WinterTide Book Review

wintertide book review cover image

Winter finally started at Chez Me this week. So, maybe it’s a good time to talk about my pal Brette Sember’s new book called WinterTide: Survive and Thrive in the Year’s Coldest, Darkest Season. Brette grew up near Buffalo, New York, so she knows winter. A bunch of the book’s recommendations also come from her trip to Iceland. So fun. Learned a lot!

See all of Brette’s books, including cookbooks that I also have!

Our first real snow finally fell a couple days ago, which is really late for us. Really late. So, to be honest, between the snow, cold, and wind + feeling trapped inside by lack of shoveling, I’m already feeling a little stabby about winter . That can’t be good.

Winter is NOT My Season

I often say things like “winter is *not my season,” so if you too don’t feel your best when it gets cold and dark, read this book.

WinterTide is Deeply Researched

Deeply researched, Wintertide offers countless ideas for doing more than just surviving winter. Ideas like how to …

  • Shift your mindset in creative ways
  • Keep your home and body comfortable even when it’s scary cold
  • Set up plans for always having something to do or celebrate

WinterTide Includes Scads of Wintertime Entertainment Ideas

The book also includes comprehensive recommendations for wintertime themed food and entertainment ideas to help you really embrace the season.

  • Cookbooks
  • Novels
  • Music

Wintertime Ideas Just for You

You will definitely learn new things inside WinterTide and be able to find useful suggestions that work for your life and climate. The ones I need to pursue include Brette’s suggestions for …

  • Cuticle cream
  • Cozy bottoms that are warm and windproof
  • Ways to keep my feet warm at my desk

I’ve Always Done That!

I did have to laugh about some of the suggestions because they are things I’ve always done, my whole life, having grown up in Colorado’s cold and super dry climate. Examples?

Keeping a bottle of lotion next to the soap dispenser at every sink

Always, always, always moisturizing after a shower (while still kind of damp)

I also put lotion my hands and apply lip balm probably a bajillion times a day. Especially because we heat a lot with wood, the air in our house is super dry and super hard on my skin, which then makes me cranky too.

So, I’m Really Trying …

I’m really trying to put WinterTide ideas into real practice this winter, with my SAD light going each morning and a steady stream of warm beverages all day while I write.