Summer Reading List

(The one where I give you all the recs)

Does anyone else look back with nostalgia about the summer reading lists of old? I loved having a vetted stack of books to consume during break. Sadly, it seems like those days have passed, so I thought I’d create my own in the hopes that you (or someone you love, or like, or merely tolerate) could use some recommendations as we enjoy the long summer days.

Without further ado…the list:

A STACKED stack of books, IMHO

Middle Grade

The Worst Week Ever series by Eva Amores and Matt Cosgrove. My 8-year-old called it “Funny, silly, and weird—in a good way.” This is the perfect book for the kid who has already read the Dog Man and Cat Kid books and is looking for something similar. The Wild Robot by Peter Brown is a beautifully written book that’s great for kids to read on their own or to read aloud to younger children. Read it and then watch the truly excellent movie on Netflix. (I cried multiple times.)

Romance

Honestly, you could look at my entire Instagram account for recommendations, but if I’m narrowing it to only two recommendations, it would be Alexis Daria’s Along Came Amour (the swooniest love story with HOTT chemistry) and Tarah DeWitt’s Left of Forever (possibly my favorite second chance romance?? Be prepared to cry buckets and start finding mustaches to be attractive).

General Fiction

Holly Brickley’s Deep Cuts is a compulsively readable book about a woman with impeccable taste in music and the musician with whom she has an on-off relationship. The beginning of the book takes place in early aughts Berkeley, and she captures it *perfectly.* Hazel Says No by Jessica Berger Gross is perfect for a summer book club. Thought-provoking, funny, and made me furious (not at the author, obviously, but the situation confronting Hazel).

Nonfiction

Adam Higginbotham’s Challenger is perfect for all the space nerds and anyone who wants to understand how large, complex organizations can fall prey to groupthink with devastating consequences. It’s a doorstop of a book, but I gulped it down poolside just the same. A Walk in the Park by Kevin Ferdarko is an excellent combination of stunning nature writing and a harrowing survival story. My dad loved it.

What did I miss? Shout it out in the comments.