April 19 2023 BY ALICE MARTIN OFF THE SHELF
The Coastal Grandmother Aesthetic:
even if you’ve never heard of it, you know exactly what it looks like. Breezy button-downs, soft-worn khakis, nautical stripes and coastal pastels. But this trend is more than just the clothes available in an L.L. Bean catalog; it’s a settling, a lifestyle, a mood. If you are looking to unlock this fresh and meditative feeling, just pick up one of these perfect books for the coastal grandmother aesthetic, each one filled with a gust of simultaneously revitalizing and relaxing energy. With atmospheric seaside settings; insightful reflections on life, love, and loss; and emotionally nuanced internal conflicts, these books capture not just the look but the essence of your coastal grandmother or granddaughter daydreams.
For more books with that same aesthetic, check out these lists of shimmering coastal stories and lush books for spring.
The Secret Book of Flora Lea
by Patti Callahan Henry
Teenaged Hazel and her younger sister, Flora, have been sent to a small village to escape World War II–ravaged London. There, they fill their time with games of make believe in the woods, until Flora goes missing. Years later, Hazel receives a mysterious book, one that seems to know all the secrets of the fairy tale world she invented to keep her sister entertained. Now, Hazel must follow the book to rediscover the relationships of her past and unearth what really happened to her sister. BUY THE BOOK
