Julianna Margulies Gives A Tour Of Her Bookshelves & Favorite Reads | Shelf Portrait | Marie Claire
For actress Julianna Marguiles, reading isn't just a hobby. It's a way of life. The author of the memoir, Sunshine Girl, gives us a look inside her vast and personal library, from her beloved Ann Patchett novels to classics like Emily Dickinson and Dante's Inferno. She also discusses the authors— and shows off the autographed books — who inspired her own prose.
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00:00 I do think it's very important when you have a bookcase to sort of try and
00:05 make it artistically interesting.
00:09 This one took me eight hours to do.
00:11 Hi, I'm Juliana Margulies, and welcome to Marie Claire's shelf portrait.
00:17 [MUSIC]
00:21 I'm gonna start off with three of,
00:25 [DOG BARKING]
00:27 That's my dog.
00:28 So I love Ann Patchett.
00:30 [DOG BARKING]
00:32 And I have read every book she's ever written.
00:34 These three happen to be my pride and joy because my dear friend Reese Witherspoon
00:42 happens to know Ann Patchett, and she autographed them to me personally.
00:48 This is the story of a happy marriage.
00:50 I love to disappear into a book and into people's lives.
00:53 I like to disappear from mine at the end of the day and get into bed and read a book,
00:57 which is why I do not have a television in my bedroom.
01:00 This book, The Dutch House, I will always keep and
01:04 reread aside from the fact that it's such a stunning cover.
01:08 Truly one of the most beautiful stories I dove into last summer.
01:14 I could not put this book down.
01:15 She's just an incredible writer.
01:17 She's an incredible writer.
01:18 Bel Canto, who doesn't know Bel Canto?
01:21 Ann Patchett is such a beautiful, beautiful writer.
01:23 And it's not just because we both have the same alma mater, Sarah Lawrence College.
01:27 I actually didn't know that before I fell in love with her writing.
01:30 I had the fortune of meeting Walter Isaacson, and he told me to read his book, Innovators.
01:40 And in this book, it's just fascinating.
01:44 I recommend everyone read this book.
01:46 I had no idea that the first people to program computers were women.
01:53 And it's just a remarkable story.
01:56 And all the stories in here are remarkable.
01:59 I love art books.
02:01 And I think art books are very important in anyone's bookcase and in anyone's home.
02:06 One art book that my father gave me when I was in college and I was studying art history
02:12 is this--
02:14 I fell in love with Marc Chagall.
02:16 And it's this stunning Marc Chagall book.
02:21 I think his paintings are so joyful and playful and beautiful.
02:27 And this book is just the story of his paintings and the story of his life.
02:31 And I highly recommend it.
02:33 It's followed me around everywhere in this book.
02:36 I do love memoirs.
02:38 I tend to read them and then give them to friends because I just like to share.
02:45 But one book I refused to get rid of or give--
02:48 I just said, go buy it--
02:50 is Gabriel Byrne's Walking with Ghosts.
02:53 Just stunning prose.
02:56 Stunning.
02:57 I happened to have done a film with him years ago and had no idea he was such a beautiful writer.
03:03 And then, of course, Toni Morrison's Love.
03:07 Everyone should have this in their bookcase.
03:09 And her voice is so magnificent.
03:12 It's a book I always go back to.
03:16 And also because it's so light and easy, I travel with it.
03:20 So another thing that is my travel companion--
03:23 and usually it is by my bedside.
03:25 I have it on the bookcase here because I have several copies of them.
03:29 And that's Gratitude by Oliver Sacks.
03:34 I have read this book probably, I don't know, 15, 20 times.
03:38 I read a chapter of it every now and then just to remind myself
03:42 that life is much richer when gratitude is practiced.
03:46 And this is a man who understood that.
03:48 I'm an actress, so obviously my shelves are also going to be filled with plays.
03:54 For example, Arthur Miller's collection of plays, which--
03:57 it's so worn out that I'm afraid it's falling apart.
04:02 I do truly believe that Arthur Miller, who wrote Death of a Salesman,
04:11 I think when he was 23 years old in three days--
04:18 stunning.
04:18 And it's old, and I love the smell of it.
04:22 It's smelling-- reminds me of my college dorm room.
04:24 And of course, here I have a collection of Shakespeare plays,
04:28 which are great because you can just put them in your pocket
04:32 and take them to the park with you.
