women
8 books to get lost in this month
Photo: @dualipa Instagram
In uncertain moments, there’s comfort in turning the page.
If, like us, you’re spending a bit more time at home these days, a great book can offer both escape and perspective.
We asked some of the region’s leading women to share the titles that stayed with them. Ahead, these eight stories and ideas worth getting lost in right now.
I love a good dark psychological thriller, and Don’t Let Him In by Lisa Jewell is exactly the kind of book that completely takes over your brain. What I loved most is that beneath the twists, it quietly touches on something many women recognise all too well, the way we sometimes knowingly shrink ourselves, go against our instincts and consciously ignore red flags just to keep a man who was never worthy in the first place. It’s sharp, unsettling and brilliant, it is exactly the kind of book you disappear into and resurface from hours later wondering where the evening went.
Against the Loveless World, Susan Abdulhawa – unfortunately this book is relevant every single time I’ve given it a re-read. The protagonist is just incredible; I love a strong leading female character. Her character, Nahr, still inspires me every time I read it. The main themes are love, heartbreak, occupation, family, and perseverance. It does have a happy ending which reminds me with darkness, there will always come light.
I recently read The Girls by Emma Cline. I’ll admit I often struggle to read a book all the way through, but this one completely hooked me, it’s beautifully written, atmospheric and quietly haunting. I think the GRAZIA girl would love it because it explores themes of identity, belonging and the allure of a certain kind of glamour that feels both seductive and dangerous.
Everything Elizabeth Gilbert writes turns to literary gold. And her new memoir All the Way to the River is no exception: lyrical, searching and deeply human. Gilbert has an extraordinary way of turning her personal reflection into something universal, perhaps because her own life story is so remarkable (if you haven’t listened to her episode on Oprah’s podcast, stop what you’re doing and go and download right ASAP). This is the kind of book you savour slowly, long after the last page. And if you loved this, you must also read her City of Girls novel.
The Other Boleyn Girl by Phillippa Gregory. If you are a historical fiction geek like me, this book is for you! It has everything you need: history, romance, tension, fashion and flair. This book can also be followed by watching The Tudors and having an ogle at Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Henry Cavill in their prime.
One book that has stayed with me over the years is The Forty Rules of Love by Elif Shafak. The novel weaves together a contemporary story with the timeless spiritual friendship between Rumi and Shams of Tabriz, exploring how love, openness and human connection can transform the way we see the world. Having been born in France, raised between Germany and Turkey, and now living in Dubai for the past sixteen years, I have always felt deeply connected to places where cultures and perspectives meet. Perhaps that is why this book resonates with me so strongly. I also feel a personal connection to Elif Shafak herself, as a Turkish author whose work reflects the richness of living between cultures, something I personally relate to. Through both her writing and her voice, she embraces diversity, dialogue and openness to the world, while also advocating for human rights, women’s empowerment and freedom of expression. It beautifully reflects the richness that comes from curiosity and the willingness to look beyond our differences, something that feels especially meaningful today when the world can sometimes feel divided or uncertain.
Dubai has truly become home for me over the past sixteen years; it is a place where cultures coexist with remarkable harmony and openness, and I honestly cannot imagine a better place to raise my four children and expose them to such diversity, safety and opportunity. What I love most about this book is that it gently invites us to slow down and reconnect with what truly matters: kindness, empathy and the courage to evolve. In challenging times, its message feels almost like a quiet guide a reminder that love, in all its forms, remains one of the most powerful forces we have to bring people closer together.
I suppose when you have a moment to pause, sometimes it makes you go incredibly inward and want to delve deep into different meanings, go into self-help and so on and so forth. And, of course, there is a time and a place for that. For me, I often, particularly during trying times, like to turn to what I refer to as the “sugar” in life and that sometimes pertains to books I’m reading, too. One such series I love and definitely brings that sugar – or sweetness – into play and is a great distraction for the mind is the Crazy Rich Asians series. Firstly, it’s very different to the film – AKA much more scandal and crazy rich shenanigans – but it’s also just a trilogy of books you won’t be able to put down. In the series, there’s Crazy Rich Asians, China Rich Girlfriend and Rich People Problems, all of which were written by Kevin Kwan. So, if you really need a complete “switch off your mind” book series, this, for me, is the one you should try.
About 3 years ago, I had the genius idea of turning an under utilised patch of land on the side of our house into a vegetable garden. Years 1 and 2 were trial and error, with an emphasis on the latter. Until I discovered award-winning gardener Lucy Chamberlain’s Step-by-Step Veg Patch: A Foolproof Guide to Every Stage of Growing Fruit and Veg. This winter I’ve devoured every page, and as a result my harvest has multiplied ten-fold. She helped me realize that my biggest focus needed to be my time, so I now spend a minimum of an hour a day, usually more, tending to it and it’s my therapy. The book is never far from my side, and whether you’ve just got a small windowsill or bigger space, her set-by-step’s for over 50 veggies are foolproof. Plus there’s nothing quite like eating a home cooked meal, made entirely of your own produce! Monty who?
