The best cozy cottagecore books to help you romanticize your life

Why am I passionate about this?

My love and passion for embracing a cozy and romantic view of life is so strong that I built my entire business around it! I am a recipe developer, cookbook author, and content creator. My unique take on cooking and baking is by adding touches of fantasy, cottagecore, and history into my recipes and other creative work. This has led me to write all about living a more cozy lifestyle for the last 10 years! Romanticizing my life with the cottagecore aesthetic is how I find joy and comfort in a chaotic world, and I hope that can inspire others to embrace living their own magical lives!


I wrote...

The Cottagecore Baking Book: 60 Sweet and Savory Bakes for Simple, Cozy Living

By Kayla Lobermeier,

Book cover of The Cottagecore Baking Book: 60 Sweet and Savory Bakes for Simple, Cozy Living

What is my book about?

My cookbook welcomes you to an enchanting escape into the realm of cottagecore baking, where rustic charm meets mouthwatering flavors. Whether you are already living out your cozy cottage dreams or are just starting to embrace the softer, simpler life, you’ll be captivated by the variety of baked goods on offer! Delight in luscious pies that are bursting with fresh, seasonal fruits; delicate teacakes and scones that enchant the eyes and the taste buds; and warm, crusty breads to fill your kitchen with pleasing aromas.

Wherever you might be in your cottagecore journey, you’ll soon find yourself embracing the slow-paced rhythms of cottage life as you whip up incredible sweet and savory treats.

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of The Cottage Fairy Companion: A Cottagecore Guide to Slow Living, Connecting to Nature, and Becoming Enchanted Again

Kayla Lobermeier Why did I love this book?

By Paola Merrill,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Cottage Fairy Companion as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A Cottagecore Inspired Guide for Mindful Living Anywhere

"This book presents an easy entry point for readers interested in exploring mindfulness and the cottagecore lifestyle." -Library Journal review

#1 Best Seller in Small Homes & Cottages, Folkcrafts, Architectural Decoration and Ornaments, Fiber Arts & Textiles, Seasonal Crafts, Architecture, Home Design Decorating & Design

The Cottage Fairy Companion is your accessible and beautiful guide to mindful living. It teaches the fundamentals of cottagecore style through the practices of The Cottage Fairy's daily life.

Romanticize your life anywhere. Open your eyes to the everyday magic right in front of you. Gain a…


Book cover of Tasha Tudor's Garden

Kayla Lobermeier Why did I love this book?

Tasha Tudor, the original cottagecore icon, is the one of the first people I was inspired by to change my outlook on life and be brave enough to include elements of a historically inspired style into my life. I absolutely love this book for its romantic imagery and magical ideas for building a fairytale garden and home.

This book has inspired me again and again, especially to learn to embrace my own personal style and that it’s okay to be a bit odd. This book not only has beautiful photos, but it also shares practical tips and ideas for growing your own cozy cottage garden.

With each page, you enter Tasha’s nineteenth-century-inspired world that she built and feel the confidence to build your own version of a romantic cottage life.

By Tovah Martin,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Tasha Tudor's Garden as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Tasha Tudor's poignant art has fascinated adults and children for decades. Her nineteenth-century New England lifestyle is legendary. Gardeners are especially intrigued by the profusion of antique flowers -- spectacular poppies, six-foot foxgloves, and intoxicating peonies -- in the cottage gardens surrounding her hand-hewn house. Until now we've only caught glimpses of Tasha Tudor's landscape. In this gorgeous book, two of her friends, the garden writer Tovah Martin and the photographer Richard Brown, take us into the magical garden and then behind the scenes. As we revel in the bedlam of Johnny-jump-ups and cinnamon pinks, the intricacy of the formal…


Book cover of The Wheel of the Year: An Illustrated Guide to Nature's Rhythms

Kayla Lobermeier Why did I love this book?

Now that the cottagecore movement is becoming more well-known, it is often associated with slow living. Before it became a trend, it began as a way for members of the LGBTQIA+ and Black communities to embrace a softer lifestyle that was so often not an option for them.

One of the main aspects of cottagecore is to live more in tune with nature and the seasons, or at the very least, to remind yourself to stop and notice. I have always loved this about the cottagecore aesthetic, and I think that The Wheel of the Year is the perfect book to learn more about living seasonally and where our modern seasonal traditions come from.

This book showcases that there is magic in everything around you, and it’s mainly geared toward young readers who want to learn more about how to follow seasonal rhythms, but adults can certainly still learn from this book and find joy in reading it!

By Fiona Cook, Jessica Roux (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Wheel of the Year as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 8, 9, 10, and 11.

What is this book about?

