Chicken soup as a book. Or a movie.
December 30, 2022 8:12 AM Subscribe
I want to have a nice cosy new year's weekend - good food, crazy cats, and something nice to read/fun to watch. The first two are covered, but suggest me something for the rest?
Books I find comforting - everything by LM Montgomery, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, Gerald Durrell, Bill Bryson, and cosy murder mysteries.
Movies I enjoy - The Intern, Clueless, all the ridiculous Netflix holiday specials, etc.
Recommend away. Thank you and happy holidays!
Books I find comforting - everything by LM Montgomery, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, Gerald Durrell, Bill Bryson, and cosy murder mysteries.
Movies I enjoy - The Intern, Clueless, all the ridiculous Netflix holiday specials, etc.
Recommend away. Thank you and happy holidays!
Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries
The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison
What Katy Did Next by Susan Coolidge
posted by Tamanna at 8:26 AM on December 30, 2022 [3 favorites]
The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison
What Katy Did Next by Susan Coolidge
posted by Tamanna at 8:26 AM on December 30, 2022 [3 favorites]
A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking, by T. Kingfisher.
posted by mark k at 8:27 AM on December 30, 2022 [14 favorites]
posted by mark k at 8:27 AM on December 30, 2022 [14 favorites]
I just finished The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (again, on airplane).
Previous book for airplane I enjoyed was The Miracles of the Namiya General Store (recommended in an Ask with this review). "An endearing tale about a magical correspondence." Not a murder mystery, but plenty of mystery.
TV-Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries for sure.
Also, Death in Paradise.
posted by Glinn at 8:47 AM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
Previous book for airplane I enjoyed was The Miracles of the Namiya General Store (recommended in an Ask with this review). "An endearing tale about a magical correspondence." Not a murder mystery, but plenty of mystery.
TV-Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries for sure.
Also, Death in Paradise.
posted by Glinn at 8:47 AM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
Have you watched Julestorm/A Storm for Christmas on Netflix? It's Norwegian, it was adorable. A limited series but I think it was 6 30-ish minute episodes so scarcely longer than a movie.
For a book: The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery.
Or the Wayfarers series by Becky Chambers is rather cozy SF.
posted by mskyle at 9:04 AM on December 30, 2022
For a book: The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery.
Or the Wayfarers series by Becky Chambers is rather cozy SF.
posted by mskyle at 9:04 AM on December 30, 2022
Mindful of Murder is a cozy mystery set at a spiritual retreat, with a Buddhist nun turned butler as the detective. I wouldn’t recommend the audiobook (the narrator is great, except when she does an Irish accent… and there’s a prominent Irish character), but the story is fun.
posted by theotherdurassister at 9:19 AM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by theotherdurassister at 9:19 AM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
The Betsy-tacy and companion. Deep Valley books
posted by brujita at 9:39 AM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by brujita at 9:39 AM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
I am currently reading a modern update of Anne of Green Gables as a grahic novel - Anne by Katherine Gros. I bought it for my niece for Christmas and her mother had already read it by the time the day was over. Then my niece read it, and now I have it.
posted by jacquilynne at 10:00 AM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by jacquilynne at 10:00 AM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
If you have Disney+, please consider Turning Red.
posted by SPrintF at 10:03 AM on December 30, 2022 [6 favorites]
posted by SPrintF at 10:03 AM on December 30, 2022 [6 favorites]
the Great British Baking show holiday specials are even looser than the regular episodes. If you ever watched the Derry Girls, a few seasons ago, some of the cast competed on one of the holiday episodes. The actors were immensely charming.
posted by mmascolino at 10:27 AM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by mmascolino at 10:27 AM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
+1 for Becky Chambers in general. A Psalm for the Wild-Built was THE thing I've been needing to read. Also for Turning Red, The Goblin Emperor, and A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking. Most Miyazaki is pretty cozy (though The Wind Rises is orthogonal to some heavy stuff, so you might give that a miss for your purposes).
