Colleen Oakley

Colleen Oakley is an Atlanta-based writer and author of the novel Before I Go. Her articles, essays, and interviews have been featured in The New York Times, Ladies’ Home Journal, Marie Claire, Women’s Health, Redbook, Parade, and Martha Stewart Weddings. Before she was a freelance writer, Oakley was editor in chief of Women’s Health & Fitness and senior editor at Marie Claire. Close Enough to Touch is her second novel.

Recently I asked the author about what she was reading. Oakley's reply:

Forever is the Worst Long Time, by Camille Noe Pagán. I love a good love triangle, and this one starts out with that basic premise and then spans the next 20 years of the protagonist’s life, taking you in such an unexpected— and poignant— direction. It’s a nook that grabbed me by surprise and then had me sobbing into the pillow at 3 in the morning. This was one of those books.

The Marriage Lie by Kimberly Belle. This was another all-nighter for me. A perfectly paced and taut suspense/thriller, I just had to know who-done-it.

The Inconvenient Indian by Thomas King. Because my history education (and I think most Americans’ history education) was woefully inadequate, I enjoy books that fill in the gaps as well as turn what I think I know on its head. King gives true accounts of Native North Americans and the atrocities committed against them— and somehow does it with a humorous touch.

The Mind at Night by Andrea Rock. A non-fiction treatise on the science of dreams— research for my next novel.

A Man in Full by Tom Wolfe. One of my favorites, I’m currently reading it for the third time. I still roll my eyes and simultaneously read in awe the unnecessarily lengthy passages on every other page, and laugh out loud at the caricatures of the Atlanta monied. It’s classic.

Visit Colleen Oakley's website.

--Marshal Zeringue