04:34 I have literally every single one here.
04:36 And look, you can see how old it is.
04:38 It all used to be that color.
04:40 I think these are the kinds of things--
04:43 this was a gift from my father, and I cherish them.
04:46 And I think everyone should make sure they keep books in their shelves
04:53 that remind them of times in their lives,
04:56 not just good reads, but times in their lives.
04:58 OK, so I'm in our den now.
05:01 I'm up on the couch because the bookshelves are a little too high for me to reach.
05:04 Dante's Inferno, which has traveled with me since high school.
05:08 And I became obsessed with Dante.
05:12 And now I have all of them here, which I studied in college.
05:16 And they've been with me all over this country.
05:20 The Nine Circles of Hell, everyone should read about them.
05:23 That's all.
05:24 I can't have a library without having my Emily Dickinson.
05:27 Her poems in this book, which is called Final Harvest, is just gorgeous.
05:37 And you don't always have time to read a full book,
05:39 but you have always time to read a poem.
05:43 I go from reading very heavy stuff, esoteric stuff, memoirs,
05:47 to just plain old good entertainment and fun.
05:51 Untamed.
05:53 Glennon Doyle did it again.
05:56 Just love her writing.
05:58 It's so honest and refreshing and beautiful.
06:00 I had so much fun reading Ali Wentworth's Ali in Wonderland.
06:06 It is a hoot and a holler.
06:10 Really honest and such an easy, fast read.
06:14 And she is whip smart.
06:16 What an interesting childhood.
06:18 What interesting parents she had.
06:20 This book, The Secret Conversations,
06:25 it's Ava Gardner partnered with a friend of hers who's a journalist, Peter Evans,
06:32 and wrote this book.
06:33 And it is fantastic.
06:35 It is such a good read.
06:37 I actually read it on every 10-minute break I had when I was on The Good Wife.
06:42 She has a great line when she was asked why she stayed with one of her husbands so long.
06:47 She said, "Well, he was great in the feathers, baby.
06:49 Great in the feathers."
06:51 I mean, it's just such a spectacular book.
06:54 One of my favorite books of all time is by Wally Schaun.
06:59 Now, that's on the other shelf, but because I became obsessed with The Fever,
07:03 I bought Wally Schaun's essays.
07:06 I happened to get to work with him on The Good Wife, which was a thrill.
07:09 But what a writer.
07:11 He is such a beautiful writer.
07:13 And again, I think it's important to find books that you can travel with and put in your bag.
07:19 If you're a guy, put it in your pocket.
07:22 They're small, and you should never get on a subway or a train or a plane without a book
07:26 because you never know how long you're going to be waiting, and you can learn a lot.
07:29 Two people who really helped me write my book without knowing it.
07:34 Um, The Art of Memoir, Mary Carr.
07:39 Even if you're not planning on writing a book, it's just so well-written.
07:45 I got really lucky because a friend of hers heard that I was trying to write this memoir that I wrote,
07:51 and they knew her.
07:53 And look, I have it signed by her.
07:59 I mean, these are my prized possessions.
08:00 To Juliana, my woman crush.
08:03 Good luck with the words.
08:05 Stephen King on writing.
08:07 Phenomenal book.
08:09 By the way, look, it's falling apart.
08:11 Even if you're not planning to write anything, he is so entertaining and so fantastic.
08:18 And you get to learn about his early days as a writer, which is fascinating.
08:23 How he came up with Carrie.
08:25 It's really a great read.
08:26 I highly recommend it.
08:29 And then, of course, how could I call myself an actual if I didn't show you my book that's
08:36 also in tatters of Sam Shepard.
08:38 Sam Shepard, Fool for Love and Other Plays.
08:41 This was in my backpack, I think, throughout all of college and the two years before I got
08:49 a yard after college.
08:50 Three years, maybe it was.
08:51 But I did so many scenes from this.
08:54 His writing is just magnificent.
08:57 Gorgeous, gorgeous.
08:58 I could go on and on.
08:59 There are so many books I'd love to share with you.
09:03 But really, I think the love of reading is what's important.
09:07 And I hope in any way I could guide you to some new books you didn't hear about.
09:11 Thank you for joining me on this Marie Claire's shelf portrait.
09:15 I hope you've enjoyed some of my shelves and have a great day.
09:26 (upbeat music)