TV with that vibe is easier to find than movies, in my experience, but I'll keep thinking.
posted by xenization at 10:37 AM on December 30, 2022 [3 favorites]
TV with that vibe is easier to find than movies, in my experience, but I'll keep thinking.
posted by xenization at 10:37 AM on December 30, 2022 [3 favorites]
If you like fantasy, Legends and Lattes is a super cozy read! It’s about an ogre that opens a coffee shop, which sounds ridiculous, but it somehow works!
posted by Fiorentina97 at 10:52 AM on December 30, 2022 [6 favorites]
posted by Fiorentina97 at 10:52 AM on December 30, 2022 [6 favorites]
Jane Austen adaptations too obvious? On this vacation I've already watched p&p 1995 and am now on s&a 2008. Both on Hulu.
posted by chaiminda at 10:57 AM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by chaiminda at 10:57 AM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
A Psalm for the Wild Built is like a nice hug.
posted by bq at 11:45 AM on December 30, 2022 [3 favorites]
posted by bq at 11:45 AM on December 30, 2022 [3 favorites]
I came in here to suggest The Goblin Emperor my ultimate comfort read, as well as the Monk and Robot books by Becky Chambers.
posted by potrzebie at 11:45 AM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by potrzebie at 11:45 AM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
Agree with all the books suggested so far.
If you don't mind a little bit of stage combat with your comfort, I recommend Leverage.
The conceit is that thieves and con artists who used to do crime for a living now use their crime skills to take down the rich and powerful. Yes, there's some violence, mostly in the vein of their Hitter beating the snot out of Goons or Bad Guys. But good is rewarded, evil gets punished and gloated over, people are marvelously and cleverly competent, and I find it hugely comforting. Available streaming on FreeVee.
posted by SaharaRose at 1:34 PM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
If you don't mind a little bit of stage combat with your comfort, I recommend Leverage.
The conceit is that thieves and con artists who used to do crime for a living now use their crime skills to take down the rich and powerful. Yes, there's some violence, mostly in the vein of their Hitter beating the snot out of Goons or Bad Guys. But good is rewarded, evil gets punished and gloated over, people are marvelously and cleverly competent, and I find it hugely comforting. Available streaming on FreeVee.
posted by SaharaRose at 1:34 PM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
If you have access to it, I highly recommend the movie version of Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day. Also, the 1995 film The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is quite wonderful, and there is a bit of Christmas in it as well. The series Lark Rise to Candleford sounds like it might be up your alley as well.
posted by gudrun at 3:28 PM on December 30, 2022
posted by gudrun at 3:28 PM on December 30, 2022
9 to 5 is fan-freaking-tastic, and always has been.
posted by BrashTech at 4:31 PM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by BrashTech at 4:31 PM on December 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
There's a FanFare discussion on Legends and Lattes that has a few more ideas.
posted by paduasoy at 4:40 PM on December 30, 2022
posted by paduasoy at 4:40 PM on December 30, 2022
And in television, if you can access The Great Pottery Throw Down, Handmade: Britain's Best Woodworker, The Great Big Tiny Design Challenge or The Great British Sewing Bee, all are cosy. Three of these have Christmas specials (pottery, tiny and sewing).
posted by paduasoy at 4:45 PM on December 30, 2022
posted by paduasoy at 4:45 PM on December 30, 2022
For movies, The Last Holiday with Queen Latifah hits the spot for me this time of the year.
Also, The Thin Man and The Sandlot.
posted by Constance Mirabella at 5:03 PM on December 30, 2022
Also, The Thin Man and The Sandlot.
posted by Constance Mirabella at 5:03 PM on December 30, 2022
And I was about to recommend James Herriot then (re)saw your earlier question. A few things I can think of that might not have been covered there or here yet are:
Golden Age mysteries - I'm specifically thinking of the Dorothy Sayers books, perhaps starting with Strong Poison, and the Miss Silver novels by Patricia Wentworth;
and, in children's books, the Wombles books (Beresford - and her Magic series too), the Borrower books (Norton), Michael Bond's Thursday books [all these writers skew pre-teenage but that can be good when one wants cosiness];
in cosy mysteries, one you might not have come across - Maggie Bruce's Gourdmother;
another mystery series, Ellis Peters's Felse books, perhaps starting with The Grass-Widow's Tale;
Georgette Heyer, though they vary a bit and at least one is anti-semitic - I tend to prefer the ones with slightly older heroines, The Reluctant Widow, The Foundling or Sprig Muslin perhaps;
and Cold Comfort Farm, if you haven't already read it.
