{"id":27926,"date":"2025-09-17T14:55:11","date_gmt":"2025-09-17T14:55:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/27926\/"},"modified":"2025-09-17T14:55:11","modified_gmt":"2025-09-17T14:55:11","slug":"comfort-reads-and-comfort-foods-the-big-tasty-read-staff-picks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/27926\/","title":{"rendered":"Comfort Reads and Comfort Foods: The Big Tasty Read Staff Picks"},"content":{"rendered":"

At The Reading Agency, we know that food and books both have the power to comfort, connect, and nourish us. So, as part of the Big Tasty Read<\/a>, we asked some of our staff to share their favourite comfort reads and the foods they love most. From classic novels to childhood dishes, these pairings show how stories and flavours can bring warmth in every season.<\/p>\n

Alex<\/p>\n

Senior Marketing & Communications Manager<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Favourite comfort read: Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier<\/p>\n

\u201cA psychological thriller is probably not a typical \u2018comfort\u2019 read but I can be completely immersed in the shadowiness of the story and the description of the cliffs and crashing seas remind me of home.\u201d<\/p>\n

Favourite comfort food: marmite on toast<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t have a story for this but marmite on toast is a cure for any ill!\u201d<\/p>\n

Amy <\/p>\n

Programme Manager, Reading and Health<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Favourite comfort read: Anne of Green Gables\u00a0by L.M. Montgomery<\/p>\n

\u201cMy favourite comfort read is probably\u00a0Anne of Green Gables\u00a0by L.M. Montgomery. I\u2019m not usually into coming-of-age stories, but there\u2019s something about Anne\u2019s imagination and optimism that just resonates with my inner child!\u201d<\/p>\n

Favourite comfort food: chocolate g\u00e2teau<\/p>\n

\u201cMy favourite dessert growing up was always chocolate g\u00e2teau, and then when I moved away to go to university, every time I felt run down or homesick, I would always get myself a chocolate g\u00e2teau. Now as an adult, whenever I\u2019m feeling unwell, I always end up buying myself a chocolate g\u00e2teau and will eat the full thing to myself which always seems to help me get better sooner, or at least that\u2019s what I like to tell myself!\u201d<\/p>\n

Becky <\/p>\n

Research and Evaluation Manager<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Favourite comfort read: Fellowship of the Ring by J. R. R. Tolkien<\/p>\n

\u201cI specifically listen to the audiobook narrated by Andy Serkis to help me fall asleep. I\u2019m going to buy the illustrated version of the Lord of the Rings trilogy soon because the pictures in them are beautiful and very soothing to look at.\u201d<\/p>\n

Favourite comfort food: Earl Grey tea with\u00a0kr\u00f3wki<\/p>\n

\u201cMy friend\u2019s mum made Earl Grey tea for me on a camping trip when I was in primary school \u2013 she put plenty of sugar in it, and I\u2019ve loved the sweet perfumy taste ever since (Parma Violets are delicious and I will die on this hill).\u00a0Kr\u00f3wki\u00a0are a type of Polish fudge with a liquid centre; I tried them when visiting my son\u2019s grandparents in Kalisz and I can\u2019t get enough of them. Thank goodness they sell them in England!\u201d<\/p>\n

Emma <\/p>\n

Programme Manager, Community and Schools Engagement<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Favourite comfort read: Life After Life by Kate Atkinson<\/p>\n

\u201cLife After Life is a book I return to again and again, for despite its harrowing depictions of war and violence, it\u2019s such a comforting idea that we could travel back and try to live life again. We might not literally be able to reset, like Ursula, but we can learn from the past, trust our instincts and ultimately make the world a better place.\u201d<\/p>\n

Favourite comfort food: tuna pasta bake<\/p>\n

\u201cCreamy tuna pasta bake, with peas and sweetcorn, topped with crushed crisps and cheddar cheese- the taste of my 80s\/90s childhood!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hannah<\/p>\n

Programme Officer, Reading and Health<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Favourite comfort read: I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith<\/p>\n

Favourite comfort food: tinned fruit cocktail<\/p>\n

\u201cA bit of a retro one! My gran used to give this to me and my sister whenever we went to her house after school as a treat. We both liked the cherries best and she always made sure we got exactly the same amount each (there were never many in the tin, so she\u2019d often have to cut them in half to avoid any arguments!)\u201d<\/p>\n

Find out more about the Big Tasty Read here<\/a><\/p>\n

Home<\/a> News and Stories<\/a> Comfort Reads and Comfort Foods: The Big Tasty Read Staff Picks<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"At The Reading Agency, we know that food and books both have the power to comfort, connect, and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":27927,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[489,156,111,139,69],"class_list":{"0":"post-27926","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-books","8":"tag-books","9":"tag-entertainment","10":"tag-new-zealand","11":"tag-newzealand","12":"tag-nz"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27926","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27926"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27926\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27927"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27926"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27926"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27926"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}