If you follow me on Instagram it probably doesn't come as a surprise that I'm obsessed with Friends. I've watched the show countless times and it's always my go-to when I'm feeling down.
If you're an avid watcher like myself, you probably have already spotted a few episodes featuring our beloved characters reading a bunch of different books. Essentially, this is what gave me the idea to do this series, combining my love for books and my obsession with Friends.
To make it more interesting, I decided to suggest books based on personality traits from each character, starting with Phoebe Buffay.
In my opinion, Phoebe is one of the most (if not the most) underrated main character from the group. I see her as this fierce, creative, very whimsical and extremely resilient human being that has this amazing quirky side that tops it all off.
Despite living in her little magic bubble most of the time, she can be very down to earth and has shown to be incredibly aware of social causes (perhaps even more so than any other character).
All of the books I chose reflect Phoebe's personality but I also tried to make sure to include some that I could picture her reading and enjoying, and hopefully, if you like Phoebe Buffay, you'll enjoy reading these books.
The One With the Whimsical Vibes
Every Heart a Doorway - Seanan McGuire (Wayward Children #1)
Children are always disappearing in mysterious ways - slipping through the shadows under a bed or at the back of a wardrobe, tumbling down rabbit holes and into old wells, and emerging somewhere... else.
Eleanor West's Home for Wayward Children is a special place. It offers shelter to the children who have gone and experienced other realities and have found their way back, to our non-fantasy world.
Blood Like Magic - Liselle Sambury (Blood Like Magic #1)
Voya - a teen witch - is given an horrific task to pass her witch trial: she has to sacrifice her first love in order to save her entire family's magic.
The only problem is that Voya has never been in love and now she finds herself in need to find the perfect guy fast, and the answer is through a genetic matchmaking program where she meets Luc - the most infuriating guy that wants nothing to do with her. With mounting pressure from her family, Voya is caught between her morality and her duty to her bloodline.
The Once and Future Witches - Alix E. Harrow
In 1893, there's no such thing as witches.
But when the Eastwood sisters join the suffragists of New Salem, they begin to pursue the forgotten words and ways that might turn the women's movement into the witch's movement. Stalked by shadows and sickness they will need to delve into the oldest magics, draw new alliances, and heal the bond between them if they want to survive.
There's no such thing as witches. But there will be.
The One With the Important Discussion
Eloquent Rage - Brittney Cooper
Far too often, Black women’s anger has been caricatured into an ugly and destructive force that threatens the civility and social fabric of American democracy. But Cooper shows us that there is more to the story than that.
Eloquent rage keeps us all honest and accountable. It reminds women that they don’t have to settle for less.
This book argues that ultimately feminism, friendship, and faith in one's own superpowers are all we really need to turn things right side up again.
All Boys Aren't Blue - George M. Johnson
In a series of personal essays, prominent journalist and LGBTQIA+ activist George M. Johnson explores his childhood, adolescence, and college years in New Jersey and Virginia.
From the memories of getting his teeth kicked out by bullies at age five, to flea marketing with his loving grandmother, to his first sexual relationships, this young-adult memoir weaves together the trials and triumphs faced by Black queer boys.
Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race - Reni Eddo-Lodge
Exploring issues from eradicated black history to the political purpose of white dominance, whitewashed feminism to the inextricable link between class and race, Reni Eddo-Lodge offers a timely and essential new framework for how to see, acknowledge and counter racism. It is a searing, illuminating, absolutely necessary exploration of what it is to be a person of colour in Britain today.
The One With a Quirky Twist
Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine - Gail Honeyman
Eleanor Oliphant has learned how to survive – but not how to live.
Eleanor Oliphant leads a simple life. She wears the same clothes to work every day, eats the same meal deal for lunch every day and buys the same two bottles of vodka to drink every weekend.
Eleanor Oliphant is happy. Nothing is missing from her carefully timetabled life. Except, sometimes, everything.
Change can be good. Change can be bad. But surely any change is better than… fine?
A Man Called Ove - Fredrik Backman
A grumpy yet loveable man finds his solitary world turned on its head when a boisterous young family moves in next door.
Meet Ove. He's a curmudgeon, the kind of man who points at people he dislikes as if they were burglars caught outside his bedroom window. He has staunch principles, strict routines, and a short fuse. People call him the bitter neighbor from hell, but must Ove be bitter just because he doesn't walk around with a smile plastered to his face all the time? Behind the cranky exterior there is a story and a sadness.
Where'd you go, Bernadette - Maria Semple
Bernadette Fox has vanished. When her daughter Bee claims a family trip to Antarctica as a reward for perfect grades, Bernadette, a fiercely intelligent shut-in, throws herself into preparations for the trip. But worn down by years of trying to live the Seattle life she never wanted, Ms. Fox is on the brink of a meltdown. And after a school fundraiser goes disastrously awry at her hands, she disappears, leaving her family to pick up the pieces - which is exactly what Bee does, weaving together an elaborate web of emails, invoices, and school memos that reveals a secret past Bernadette has been hiding for decades.