Do you like to read? Many people save their reading for the times when they’re alone. It’s one of life’s simple pleasures to sit down with a good book, a hot snack, and a steaming hot cup of coffee on a winter’s day. In fact, such treats can come in special handy during the cold months of January and February, when simple pleasures and small joys can sometimes seem their biggest.

Fruitcake, the once and now-again centerpiece of holiday desserts, makes the perfect snack or special treat to accompany those relaxing hours with a hot cup of coffee and good book. Keeping our tongue planted firmly in cheek, we suggest the following literary classics for you to read and enjoy, though we’ve added a fruitcake element to each. Enjoy!

Pride and Prejudice and Fruitcake – Young Elizabeth Bennett wins over the distant heart of Fitzwilliam Darcy by introducing him to the joys of fruitcake made from country fruits. The two have a troubled courtship but eventually reconcile. Fruitcake is served at their wedding celebration, to everyone’s delight.

My Antonia Loves Fruitcake – The touching reminiscence of a young boy growing up on the Nebraska prairie, this classic coming of age story describes how a Bohemian family and their young daughter yearned for the simple fruitcakes of their homeland. In time, the young boy is able to help the girl make a new, American kind of fruitcake.

Great Fruitcake Expectations – A poor boy growing up in 18th Century England gets the chance to become a rich and powerful baker, after a criminal gives him a new lease on life. The boy helps invent a new kind of fruitcake, one that will help the poor of England get better nutrition.

A Farewell To Fruitcake – In the aftermath of World War I, a wounded American soldier falls in love with a British nurse. The two hope to run away to Switzerland, where they will open a fruitcake bakery that employs other war veterans. In time, the two realize their dream is not to be.

Fruitcake, My Lovely – A tough private eye gets the case of a missing fruitcake baker who may be into something more dangerous than mixing delicious fruits and nuts into a traditional holiday dessert. The baker’s trail leads to a ring of dessert smugglers stretching between Los Angeles and South America. A gritty but tasty “fruit noir” classic.