Tolstoy and the Purple Chair
Bookpage Interviews and Reviews
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Reading all day
When her sister Anne-Marie died after a brief but debilitating illness, Nina Sankovitch took refuge in her old purple chair, surrounded by stacks of books that both she and her sister loved.
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Getting her daily dose of literature
In October 2008, Nina Sankovitch launched a year-long project: She would read one book a day, every day, for a year. The idea was to give some structure to her life after the tragic death of her older sister. In addition to reading the books, Sankovitch also committed herself to reviewing each of them on a website she created, ReadAllDay. As word of her task spread, her audience grew—and, once the project was completed, Sankovitch wrote a book of her own about her experience, Tolstoy and the Purple Chair, an "affectionate and inspiring paean to the power of books and reading." We had to ask Sankovitch a few questions about this ambitious project.
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Reader Reviews
Thanks to BookPage, I received a free copy of Nina Sankovitch's book "Tolstoy and the Purple Chair"! I usually gravitate more towards fiction books and have to be forced to read non-fiction so I am always surprised when I enjoy anything non-fiction. Ms. Sankovitch's book helped me put into words why I love reading so much! As she says "For years, books had offered to me a window into how other people deal with life, its sorrows and joys and monotonies and frustrations. I would look there again for empathy, guidance, fellowship, and experience. Books would give me all that, and more." The author turns to her reading "work" as a way to stop running away from her sorrow and grief over her sister's early death. She finds comfort, direction, validation, reassurance and, finally, peace from her one-book-every-day reading. Anyone who loves to read can relate to this book. And you just may find a few new titles you'll want to read as well!