It's giveaway time! 🎉 📚

👋 Hello readers!👋

Over in the Facebook group, we're talking about how Lara's initial unpreparedness — her naïveté, even — might have actually helped her win the race.

Erin Summerhays believes it was "the main key to her success."

"She had not spent years training or preparing," Erin posted, "so she wasn't as stressed out/focused on specific goals/feeling too overconfident as much as some of her competitors were."

Olivia Nixon-Hemelt agreed: "Her thoughts about how 'serious' the race is change throughout the book, and I agree with Erin in that this probably allowed her to remain lighthearted, open-minded, and not as intense as her competitors. I also think though that this worked particularly well in Lara's favor because she has a rebellious spirit and she seems to struggle with 'the shame of winning' or of taking things too seriously. I think her initial, less-intense approach to the race allowed her to come to terms with this development inside of herself when the time was right."

What do you think? Join the conversation here.

Happy reading,

Arianna

🎉 Signed book giveaway! 🎉

ICYMI: Next month we'll be diving into Patti Smith's iconic memoir — and this year's One Book, One New York winner — Just Kids.

Just Kids is a poignant recounting of Patti Smith's once-in-a-lifetime relationship with photographer Robert Mapplethorpe in the heady days of New York City in the late '60s and '70s. It's an inspirational and insightful story about friendship, ambition, and art — about the journey toward figuring out who you are, and all of the people who help you along the way. You can read an excerpt here.

To celebrate, Ecco is giving away ten signed copies to BuzzFeed Book Club members! (USA addresses only.) Respond to this email by Tuesday, June 18th, 10am ET, and tell us about a coming-of-age book you love — you might be selected as a winner.

💖 Bookish Products We Love 💖

A series to highlight the reading-related products that bring us joy. This month: Simpson & Vail's author-inspired teas.

If you ask me, a reading nook is not complete without a hot cup of tea — and there's something especially charming about that tea being literary themed. Simpson & Vail has a massive selection of teas, coffees, and kitchenware, but their author collection is a special fave. There's Jane Austen's black tea blend, with hints of spearmint, vanilla, and lavender; Beatrix Potter's herbal blend, made with rooibos and rosehip; Walt Whitman's organic green tea blend, with lemon, ginger, and eleuthero root; Edgar Allan Poe's smoky black blend, made with puerh and lapsang teas, beetroot, and bergamot oil; and more.

Want to catch up on past BuzzFeed Book Club reads? Pick up Bowlaway by Elizabeth McCracken, The Water Cure by Sophie Mackintosh, Sugar Run by Mesha Maren, My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite, The Friend by Sigrid Nunez, or Family Trust by Kathy Wang. 📖