Introducing Emily's Book Club

Our first book is the one that reminded me why I love reading

Cat’s out of the bag. And I am so excited!!

Introducing Emily’s Book Club — a new part of The Landing where we read all kinds of books that matter to women, talk about the stories (and the bigger life questions they spark), and do it all without pressure.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve had a book club in some form. In high school, it was my best friend and I passing dog-eared paperbacks back and forth. In my twenties, it was fellow English-major friends arguing about whether we loved or despised certain characters over coffee. I still have an in-person book club where we chat about what’s going on at the kids’ school, share a few glasses of wine, and sometimes forget to talk about the book altogether.

But through all of it, I’ve had this quiet, persistent idea: to create a book club that lives in a central place, accessible by many, and built for real conversation. A place where we can read together, think together, and talk about books that actually matter to women in this season of life. I’m a voracious reader (89 in 2025!) and I can’t wait to share the reading side of me with you all, like I’ve shared the writing side of me. And selfishly, I can’t wait to hear what you’re reading too!

Also…it’s totally okay if you sometimes don’t have time to read the books. You can still be part of the conversations. This is a low-lift book club, if you will. AND, if books aren’t your thing, also ok! The Landing is and always be a place for thoughtful conversations around all the tings that matter to women (more below on how to tweak your notifications if this applies to you).

How it works

What we’ll read: All kinds of books — fiction and nonfiction, various genres. The common thread? Stories and themes that matter to women. We’re a mixed bag… so are our bookshelves.

How often we’ll read: One book per month (or at least, we’ll talk about one per month... because life).

How books are chosen: You help decide! A couple weeks before each month, I’ll give you three choices. Vote in the poll to make your voice heard.

The monthly rhythm, on Tuesdays:

• Week 1: I’ll introduce the book and why I’m excited about it

• Week 2: Deep dive into characters, plot, craft — capped at a certain point to stay spoiler-free

• Week 3: Community thread in The Reading Room (our cozy Substack chat space for sharing thought provoking quotes, discussion, and reactions)

• Week 4: Substack Live hangout with me at 12:00 PM CT for final thoughts and Q&A (recorded if you can’t make it)

Didn’t finish the book? Zero pressure. Our goal is discovering new books and authors, talking about things affecting you, and maybe finding a new internet friend or two.

How to join

For our first month, Emily’s Book Club is open to everyone — on Tuesdays, you’ll simply receive book club posts in your inbox. After our first month, most book club content will be available exclusively to subscribers of The Landing, so I can give the club the care and thoughtfulness it deserves. There will always be a free intro post each month so you can see what we’re reading. Think of this first month as our open door. Come in, settle into the conversation, and see how it feels.

Not interested in Book Club? No worries at all. The Landing will continue as always. To opt out of book club emails, tap your profile photo → “Manage subscription” → scroll to Emily’s Book Club → toggle notifications off.

Emily’s Book Club is an addition, not a shift. The Landing stays the same at its core — weekly Deep Dives, the Sunday Scroll, Emily’s Edit. This is just one more way to gather and talk about the things that matter. I. Am. So. Excited!!

And without further ado… I’m so excited to share our very first Emily’s Book Club pick for February!!! Our very first Emily’s Book Club read is Theo of Golden by Allen Levi.

You guys. This book found me during an absolutely brutal stretch of January. The kind where every day felt like a slog through spreadsheets and logistics and the same gray sky. I needed something different. Something that would remind me why I love reading in the first place. I entertained a few books for our very first EBC pick. And then came this one. Theo of Golden is, simply put, a beautiful book.

The premise sounds simple: an elderly man arrives in a small Georgia town called Golden one spring morning. No one knows where he came from or why he’s there. He wanders into a local coffee shop, notices ninety-two pencil portraits of townspeople hanging on the walls, and decides to buy them all. One by one, he tracks down the person in each portrait and returns it to them as a gift.

That’s it. That’s the plot. (“But Emily, that sounds boring?”) Hold tight, dear reader.

Here’s what the premise doesn’t tell you: within each exchange, something cracks open. Stories get told. Friendships form. People who thought they were invisible suddenly feel seen. And Theo, this mysterious, question-asking man who reveals almost nothing about himself, becomes the catalyst for an entire community remembering how to be kind to each other.

It’s the kind of book that makes you want to be a better neighbor. A better listener. A better person in the small, quiet ways that don’t make headlines but absolutely matter. It’s a book that makes you think about what would happen if instead of trying to Change The World, we started loving our neighbors, our families, ourselves.

Here’s something that made me fall even harder for this book: Allen Levi originally self-published it in 2023. He’s a former attorney and judge from Georgia who also happens to be a singer-songwriter with over twenty albums. (I know this because one of my dearest friends told me that he sang and performed at her summer camp [same one Caroline goes to] decades ago). He lives on 1,600 acres of family land in the middle of nowhere, keeps honeybees, and posted homespun music videos while he was writing. No marketing campaign. No book tour. No viral TikTok moment. (The author in me is saying… heh?? What is this life).

And yet somehow, through nothing but word of mouth, readers started passing it around. Then more readers. Then a lot more. It sold over 170,000 copies before the publishing world even knew what was happening. (!!!) They started calling it “the white book” because of its stark cover, and they couldn’t figure out how it was selling so fast. Simon & Schuster eventually picked it up, and now it’s a New York Times bestseller.

I love a story about something good rising to the surface simply because people couldn’t stop talking about it. That feels rare these days.

I’m listening to this one on audio, and I have to tell you: the narration is a gift. David Morse, an Emmy and Tony-nominated actor, brings Theo to life with this VOICE… this gentle, curious warmth that makes you feel like you’re sitting across from him at a café. There’s a Portuguese accent that feels authentic without being overdone. He narrates the accents and pacing and nuances of each character’s voice… and the voices… tell their own stories. The pacing is perfect for a slow, savoring kind of read. And the author himself narrates a new afterword about the writing process, which is the cherry on top.

If you’re someone who has fallen out of love with reading, this audiobook might be the one that brings you back.

There’s a line from the book that keeps circling in my mind: “It’s a brave thing to live with your eyes open.”

I think we’re all trying to do that, aren’t we? To stay awake to the people right in front of us, even when it’s easier to scroll past. To notice the small things that could change someone’s day if we just slowed down long enough to act.

Join me!

Theo of Golden is not a fast book. It’s not a thriller. It’s not going to keep you on the edge of your seat wondering what happens next. But it will make you want to call an old friend. It will make you want to write a note to someone you’ve been thinking about. It will make you want to believe that goodness still wins sometimes, in the smallest and most beautiful ways.

And honestly? I think we need that right now. Let’s read this one together.

Grab your copy, and I’ll see you in The Reading Room.