Recommend me some good girly books!

[Jonathan Bogart]

Not girlie as in girlie mags, but girly -- what girls like.

I'm coming off an Anne of Green Gables jag, and I find myself longing for that kind of romantically-portrayed comedy. Headstrong young women, small-town Americana, love of natural beauty, all wrapped up in a nice neat bow at the end, doesn't insult the intelligence -- you know the kind of thing, surely. Kind of Jane Austen, perhaps a century or so later. (And not necessarily British.) What kinds of gentle, discursive romances are out there that a grumpy sentimentalist like myself could dig into?

I'm especially looking for stuff that's available on audiobook, since that's how I've been passing the time at work, but anything between two covers will do.

(The kind of thing I DON'T want: Gone With the Wind. Or anything that has any big ideas, well-executed or not.)

(And I already have a nearly-complete Georgette Heyer collection.)

I know this is probably a hopeless kind of request in this particular forum, given the stereotypical taste of the average comics geek, but I just thought I'd put it out there. And if anyone wants to argue (pro or con) the merits of romance as a genre, I'm up for that, too. Bring on the books!

[cactusmaac]

My sister really liked the Chalet School books. She's also a big fan of Anne of Green Gables and Georgette Heyer.

[Matthew E]

Try Sorcery and Cecelia, aka The Enchanted Chocolate Pot, by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer. It's an epistolary Regency romance, with small amounts of swashbuckling and magic. One of my personal favourites.

[Jonathan Bogart]

Try Sorcery and Cecelia, aka The Enchanted Chocolate Pot, by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer. It's an epistolary Regency romance, with small amounts of swashbuckling and magic. One of my personal favourites.

I forgot to mention: No sci-fi or fantasy. That's the opposite of what I'm going for.

Also, I'm in favor of atmosphere and a strong sense of place (and/or time) over plot elements (i.e., the less happens, the more I'll dig it), and I'm into authorial integrity. Which means that the Chalet School series, which appear to be the forerunner of the Babysitters Club sort of books, are not really it. But thanks.

The mention of Anne of Green Gables may have been misleading; I'm not looking for childrens' books, particularly. Those books were aimed at adults when they were first published.

[Expletive Deleted]

Laura Ingalls Wilder, maybe?

[Jonathan Bogart]

Laura Ingalls Wilder, maybe?

Yeah, that's a good one. If the audiobooks were available to download, I'd probably be listening to them right now. As it is, I'll probably just sneak them out of my sister's room this weekend...

[Athena Bast]

One of the ladies at work would recommend 'Outlander' by Diana Garbaldan.

I don't read many girlie books myself.

[K'Nort]

Betsy-Tacy?

[Slam_Bradley]

A good shot of testosterone.

[Jonathan Bogart]

A good shot of testosterone.

Oh, I'll come crawling back to Hemingway and Robert E. Howard soon enough. Just thought I'd try to take advantage of the mood while it's on me.

[Matthew E]

I forgot to mention: No sci-fi or fantasy. That's the opposite of what I'm going for.

Also, I'm in favor of atmosphere and a strong sense of place (and/or time) over plot elements (i.e., the less happens, the more I'll dig it), and I'm into authorial integrity. Which means that the Chalet School series, which appear to be the forerunner of the Babysitters Club sort of books, are not really it. But thanks.

The mention of Anne of Green Gables may have been misleading; I'm not looking for childrens' books, particularly. Those books were aimed at adults when they were first published.

Okay, well, what else have we got...

The following were/are favourites either of my wife or of my mother:

The Enchanted Barn, by Grace Livingston-Hill
A Girl of the Limberlost, by Gene Stratton-Porter
Mandy, by Julie Andrews-Edwards

[berk]

I think I remember you saying you've already read Daphne DuMaurier's stuff, but in case you haven't gotten to some of these, I really loved:

Jamaica Inn
Rebecca
My Cousin Rachel

And I also believe you said you disliked Mary Stewart's Arthurian novels, but can't recall if you tried any of her other books. They're usually adventure stores with a female protagonist and contemporary setting. My favourites were:

The Moonspinners
Touch Not the Cat
Airs Above the Ground

They're all pretty good, though. "Airs" in particular stands out in my memory as her most entrancing book. These might be a little plot-heavy for you, though, since they're basically romance-adventure stories. But I found the characters well-drawn and the protagonists very likeable.

I'm curious about the romance novels of Madeleine Brent (I think it is?), a pseudonym for Peter O'Donnell of Modesty Blaise fame. O'Donnell's Blaise books are full of colourful characters and inventive situations, so I'll probably try these one of these days.

[Nate C.]

Virginia Woolf- To the Lighthouse
Aldous Huxley- Crome Yellow

both read 1/2 way through by me and guaranteed to be girly and short on plot.

[Jonathan Bogart]

Virginia Woolf- To the Lighthouse
Aldous Huxley- Crome Yellow

both read 1/2 way through by me and guaranteed to be girly and short on plot.

Ah, but they have those uncomfortable things, ideas, in them.

[Nate C.]

Ah, but they have those uncomfortable things, ideas, in them.

true, true, true.

so you really are in a light romp phase, huh?