With the summer quickly flying away, it’s time to take another look at that [already dusty] summer reading list. With a slew of summer releases that don’t disappoint, there’s something for all of us from introspective analyses of the world around us to the ridiculous antics of college freshmen. We’ve run around the web to bring you the best of the “best of” summer lists and we can’t wait to hear about your favorites!
Treat A Day recommends:
1. The Divergent Trilogy by Veronica Roth
Experiencing Hunger Games withdrawls? Don’t worry, we’ve got another young adult action favorite to share. Roth offers an interesting take on the end of the world as we know it, and the adolescents who run it. Filled to the brim with action, adventure and of course a dash of love. The only disappointing part? Only the first two books have been released thus far.
2. Quiet: The Power of Introverts {in a world that can’t stop talking} by Susan Cain
Akin to the style of “Freakonomics,” Cain neatly compiles & explains the otherwise unintelligible research for us, tying it to our everyday lives along the way. An illuminating page-turner on the societal structure that keeps our great nation afloat, what she calls the “extrovert ideal,” and its impact on introverts young & old. A truly enjoyable study and a great tool for teaching us to better relate and communicate with one another.
Huffington Post recommends: Best Summer Books
3. Who Will Run the Frog Hospital? by Lorrie Moore
“A cult classic in which a woman recalls a teenage summer spent working at an amusement park with her boisterous, beautiful best friend. It’s a breeze to get through, but the language is lyrical.”
4. The Family Fang by Kevin Wilson
“It’s a fast, funny read about performance artist parents and their duly screwy kids. It’s great for fans of Wes Anderson, “Franny and Zooey,” and other tales of troubled prodigies.”
5. Penelope by Rebecca Harington
“Rebecca’s debut novel is a witty, hilarious take on a girl’s freshman year at Harvard (and Rebecca actually went to Harvard, so it’s pretty accurate). It’ll make you simultaneously miss college and be glad that you’ve already graduated.”
The Daily Beast recommends: Best Summer Reads
6. Where’d you Go Bernadette by Maria Semple
“15-year-old Bee goes on a journey to find her brilliant, volatile, agoraphobic mother, who might or might not be avoiding a trip to Antarctica. Semple has written for SNL, Arrested Development and even Mad About You, so no surprise that humor fills this novel—and so does the importance of a mother-daughter bond in a technology-driven world.”
7. Capital by John Lanchester
“Lanchester’s hefty new novel about near present-day London. Set on a typical (and dear reader, atypical in having a writer as gifted as Lanchester tell its story) London street (Pepys Road), he weaves a rich story about the financial collapse and its impact on financier and graffiti artist alike. We’re all connected by capital.”
The Independent recommends: The 50 Best Summer Reads
8. Skios by Michael Frayn
“A contemporary Greek drama unfolds on the island of Skios when a case of mistaken identity threatens to expose the dubious foundations of a farcical hifalutin’ intellectual organisation. Nothing and no one escapes Frayn’s eager satire in this wonderfully executed highbrow beach read. Sustaining comic writing this funny is epic in itself.”
9. The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach
“One badly thrown baseball profoundly changes the lives of star college player Henry Skrimshander and those around him,” says Brett.
The Atlantic wire recommends: Beach Reads
10. It Chooses You by Miranda July
“In this memoir that does not read like a memoir, July goes through a strange and uniquely uplifting odyssey, as she interviews an oddball handful of Los Angeles misfits who put random possessions for sale in the PennySaver.”
11. (because 10 books just weren’t enough!)
The Orphan Masters Son by Adam Johnson
“A masterpiece, actually. And fun. More fun than some other masterpieces. And it will make you think about love and also the larger world around us and you will lose yourself like in a comfortable wave.”
