Reading · Ali's Happy Books

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A thought provoking question about the digital age along with some in-person joys.

💌 Online vs. Offline

I was at an event on Saturday when I ran into one of my favorite humans on earth, Dorie Greenspan (if you don’t know her, please follow her Substack, she is brilliant baking joy personified). We hugged and chatted for a moment in the loud setting and agreed we’d need to catch up somewhere quieter soon. But then she asked me a question that knocked my socks off: are you as happy as you seem online?

It was such a perfect nugget of a query. Because it’s really the modern experience, isn’t it? For people who “create”, so much of our job is dependent on sharing pieces of ourselves outside of just our work. Both my cookbooks and novels are really meant to create joy— I’ve created a whole newsletter out of the concept! So what does it mean to have that in my “real” life too?

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I felt immense gratitude in that moment to be able to say, actually, yes!? That’s not to say everything is perfect (it never is), but I love my work, my family is healthy, and I adore my life in New York. It did, however, make me reflect on the moments when that wasn’t the case—when I finished editing my first cookbook from my mother-in-law’s hospice care, or when that book came out amidst a series of miscarriages. I personally didn’t share any of that online, because I didn’t want to take away from the joyful parts or share the hardships publicly. But the question was worthy of reflection, and it’s a new benchmark for me. It reminds me that what we see online is not always reality, but also that it’s also okay to show up happily even when some parts of life are not. So yes, the state of the world is terrifying, but I’m also happy in all the places I can be. And that’s what I’ll keep striving for.

Of course part of that, naturally, is happy books! Onward! And with another giveaway below!

📚 What I’m Reading

Spring is finally peeking out, and I got to recommend one of my all-time favorite books, Cara Bastone’s Ready or Not in People Magazine. Spring also means lots of author events, and in the past few weeks I’ve had the absolute pleasure of getting to hang out with so many author friends and meet new ones as a result of BookCon being in town (not that I went, but yay for parties ha). I was delighted to meet Rachel Reid, the author of Heated Rivalry, and watch as she rightfully shone through such a huge moment. I loved meeting two favorites for the first time—Jasmine Guillory and Robinne Lee, whose books you should absolutely be reading.

But hilariously, I also got to meet an author whose book I was IN THE MIDDLE OF READING. And I got to tell her I was both obsessed and also very worried she was about to break my heart! So if that’s not a joyful experience, I don’t know what is! The book is Into the Blue by Emma Brodie and I could not recommend it more highly (I finished it. She did break my heart, but she also filled it up so much). It’s a difficult love story, yes, but it’s also a book about creative connection/collaboration. I found it inspiring and rejuvenating. It will make you want to create for the beauty of it. It’ll remind you to live in the moments you have. I loved it.

🍴What I’m Cooking Up

Well, one thing I discovered the other week is that y’all LOVE a giveaway! So I will aim to make that happen more! Today we have a cookbook from one of New York’s best- Joey Campanaro from Little Owl! Did you know the restaurant is celebrating their 20th Anniversary!? Wowza. So to celebrate we have Joey’s cookbook! To enter, you can reply Giveaway here!

I also want to shout out Sabrina Rudin’s newest cookbook, which comes out today: Healthy With a Side of Happy. I adore her Spring Cafe and her new book is really the perfect book for anyone who likes plant-based cookbooks that don’t feel like you’re giving anything up

💛 Happy News

I really loved a recent revelation from the founder of Duolingo. He says the company evaluates how potential employees treat their drivers as a measure of their character. And this gave me a little hope for the world—that maybe kindness can matter even in a big company.

In another article that was even more relevant to my life, apparently trying to live like an Italian grandmother is the key to health—and it’s called Nonnamaxxing. Considering I wrote a book about learning from an Italian grandmother, I wholeheartedly endorse this idea.

✨ Thanks for being here!

Hope you’re happy this week too. And if it’s not that kind of week for you, hope you’re finding a little solace in happy books. xoxo