Books like Ex Libris

A warm, witty love letter to the physical and emotional weight of books, perfect for anyone who considers their library a living, breathing roommate. These 12 books are the closest matches in mood, pace and themes, with what each one shares with Ex Libris.

cozy
nostalgic
intellectual
warm
sunlit

01
The Library at Night
Alberto Manguel
An elegant, essayistic exploration of the Platonic ideal of libraries and the profound joy of reading.
Shares:
- cozy
- intellectual
02
Consider the lobster, and other essays
David Foster Wallace · 2005
A dizzying, hyper-articulate plunge into the absurdities and moral anxieties of modern American life.
Shares:
- wry
03
Dear Fahrenheit 451
Annie Spence
A laugh-out-loud, heartfelt collection of letters to the books that shape, delight, and occasionally frustrate us.
Shares:
- cozy
- nostalgic
- wry
- affectionate
04
Pilgrim at Tinker Creek
Annie Dillard
A luminous, deeply observant meditation on the terrifying beauty and spiritual mystery of the natural world.
Feels:
- contemplative
- luminous
- solitary
05
On love
Alain De Botton
A devastatingly witty and intellectually astute dissection of the thrills, pitfalls, and philosophical absurdities of romantic love.
Shares:
- intellectual
- charming
06
The Polysyllabic Spree
Nick Hornby · 2004
A laugh-out-loud, highly relatable chronicle of the eternal battle between the books we buy and the books we actually read.
Shares:
- cozy
- wry
- self-deprecating
07
Reading Like a Writer
Francine Prose
An invitation to slow down, pull up a chair, and marvel at the architecture of a perfectly crafted sentence.
Shares:
- cozy
- intellectual
08
The pleasures of reading in an age of distraction
Alan Jacobs
A playfully irreverent and deeply encouraging guide that grants you permission to read whatever brings you joy, entirely without shame.
Shares:
- warm
09
How to Be Alone
Jonathan Franzen
A sharp, introspective defense of reading, privacy, and the quiet spaces of the mind in an increasingly noisy world.
Shares:
- intellectual
- wry
10
How to read and why
Harold Bloom
An impassioned, erudite invitation to treat the reading of great literature as a profound act of self-discovery.
Shares:
- intellectual
- erudite
11
Tender at the bone
Ruth Reichl · 1998
A warm, mouth-watering journey that proves the best way to understand the people around you is to watch what they eat.
Shares:
- nostalgic
- warm
- wry
- affectionate
12
I was told there'd be cake
Sloane Crosley
A wry and hilarious celebration of well-intentioned haplessness in the modern city.
Shares:
- wry
- self-deprecating

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