Welcome back to Book Break!
Today, I want to know your star sign
because I have made a list of book recommendations
for each star sign.
And to make sure I got these right, I've been
brushing up by reading Astro Poets
by Alex Dimitrov and Dorothea Lasky.
So this is this really fun, modern,
kind of tongue in cheek, funny guide to astrology.
It's perfect, everything you need to know
about each star sign for the 21st century.
So you can know what they're like as a friend,
what they're like in bed,
even how to text them for the best results.
It's really brilliant
and it's such a good companion to Linda Goodman's
Sun Signs.
So this is kind of the original astrology
bible.
This was published in the 60s
and actually became the first book on astrology
to become a New York Times bestseller.
So these are really great companion books.
So based on everything I've learned from those
two books,
I have pulled together my list of book recommendations.
And I've come here to the Atlantis Bookshop
to tell you about them.
So this is the oldest independent occult bookshop
in the UK,
possibly in the world.
It started in 1922 and it's this amazing,
family-run business,
they've got books on magic, witchcraft and
tarot.
This is the birthplace of modern-day witchcraft,
so where could be more perfect for me to come
and talk about all of these books?
OK, so on with the list,
and if you look in the description box below,
I have put the time codes for each star sign.
So you can jump straight to yours, but also
make sure to go check out all of your friends'
and family's,
if you're planning the perfect gift to buy
them.
And, I'm really intrigued, do leave your star
sign emoji in the comments below,
because I really want to see if there are
any patterns for which star signs watch more
BookTube.
So starting with Aries, and a famous Aries
is Frank O'Hara.
He actually wrote my favourite poem, Having
a Coke With You,
which is perfect because that's what they've
quoted here at the beginning here.
They've quoted the line 'I look at you and
I would rather look at you than all the portraits
in the world'.
And another famous Aries is Elton John,
so I have to recommend his autobiography Me
if you want to read about all that famous
Aries energy.
So what I've learned is that Aries are passionate,
sometimes to the point of borderline obsessive,
when they're angry, they are very angry,
and they're likely to be wearing the most
colourful outfit in the room.
Now the Astro Poets say, if an Aries were
a city it would be Rome,
because of their love of power.
And if they were a punctuation mark, they
would be an exclamation mark.
So it is no surprise that basically everyone
I asked for suggestions for a book recommendation
for an Aries
said The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins,
because it combines their two favourite things:
competition and danger.
Next, Taurus.
Now a famous Taurus is Jack Nicholson.
Tauruses have this really stable energy.
And they sometimes get this reputation for
being a bit boring,
which is actually really unfair,
it's just they live their life so in the present.
A Taurus could take the same walk every day
for 20 years,
and truly be experiencing it every time.
The Astro Poets say that if a Taurus was a
weather, it would be a moody summer rain that
goes on all afternoon and then brightens into
a purple sunset.
So the book I've picked to recommend to all
you Tauruses out there is Sense and Sensibility
by Jane Austen.
Because Tauruses are at once both so sensual
and sensible, that you'll be able to identify
with both sisters equally.
Next we have Gemini,
and as a Gemini myself I was very interested
to hear what the Astro Poets had to say about
us.
And they basically said, to anyone who meets
a Gemini, good luck!
They said that we're charming, but that we
do a million things at once,
make scary amounts of eye contact,
and need a scary amount of attention.
Which to be honest sounds pretty accurate.
And a famous Gemini is Walt Whitman,
and they quoted his line 'I am large, I contain
multitudes' as pretty apt of Geminis.
Now the Astro Poets say if a Gemini were a
punctuation mark, it would be the hyphen
endlessly connecting words that may or may
not belong together.
So that made me think that my first book recommendation
should be Ulysses by James Joyce,
especially as that is all set on the 16th
June,
which is a day in Gemini season,
and incidentally my birthday,
but I actually think a better fit is Daphne
Du Maurier's short story collection
The Birds and Other Stories.
