The thought of summer vacation stirs up thoughts of barbecues and the beach for many. Accompanying these thoughts (especially if you are someone prone to sunburn such as yours truly) is often the amount of fun, no-pressure reading that becomes possible in the summertime.
In case you’ve fallen behind on compiling your To-Be-Read list, here are some ideas for must-reads that can be enjoyed in both the air-conditioned library and on the blazing hot sand:
1) Pick up that classic that always intrigued and / or intimidated you
Some may be scared away from older books once school is out and that’s perfectly okay! Who doesn’t love reading some lighthearted fluff during vacation? However, summertime is still a great opportunity to explore the classic novels that your professors may reference during the year and sigh wistfully over when no one admits to having read them. Now is your chance to impress them!
Included among easy-to-read, more relatable classics are female-centric novels such as Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott, and Anne of Green Gables, by L.M. Montgomery. I’ve found that these coming-of-age stories are relevant for all ages, and that they’re usually big hits with the older women in your family as well. They each have multiple film adaptations that you can watch afterwards (I speak for all Anne fans when I ask you to watch the 1985 version in memory of Jonathan Crombie).
Want to challenge yourself? Try out the monster that is Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables. If you want something that requires dedication but just aren’t feeling the French for now, hop on over to Russia and attempt Leo Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina. If anything, you might just want to take a crack at these to say that you did.
2) Browse the new releases of old favorites
My middle-school self was in heaven upon the announcements that both Meg Cabot and Sarah Dessen were releasing new books this summer. If you’ve never delved into either of these authors’ fiction, now is the perfect time to do so.
Dessen is essentially the queen of beach reads, producing favorites such as This Lullaby, Just Listen, and That Summer. She’s protecting her title with the May 5 release of Saint Anything. If you’ve read any of Dessen’s other works, you can take an easy guess at what this book will entail. My bet is that it will involve a boy and a girl in the summer, but Amazon has called this “Dessen’s deepest and most psychologically probing novel yet”.
Meg Cabot surprised us all when she announced that she was adding on to the presumably finished Princess Diaries series this year. Royal Wedding: A Princess Diaries Novel hits shelves on June 2, and my thirteen-year-old self, once again, will be squealing of joy. One glance at that title gives a massive hint at what comes Mia’s way this time around. Treat yourself with buying this one! If you’ve never read the original series, vacation is the best time to tackle it. Cabot’s books are fast reads, but oh so funny and enjoyable.
3) Get into the mood with more summer-themed reads
Morgan Matson is a name gaining quick prominence in the YA fiction world. If you’re a music lover, I highly recommend her book Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour. Amy is still recovering from a personal tragedy when she ends up traveling cross-country to her new home with old family friend Roger. Handwritten playlists are incorporated into the text, inspiring you to plan out your own road trip with some great tunes.
Matson’s Second Chance Summer is a little more serious, and you should definitely have some tissues on hand when reading. Taylor’s family returns to their old summer house for one last year after her father has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. This is a book that sucks you in practically from the start, and it definitely provides a whirlwind of emotion.
Less emotional summery reads include Jennifer E. Smith’s This is What Happy Looks Like and Maureen Johnson’s Suite Scarlett. You can also venture into any young adult section for books that aren’t set in the summer but are equally lighthearted and fast.
4) Catch up on your celebrity memoirs
Okay, so some of these are horrendously (or hilariously) bad, but memoirs written by those who have previously written for television or film usually contain decent, funny writing.
Amy Poehler’s Yes Please is an amazing, witty manifesto for anyone who needs a bit of a confidence boost or even just a good laugh. Poehler’s partner-in-crime Tina Fey released her memoir Bossypants a few years ago, so if you want to mourn the end of these two’s Golden Globes hosting era, try reading their books back-to-back!
5) Plan ahead by reading some how-to books
Are your parents bugging you about what you’re doing with your life? Ease their minds by sampling books that will help you figure out your future.
The national branch of Her Campus was kind enough to supply us with copies of finance expert Nicole Lapin’s Rich Bitch: A Simple 12-Step Plan for Getting Your Financial Life Together…Finally. Maybe you’re a finance major, or you’re planning to go abroad and need to soothe your bank account. You might even just be curious about sorting out your money before graduation. Lapin, who became the youngest news anchor ever at both CNN and CNBC, will help you solve it all through the advice in her book
Other helpful books that will make you feel very adult are cookbooks and books that help you with time management and self-esteem. Amazon also has a lovely section called Coloring Books for Grown-Ups for your inner child.
What will be on your summer reading list?