A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER AND KIRKUS BEST MIDDLE GRADE BOOK OF 2023

"This book is, in a word, immaculate." Kirkus (Starred Review)

A beautifully illustrated, interactive guide to ancient, nature-based holidays and customs. Through themed meditations, crafts, and rituals, young readers can learn about old and new ways of honoring the seasons-and create their own!

Each "spoke" in The Wheel of the Year marks an important turning point: the winter and summer solstices, the spring and fall equinoxes, and the festivals of seeding, growing, and harvesting that arrive in between. Within each section, enjoy: An overview of the holiday…


Book cover of The Complete Brambly Hedge

Kayla Lobermeier Why did I love this book?

Want to feel like a little kid again? This book, or any of the Brambly Hedge books by Jill Barklem, are the epitome of romanticizing your life!

I can remember reading the Brambly Hedge books as a child and falling in love with all of the beautiful scenes. These books present what so many people are craving right now, which is a cozy place to escape to.

As a child (and now) I loved the intricate interiors with historical details and the magical aspect of mice doing mundane tasks like baking or cleaning in little fluffy dresses. Now that I am older, I find that I really love reading these stories because they remind me to slow down and that it’s okay to stop for a moment to enjoy a cup of tea settled in by a warm fire.

By Jill Barklem,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Complete Brambly Hedge as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 3, 4, 5, and 6.

What is this book about?

Enter the beautiful world of Brambly Hedge with this exquisite treasury containing all eight of the much-loved, classic picture books.

Explore the natural world with the mice of Brambly Hedge, who made their first appearance in 1980 when the four seasonal stories were published. Ever since, readers have loved exploring the miniature world of the hedgerow and meeting the families that live there.

In this collection the mice have many adventures, but they always have time for fun and relaxation too. Whatever the season, and whether they are by the sea, in the hills, or simply at home by the…


Book cover of Howl's Moving Castle

Kayla Lobermeier Why did I love this book?

The world of Howl’s Moving Castle immediately invites you into a place that feels cozy and magical. This book is easily one of my favorites because of its low-stakes plot and wonderfully quirky characters.

Jones takes you on a leisurely stroll through the world of the book’s protagonist, Sophie, a rather awkward 18-year-old girl who believes she is doomed to fail at life because she was born the eldest of three.

This story is refreshingly original and has inspired me time and again to love living a life built around so many of the lovely cottagecore aesthetics featured inside its pages. 

By Diana Wynne Jones,

Why should I read it?

18 authors picked Howl's Moving Castle as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 8, 9, 10, and 11.

What is this book about?

Now an animated movie from Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki, the oscar-winning director of Spirited Away

In this beloved modern classic, young Sophie Hatter from the land of Ingary catches the unwelcome attention of the Witch of the Waste and is put under a spell...

Deciding she has nothing more to lose, Sophie makes her way to the moving castle that hovers on the hills above her town, Market Chipping. But the castle belongs to the dreaded Wizard Howl, whose appetite, they say, is satisfied only by the souls of young girls...

There Sophie meets Michael, Howl's apprentice, and Calcifer…


You might also like...

The Wonder of Jazz: Music that changed the world

By Sammy Stein,

Book cover of The Wonder of Jazz: Music that changed the world

Sammy Stein Author Of Fabulous Female Musicians

New book alert!

Why am I passionate about this?

I've been passionate about music for almost my entire life. Jazz music in particular speaks to me but not just jazz. I love music, full stop. I really discovered jazz when I attended a jazz club workshop in London and there, I had to join in or leave. I chose to join in and since then I have never looked back. I was introduced to more jazz musicians and now write about music for three major columns as well as Readers’ Digest. My Women In Jazz book won several awards. I have been International Editor for the Jazz Journalist Association and had my work commissioned by the Library of Congress. 

Sammy's book list on female musicians

What is my book about?

With input from over 100 musicians, the book discusses what exactly jazz is, and how you know you are listening to it. Do we truly know when and how jazz first originated? Who was the first jazz musician? How does jazz link to other genres? What about women in jazz? And writers and journalists? Do reviews make any difference? 

This book is a deep dive into jazz's history, impact, and future. It discusses jazz's social, cultural, and political influence and reveals areas where jazz has had an impact we may not even realize.Its influences on hip hop, the connection to…

The Wonder of Jazz: Music that changed the world

By Sammy Stein,

What is this book about?

This book is very different from other, more general jazz books. It is packed with information, advice, well researched and includes experiences from jazz musicians who gleefully add their rich voices to Sammy's in-depth research. All genres, from hard bop to be-bop, vocal jazz, must instrumental, free jazz, and everything between is covered in one way or another and given Sammy's forensic eye. There is social commentary and discussions of careers in jazz music. The musical background of those in the book is rich and diverse.
Critics comment:
"This new book by Sammy Stein is a highly individual take on…


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