What to Read this Summer

Beach Reads for Smart People (Like You)

‘Tis the season of a thousand and one summer reading lists but I’m throwing my cap in the ring anyway. I love weighty non-fiction and intellectually rigorous novels in the winter, but my entire literary mood shifts come summertime. Whether I’m stretched out on a beach or lying in my own bed as the light fades outside the window, my summer reading has to feel languorous and enveloping. I crave rich, vibrant characters, densely-layered plotlines, and big doses of humour/romance/hedonism (or in an ideal world: all three).

But a good summer read is not so easy to find. Yes, I’m seeking a sense of ease on the page, but I don’t want 2D characters and cheesy dialogue (more often than not, I find seasonal roundups are filled with just that). Above all, I want my summer reads to mimic the sense of possibility the season brings–whether they introduce me to characters whose complex interiority expands my own, or depict vivid narrative worlds that transport me to a different plane entirely.

In that hope, here’s a list of books - recent and not-so-recent - that I feel fit the above criteria. I’d love to hear your recommendations in the comments.

Phoebe

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PL Summer Reading List (Featuring 30+ Recommendations)

Nonfiction

I tend to avoid weighty nonfiction in the summer months but the right biography or memoir can be just as juicy as a really good novel (if not more so– these are real people we’re reading about, after all).

In this category, I generally love anything that chronicles the life of someone fabulous, who got to savour the frivolities of the mid-late 20th Century before everything went sideways :/ Bonus points if that person was somewhat chaotic. In that vein, I’d recommend…