Because a Gemini's mind is never at rest,
and these stories are deliberately designed
to keep your mind whirring for days after
you've read them.
Next, Cancer.
Now Cancers are basically described as being
kind-of know-it-alls,
which as someone who's married to one,
I can tell you is true!
They can also be a bit insecure, but deep
down they know that they're in charge,
and they're homebodies.
When it comes down to it, home and family
really is their happy place.
So basically they're a little bit shy, a little
bit moody, but very very caring.
The Astro Poets say, if Cancer were a utensil
it would be the big spain, and if it were
a weather, it would be a torrential downpour.
So the book I've picked for Cancers is A Tree
Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith,
as it's this really emotionally rich book
that is ultimately all about family.
Next, Leo.
Now Emily Bronte was a Leo,
so Wuthering Heights is a must-read for any
Leo,
especially as the mega-Leo protagonist Catherine
Earnshaw will be very relatable to you.
Leos can be a little bit self-interested,
but in a very loveable way.
Now having a Leo around is never boring,
but that is because they can be slightly hyperbolic.
They make natural leaders, and having a Leo
in your life means having a friend who will
always stick by you,
and will buy you great presents.
The Astro Poets say, if a Leo were a type
of weather, it would be a heat wave.
So there's very strong personalities here,
so the book that I've picked is The Ensemble
by Aja Gabel.
So this follows four members of a string quartet
through their lives,
and it focuses on their friendships with each
other,
their triumphs, their successes, and their
losses,
and their intensity about their art.
Now Virgos.
Virgos love talking to you about your feelings,
but they hate talking about their own.
That's not because they don't have them,
they actually think about their feelings all
the time,
they just will never complain.
Virgos can come across as a little harsh at
first, but they're actually deeply caring
and kind,
just make sure that you get your grammar spot
on when you text them.
And Virgos love to champion big causes,
so Bernie Sanders is a famous Virgo.
The Astro Poets say, if Virgo were a punctuation
mark they would be the full stop,
final, authoritative, and sometimes hard to
read.
So that made me think of the book The Secret
Barrister,
which is this really fascinating read which
delves into the justice system in this country,
and how it's failing people who need it the
most.
So that's perfect for the principled Virgo.
It would also be pretty good for a Libra,
because they care a lot about justice,
their sign is the scales after all,
but let's go on to them next.
So, Libras.
Oscar Wilde and Truman Capote are two famous
literary Libras,
so you could start with The Importance of
Being Earnest, or In Cold Blood, as your book
recommendations.
Unsurprisingly with those two as our famous
Libras,
Libras love drama!
They're known as being the peacemakers, but
the Astro Poets say they are actually really
theatrical,
it's just that they see drama as entertaining
rather than serious.
Another famous Libra is Kim Kardashian.
The Astro Poets say if a Libra were a flower,
they'd be white tulips,
understated but elegant, placed in an expensive
vase, and adding just the right touch of splendour
to a room.
What a compliment!
So my book recommendation is Sweetbitter by
Stephanie Danler,
which is about a young woman working in a
high end restaurant in New York.
So it's got the perfect blend of life drama
and elegance for all of your Libra needs.
Now Scorpios!
So Scorpios don't always wear their hearts
on their sleeve,
but when they do get caught in their feelings
they find that they have a lot of them.
And when a Scorpio tells you they love you,
they really mean it.
The Astro Poets say, if a Scorpio were a type
of weather it would be as hot as hell.
Another key thing about Scorpios is their
love of power.
That doesn't mean that you'll find them running
for office, or being a CEO,
they're more of a behind-the-scenes kind of
powerful,
they like to be the ones pulling the strings.
And they're also very good at revenge.
So what book could I recommend here but Gone
Girl by Gillian Flynn.
So this book is all about power and revenge,
with a very Scorpio main character,
who will either love you intensely, or turn
the tables on you so fast you won't know what's
hit you.
Now for Sagittarius.
