Name: Tolstoy and the Purple Chair
ISBN: 9780061999857

Nina Sankovitch

Caught up in grief after the death of her sister, Nina Sankovitch decided to stop running and start reading. For once in her life she would put all other obligations on hold and devote herself to reading a book a day: one year of magical reading in which she found joy, healing, and wisdom. With grace and deep insight, Sankovitch weaves together poignant family memories with the unforgettable lives of the characters she reads about. She finds a lesson in each book, ultimately realizing the ability of a good story to console, inspire, and open our lives to new places and experiences. A moving story of recovery, Tolstoy and the Purple Chair is also a resonant reminder of the all-encompassing power and delight of reading.

My Year of Magical Reading

Tolstoy and the Purple Chair

Nina Sankovitch has always been a reader. As a child, she discovered that a trip to the local bookmobile with her sisters was more exhilarating than a ride at the carnival. Books were the glue that held her immigrant family together. When Nina's eldest sister died at the age of forty-six, Nina turned to books for comfort, escape, and introspection. In her beloved purple chair, she rediscovered the magic of such writers as Toni Morrison, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Ian McEwan, Edith Wharton, and, of course, Leo Tolstoy. Through the connections Nina made with books and authors (and even other readers), her life changed profoundly, and in unexpected ways. Reading, it turns out, can be the ultimate therapy. Tolstoy and the Purple Chair also tells the story of the Sankovitch family: Nina's father, who barely escaped death in Belarus during World War II; her four rambunctious children, who offer up their own book recommendations while helping out with the cooking and cleaning; and Anne-Marie, her oldest sister and idol, with whom Nina shared the pleasure of books, even in her last moments of life. In our lightning-paced culture that encourages us to seek more, bigger, and better things, Nina's daring journey shows how we can deepen the quality of our everyday lives—if we only find the time.

Celeste Richardson

Can you imagine reading a book a day for an entire year and reviewing every single one of them? No rereads, and only one book per author. It’s a thought that’s both daunting and incredibly appealing, and the author approaches her year of what seems like selfishness with such methodical rigor that it’s hard to fault her for it. What a unique way to deal with grief. I absolutely believe that books can be great healers, necessary medicines when you’re sick at heart and need to escape. However, what this book did more than anything was cement my appreciation for my faith. I’m incredibly thankful that death doesn’t strike me as a hopeless ending, but instead a temporary parting with a loved one. That being said, I can’t imagine the pain of losing a sibling. My brother is one of my very best friends, and the thought of him dying, even if I view death as the temporary parting stated above, absolutely wrecks me. I applaud Nina for finding a way through her grief and coming to the understanding that, while we never move on from that type of loss, we must find a way to move forward.

Tolstoy and the Purple Chair My Year of Magical Reading

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