9. Elin Hilderbrand

The simple joy of a surprisingly good book, recommended to Nora by her friend Caroline Moss of the Gee Thanks Just Bought It podcast.

Transcripts may not appear in their final version and are subject to change.

My friend Caroline Moss of Gee Thanks Just Bought It is not just an influencer, she is my influencer. When I need to buy something, I ask her if I need it (no, she told me today, you do not need a candle warmer, you can light a candle like a big girl) and where I should get it at the best price (she will literally hunt down a discount for me). 

But I also have a contrarian streak, and when she told me I should read Elin Hilderbrand, I said no thank you. I have piles of books around my office begging me to read them. I keep a list of classics I need to read (or re-read) in my notebook. I want to watch a lot of TV and go to the movies. I do not, I told her, want to sit around and read beachy stories about rich women on a wealthy island off the coast of Massachusetts.

But on our recent trip to Vegas, where I forgot to bring a book, she told me to read Nantucket Nights and for some reason I said fine okay and downloaded it on my phone (I love the Scribd app but your library will also have all of her books for free I guarantee it) and then spent the entire flight and the entire next night finishing this story and texting Caroline nonstop.

I love this book.

WOW {redacted} and REDACTED can F—- OFF

I belong on Nantucket.

I love Elin. I am an Elinhead.

The next night I started Silvergirl whose main character is based on Ruth Madoff, the wife of the notorious Ponzi Scheme Bernie Madoff, and what it would be like to try to live with the knowledge that a person you loved betrayed and ruined the lives of so many people who trusted him. 

These books are cozy and absorbing. The characters all have rich interior lives and big exterior issues and at the end things always seem pretty okay even if they’ve gone through something that makes you text your friend SERIOUSLY WTF?

One commenter said that after a book or two you start to realize all the books are sort of the same and I truly think that is a plus for me at this point in my life. There’s so much uncertainty in the world, so many unsolvable problems, that it feels nice to visit a place where everyone is, at their core, a good person trying their best, where every story gets a satisfying — if not perfectly happy — ending. And best of all, it feels good to stumble or be pushed into a body of work where there are nearly 30 stories waiting to be read, whenever you get around to it. Finding new forms of comfort food – books, TV, movies, music, actual food – and knowing there is more out there waiting to be discovered? That’s pretty okay to me. 

Credits:

I’m Nora McInerny, and it’s going to be okay. The IT changes everyday, and it’s different for all of us. I want to hear your okay thing. You can call or email us at 612.568.4441 

It’s Going To Be Okay is a production of feelings & co. Today’s episode was written and recorded by Nora McInerny at McInerny Studios. Our team is Megan Palmer, Marcel Malekbu, Jordan Turgeon, Claire McInerny, Larissa Witcher and Eugenne Kidd.