Book recommendations for the Winter Solstice

Despite the seeping cold and darker days, we think winter is one of the most magical times of the year. The solstice, which takes place on the 21st December, represents the longest day on the calendar and has been celebrated for thousands of years all over the world, marked by a variety of folk festivals and religious and pagan rites. Some of our favourites include.....Roman festival/Indian festival/Stonehenge/New Grange

People who celebrate the winter solstice often see the period as the opportune time for new beginnings, so why not follow suit! Perhaps you need to kick start your reading habits, ready for the New Year? Or maybe you want to treat the time as a personal wintering, settling in with a stack of books and a vat of tea.

Whatever your inclination, we've compiled a short but mighty list of books that would be perfect for saying goodbye to the longer days and hello to that strange, mysterious friend of ours called winter.

A Short History of Myth, and Sacred Nature, both by Karen Armstrong.

Cold dark nights are a time for stories, ghost stories, folktales and myths, and that were recommended by Clare Murphy following one of her amazing online events (@storyclare on Instagram, follow her and be delighted with yourself) Karen Armstrong is a fascinating and deeply compassionate writer, and she's written plenty of books to so you're well catered to if you like her writing.

The Penguin Book of the Undead: Fifteen Hundred Years of Supernatural Encounters

This book is absolutely perfect for the coming cold, dark nights. Spooky, interesting, easy to dip into for a quick read, and as it happens quite a good companion for thinking about myth, folktales, story, and how and why they are told. Imagine yourself gathered round a roaring fire listening instead of huddled under an electric blanket in a terraced house!

Circles of Stone: Weird Tales of Pagan Sites and Ancient Rites ed. Katy Soar

Ancient places- stone circles, standing stones, ancient barrows- will forever be associated with the solstices. These are the sites of magic and mystery, of rituals and pagan practices, of awe and fear. Circles of Stone, compiled by the wonderful archaeologist Dr. Katy Soar, is a great collection and is a perfect choice for some late-night esoteric reading. Soar, working in conjunction with the archives of the British Library, has compiled tales, new and old, authors well-known and forgotten. Expect stories from Algernon Blackwood, Arthur Machen, Lisa Tuttle, and more!

The Shortest Day by Susan Cooper and Carson Ellis

This beautifully put together picture book by Susan Cooper, illustrated by Carson Ellis, is the perfect way of sharing the Winter Solstice with a little one. Sharing midwinter through a gorgeous colour palette and poetry, the book explores the traditions and folklore associated with the shortest day of the yearly cycle. Heart-warming and interesting in equal measure, this is perfect for any budding folklorists and naturalists.

The Mabinogion

A book that I’ve recently come back to after reading Wild by Amy Jeffs earlier this year is The Mabinogion. A book of eleven Welsh myths and legends, which was given literary attention when compiled by Lady Charlotte Guest in the mid-19th century. I first read these myths when I was studying archaeology at university in Wales and they really stayed with me. These tales include many fantastical and supernatural elements that come from the oral tradition of age-old storytelling. Set in a bizarre and magical landscape of the coasts of Wales, it’s full of themes of loyalty, fall and redemption, marriage, love and more. And magical horses and giants, of course!

If you'd like a surprise read each month picked just for you, why not treat yourself to a Willoughby Book Club subscription? Think of us as your personal book concierges, and let us take the stress out of deciding what to read next.

If you would like to read any of these books, you can purchase them via our affiliate link below on Bookshop.org that supports small independent bookshops.