So the Astro Poets say that Britney Spears
is the ultimate Sagittarius,
rebellious but sweet, constantly wanting to
be loved,
but also constantly wanting to be free.
Sagittariuses definitely aren't followers,
but they're not really leaders either,
they actually prefer just to be left alone
to follow their own obsessions,
and make their own decisions, and they think
that everyone else should have that right
too.
The Astro Poets say if Sagittarius were a
city they'd be Las Vegas, and if they were
a weather, they'd be fog.
So the book that I've picked is Brave New
World by Aldous Huxley.
This is a dystopian novel that I think will
hit particularly hard for Sagittareans,
because it's all about a world where people
don't have that personal freedom that's so
particularly important to a Sagittarius.
Next, Capricorns.
Now Capricorns can endure and overcome anything
life throws them.
Just listen to any of Dolly Parton's songs,
she is the quintessential Capricorn.
Capricorns have a lot of ambition,
and they're interested in other people with
ambition.
But they can do anything on their own, and
they'll do it all brilliantly.
Basically, Capricorns don't need you.
The Astro Poets say that if a Capricorn were
a handshake, it would be the kind that involves
looking the other person dead in the eye,
emphasis on dead.
So the perfect book for a Capricorn is Wolf
Hall by Hilary Mantel,
which is all about Thomas Cromwell's ambitious
ascent to power and fame in Henry VIII's court.
Thomas Cromwell, by the way, was totally a
Capricorn.
Now Aquarius.
So being an Aquarius means being totally plugged
in to the zeitgeist of the time,
not just in terms of what's actually happening,
but also in terms of what needs to happen.
So Aquariuses are often revolutionaries,
and also can be quite bossy.
Aquarius are also closer to dreamers than
rationalists, so that's useful to know if
you're ever trying to argue with one.
The Astro Poets say that if an Aquarius were
a part of a book they'd be the footnote,
specific, nerdy, and needing context.
Virginia Woolf was an Aquarius, and the Astro
Poets also say that reading Mrs Dalloway is
a bit like swimming through Aquarean thought,
so that might be a good place to start to
get to know them,
but my recommendation for all the Aquariuses
out there is actually On the Road by Jack
Kerouac,
which is perfect for the Aquarius who wants
to go off and wonder the world,
but also think about life while they're at
it.
And finally, Pisces.
Now a Pisces is all about peace, love and
communication.
They can feel 79 different feelings every
minute,
and they live in those feelings at all times,
even when they're asleep.
Pisces aren't interested in the surface level
of anything,
they want to go deep.
And they've got really strong emotional antennae,
which, warning, can see right through you.
And Pisces are also really nostalgic,
you probably will find their rooms covered
in photos and old letters and ticket stubs.
So for that reason, the Astro Poets say that
if Pisces were a room, they'd be a childhood
bedroom.
And I actually got this final book recommendation
straight out of the Astro Poets book,
because they recommended Infinite Jest by
David Foster Wallace
as the ultimate Pisces book.
They describe it as one of the longest, strangest,
and most powerful books of our time,
and David Foster Wallace was himself a Pisces,
which you can totally tell in the way that
in Infinite Jest he tries to capture everything,
even the totally uncapturable.
Reading Infinite Jest, you never know if you
should be laughing or crying or feeling furious,
or feeling all of the emotions all at once,
which, according to the Astro Poets, is being
a Pisces.
So those are my suggestions, but do click
the link in the description box, because we've
got a blog post with even more recommendations
for each star sign.
And that was just Western astrology!
If you're interested in looking up your Chinese
zodiac sign,
Shelly Wu has got the definitive guide in
her book Chinese Astrology.
And it's worth looking up which sign you are,
because different years can apparently bring
you bad luck,
unless you wear something red given to you
by a relative,
so it's worth doing some forward planning
for that.
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Coming up next week we're talking about the
new books coming out from your favourite authors.
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See you next time!
