Building a Bookstack for Your Retreat (or Retreat-at-Home Weekend)

There’s something beautifully indulgent about planning what you’ll read when you finally have time to rest. Whether you’re heading off on a weekend retreat or creating a quiet pause at home, your bookstack becomes more than a list — it becomes a reflection of what you’re craving.

Not all books belong in every moment. Some offer comfort. Others create space. Some invite deep feeling, while others simply keep you company.

Here’s how to thoughtfully curate a bookstack that matches the energy of your retreat — with recent, recommended titles to suit a range of moods.

1. Choose One Book That Feels Like a Safe Place

This is your fallback book. Something easy to sink into. It might be funny, nostalgic, or just beautifully familiar.

You’ll want something that doesn’t challenge you too much, especially on the first night when you’re still winding down.

Try:

• The Book Lovers’ Retreat by Heidi Swain – A warm, bookish romance set in a fictional reading retreat

• Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt – Uplifting, quirky, and emotionally satisfying

• Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood – Smart, light, and fun with enough heart to keep you turning pages

  

  

  

2. Add a Quiet Novel That Moves Slowly

This is the kind of book you can read with long pauses. The prose is beautiful, the pace is gentle, and you feel restored just holding it.

These are often best read in the morning sun, or curled up in silence.

Try:

• The Bee Sting by Paul Murray – Darkly funny and layered, with quiet emotional power

• The End of Getting Lost by Robin Kirman – Atmospheric, mysterious, and quietly unsettling

• The English Understand Wool by Helen DeWitt – Very short, very elegant, and very clever

3. Include a Non-Fiction Companion

Balance your stack with something reflective or insightful. You may not read the whole thing, but dipping in can feel grounding and expansive.

This is your journaling companion, your mid-afternoon-with-a-mug-of-tea book.

Try:

• The Wandering Mind by Jamie Kreiner– A gentle exploration of rest and attention

• The Light Room by Kate Zambreno – Meditative and intimate, part memoir, part reflection

• Why We Read by Shannon Reed – A love letter to books and readers, written with warmth

4. Bring One “Maybe” Book

This is your wild card. A book you’ve been curious about but aren’t sure you’ll love. It might push you a little or simply be something you wouldn’t normally pick.

Give yourself permission to start it — and also to put it down.

Try:

• Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton – Complex and political, yet sharp and thrilling

• My Nemesis by Charmaine Craig – Introspective and edgy

• A Spell of Good Things by Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀ – Powerful Nigerian fiction with layered perspectives

5. Don’t Overpack (But Also... Do)

The number of books you’ll realistically read on a weekend retreat is probably one or two. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t bring five.

Choosing books for rest is about possibility, not pressure. You’re creating a shelf of moods, not a syllabus. There’s nothing wrong with stacking more than you need — as long as they don’t weigh you down.

If one book speaks to your spirit, great. If another just sits nearby while you nap, that counts too.

Optional Extras: Pairing with Ritual

• Light a candle before opening your book

• Make a specific tea blend for reading time

• Use a bookmark you love (or find one on the retreat)

• Keep a journal nearby for one-line reflections

• Let reading become your rhythm, not your goal

A Bookstack That Reflects Your Season

You don’t need the perfect stack. You just need a handful of titles that make you feel like your time is your own again.

If you’re planning a retreat — or simply carving out quiet at home — building a beautiful bookstack is a gentle way to say: I’m choosing rest. I’m choosing presence. I’m choosing myself.

And sometimes, it starts with page one.