Hi folks! It's been a tough year and I'm looking for books to read that are a comfort, but unfortunately I've not really enjoyed many of the usual "cozy read" type books. Books like The House in the Cerulean Sea, Legends and Lattes, A Psalm for the Wild Built, or The Midnight Library didn't work for me for various reasons (and apologies to those who liked them, it's definitely me and not the books. I may just be a cold-hearted hater).
I don't necessarily need a very soft book — conflict I think is actually preferable, as long as there's a good ending and it works towards that ending. I really enjoyed The Goblin Emperor, for example, as well as most things by T. Kingfisher and everything by Diana Wynne Jones. Classics I go back to a lot are The Wind in the Willows, Alice in Wonderland, and The Secret Garden.
I'd love to hear suggestions if you have them!
by hatsandfruit