Margaret Atwood shares book recommendations during self-isolation

Canadian author, Margaret Atwood recommend several books that she deemed essential in the time of Coronavirus crisis.

Author Margaret Atwood took to Twitter to recommend several books for people during self-isolation.

As the world scrambles with the global coronavirus pandemic, people are increasingly turning to books to entertain and inform themselves while stuck at home.

NPD BookScan recently announced that sales of adult non-fiction books on contagious diseases increased by 52%.

“OK Twitterpals, as I crouch in my burrow, what would you like the most? a) comforting book reccos b) plague book reccos c) poetry book reccos d) stupid/weird/mundane things I have done to pass the time, which would have passed anyway…,” she asked her fans.

OK Twitterpals, as I crouch in my burrow, what would you like the most? a) comforting book reccos b) plague book reccos c) poetry book reccos d) stupid/weird/mundane things I have done to pass the time, which would have passed anyway…

— Margaret E. Atwood (@MargaretAtwood) March 18, 2020

When actress Mia Farrow asked for “a plague book” recommendation, Atwood cited non-fiction books like Hans Zinnser’s “Rats, Lice, and History”; Jared Diamond’s “Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies”; as well as Charles Mann’s “1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus.”

Ahead of World Poetry Day on March 21, “The Handmaid’s Tale” author recommended Carolyn Forché’s “In the Lateness of the World.”

“In the Lateness of the World” marks Forché’s first new collection of poetry in 17 years, with Atwood teasing that the 96-page title “gives us some perspective.”

OK, new poetry book: IN THE LATENESS OF THE WORLD, by wonderful @carolynforche, her first poetry book in 17 years. @penguinpress Gives us some perspective…you could be worse off than self-isolating..

— Margaret E. Atwood (@MargaretAtwood) March 18, 2020

American novelist Gail Godwin also mentioned by the Canadian bestselling author, who advised her fans to pre-order “Old Lovegood Girls.”

OK, novel recco: forthcoming: Gail Godwin, Old Lovegood Girls @Bloomsbury. If you remember the 50s, here they are! Plus a looong winding female friendship taking us through the (can it be 6?) decades since. As always,
wry, beady-eyed, acute. You think you think; but think again.

— Margaret E. Atwood (@MargaretAtwood) March 18, 2020

This forthcoming novel chronicles the complex and decades-long friendship between Feron Hood and Merry Jellicoe.

“If you remember the 50s, here they are! Plus a looong winding female friendship taking us through the (can it be 6?) decades since. As always, wry, beady-eyed, acute. You think you think; but think again,” Atwood wrote on Twitter.

Atwood also recommended to take the time to rediscover all-time favorites like Edith Wharton’s “The Age of Innocence”; Georges Simenon’s crime novels featuring Commissaire Maigret; as well as Agatha Christie’s “Miss Marple” and “Hercule Poirot” series.

“For love stories that work out, you can’t beat Jane Austen,” the novelist added.

Somewhat comforting stories: Edna O'Brien, The Country Girls; Edith Wharton, The Age of Innocence. For love stories that work out, you can't beat Jane Austen. https://t.co/FlZUExPBN9

— Margaret E. Atwood (@MargaretAtwood) March 18, 2020

What is the novelist most famous for?

Margaret Atwood, an award-winning Canadian poet, novelist and essayist known for books like ‘The Handmaid’s Tale,’ ‘Cat’s Eye’ and ‘Oryx and Crake,’ among an array of other works.