posted by paduasoy at 5:10 PM on December 30, 2022
Golden Age mysteries - I'm specifically thinking of the Dorothy Sayers books, perhaps starting with Strong Poison, and the Miss Silver novels by Patricia Wentworth;
and, in children's books, the Wombles books (Beresford - and her Magic series too), the Borrower books (Norton), Michael Bond's Thursday books [all these writers skew pre-teenage but that can be good when one wants cosiness];
in cosy mysteries, one you might not have come across - Maggie Bruce's Gourdmother;
another mystery series, Ellis Peters's Felse books, perhaps starting with The Grass-Widow's Tale;
Georgette Heyer, though they vary a bit and at least one is anti-semitic - I tend to prefer the ones with slightly older heroines, The Reluctant Widow, The Foundling or Sprig Muslin perhaps;
and Cold Comfort Farm, if you haven't already read it.
posted by paduasoy at 5:10 PM on December 30, 2022
For the heart-warming side of chicken soup: Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, even though it is quite dramatic.
For the cosiness, my favourite cosy mystery series: The #1 Ladies' Detective Agency
posted by snusmumrik at 4:46 AM on December 31, 2022 [2 favorites]
For the cosiness, my favourite cosy mystery series: The #1 Ladies' Detective Agency
posted by snusmumrik at 4:46 AM on December 31, 2022 [2 favorites]
Came back to add Hodgson Burnett's T. Tembarom. I expect you have read her children's books; this is a book for adults, sort of a re-run of Little Lord Fauntleroy. Everyone (apart from the villains) is very nice. There is rescue of an elderly poor relation and some good nest-building at the end of the book. It's one of my cosy re-reads.
posted by paduasoy at 7:44 AM on December 31, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by paduasoy at 7:44 AM on December 31, 2022 [1 favorite]
Could I interest you in my favorite rom-com, the fun, retro-styled Down with Love?
posted by May Kasahara at 9:33 AM on December 31, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by May Kasahara at 9:33 AM on December 31, 2022 [2 favorites]
Books:
Nancy Mitford, Love in a Cold Climate/Pursuit of Love (and most things, really)
Elaine Dundy, The Dud Avocado
JL Carr, A Month in the Country
It's outside what you've described a bit, but I also have a real affection for Maria Semple's Where'd You Go Bernadette?
posted by thivaia at 3:12 PM on December 31, 2022
Nancy Mitford, Love in a Cold Climate/Pursuit of Love (and most things, really)
Elaine Dundy, The Dud Avocado
JL Carr, A Month in the Country
It's outside what you've described a bit, but I also have a real affection for Maria Semple's Where'd You Go Bernadette?
posted by thivaia at 3:12 PM on December 31, 2022
I am currently reading a very entertaining cozy mystery: The Appeal by Janice Hallett. The conceit is, a pair of law students have been given a big pile of correspondence—emails, text messages, rehearsal schedules, meeting minutes—to sift through and piece together what happened after members of an amateur theatre company are implicated in a murder.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 5:38 PM on December 31, 2022
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 5:38 PM on December 31, 2022
Books:
The Chet & Bernie series, by Peter Abrahams, aka Spencer Quinn: murder mysteries featuring a P.I. and his dog — told from the perspective of the dog. Light reading, but pretty funny.
My favorite movies to recommend that people may have missed:
The Hunt for the Wildepeople
Stardust
posted by leticia at 6:33 AM on January 1, 2023
The Chet & Bernie series, by Peter Abrahams, aka Spencer Quinn: murder mysteries featuring a P.I. and his dog — told from the perspective of the dog. Light reading, but pretty funny.
My favorite movies to recommend that people may have missed:
The Hunt for the Wildepeople
Stardust
posted by leticia at 6:33 AM on January 1, 2023
For the cosiness, my favourite cosy mystery series: The #1 Ladies' Detective Agency
on the "watching" side of this, HBO Max has the sadly-only-one-season TV series which is also a nice cosy comfort watch.
posted by We had a deal, Kyle at 2:28 PM on January 1, 2023 [1 favorite]
on the "watching" side of this, HBO Max has the sadly-only-one-season TV series which is also a nice cosy comfort watch.
posted by We had a deal, Kyle at 2:28 PM on January 1, 2023 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by phunniemee at 8:15 AM on December 30, 2022 [14 favorites]