Books
Move over, Emma Watson, because there is another starlet competing for the title of Best Read Emma in Hollywood: Emma Roberts. The Scream Queens star started her own book club, Belletrist, and you need to be following it on Instagram. A self-proclaimed bookworm who once wished as a child "to own all the books in the world," Emma Roberts has always been an avid reader, but it wasn't until she met her best friend, writer and producer Karah Preiss, that she took her passion to the public. After years of suggesting books to each other and sharing personal recommendations on Instagram, the bookworm besties decided to create their own book club. "It's just always been something that's been in the back of our minds because we love to read, and everybody loves to read more than people think," Roberts told Elle in an interview about Belletrist. "I started posting books on my Instagram and one day I was like, We should really do this for real."
Launched in March, Belletrist is the bookish platform of bibliophiles' dreams. Not only is it a virtual book club anyone (yes, even you!) can join, but Belletrist also has Belle Letter, an email newsletter featuring book suggestions and author interviews; a blog with essays, weekly quotes, giveaways, and Bellescopes, a.k.a. book horoscopes; and a Bookstore of the Month network that promotes local shops in members' communities.
The best part of Belletrist, though, is its drool-worthy Instagram account, which boasts over 140,000 followers. It's the kind of feed that will make any bibliophile go week in the knees with shelfie envy. Not only does the Belletrist Instagram account have beautiful #bookstagram shots and plenty of glamorous pics of Roberts reading, but it also features suggested reading playlists, relatable memes, inspirational book quotes, bookstore recommendations, author photos, bookish illustrations, and more.
The Belletrist account is a fun and beautiful way to get new book recommendations, and to find out what Belletrist is reading every month. This month, Belletrist's December Book Pick is Her Body and Other Parties, a stunning story collection from Carmen Maria Machado that explores what it means to be a woman in the world. Belletrist describes it as "genre-bending [...] a deliciously disturbing and impactful book."
Ready to start reading along with Emma Roberts and her fellow Belletrist Babes? Check out more great recommendations on the Belletrist Instagram account, the one page every book club lover needs to be following.
'Sex and Rage' by Eve Babitz
Emma says the heroine of Eve Babitz's Sex and Rage "speaks volumes to the messiness and mistakes that mark adolescence. I can’t wait for you guys to read her story, and to hopefully enjoy the rest of the eve babitz collection once you finish this one. Read it on the beach, read it in your house, read it on the subway, read it wherever books are read…which is, of course, everywhere."
'Stay with Me' by Ayobami Adebayo
Stay with Me was the August book pick, and according to Karah Preiss, author Ayobami Adebayo "has written a truly magnificent portrait of a marriage, told from the perspective of husband and wife. I am not one to 'gush' about anything, but I wept on the airplane finishing this book, not only because of its emotional ending, but also, simply, because the book was ending. Buy this book and read it. It is a truly unmissable story."
'Abandon Me' by Melissa Febos
Emma describes Melissa Febos's memoir as "a book for when you can't outrun your issues (anymore). [Abandon Me] is a book about feelings that we all have at one time or another; feelings of separation anxiety, loss, great joy, sexual excitement, sexual frustration, and perfectionism. at it's core, it is a book about the thing that so many books are about and what so much of our lives are about; love."
'Marlena' by Julie Buntin
When they chose Julie Buntin's Marlena as the May book pick, Emma promised her Belletrist Babes that they would "devour and fall in love with this story of the power and complexity of female friendship."
'Touch' by Courtney Maum
Belletrist described their June book pick, Courtney Maum's Touch, as "the story of Sloane Jacobsen, a trend forecaster who finds herself in a job that forces her to analyze the limits of our relationship and obsession with technology, and ultimately begs the question: can our instincts become extinct?"
