What’s the definition of a great “summer read”?
By Amanda on July 13th, 2011
Image via chillihead
Summer is a great time to catch up on your reading, but with so many books to choose from and so few weeks to read them all, how to do choose which ones make it to your summer reading list? Do you use summer as a time to catch up on those “beach reads” you’ve been hoarding? Or do you finally hunker down and plow through that stack of classic literature you meant to read years ago?
It’s a question that New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof tackled in a recent piece, where he shared a list of “mindful page-turners” – stories that are as riveting as any “beach read,” but have stood the test of time. All Quiet on the Western Front, Les Miserables, and The Grapes of Wrath all made the list, as did Germinal, a book that appears in the Bookprints of Kristof and Daniel Radcliffe on You Are What You Read.
Personally, I can’t picture myself lugging a copy of The Grapes of Wrath to the beach (maybe if it was on an e-reader), but I agree that a great book is a great book, no matter what time of year you read it. Fellow OOMer Morgan rereads The Age of Innocence every summer, and I have a bookshelf full of weighty nonfiction titles just begging for a long plane ride. What books are on your summer reading stack?
Posted: July 13th, 2011 under Books. Tags: summer reading, You Are What You Read.
2 comments
Comments
I am always exhausted when summer comes, so I usually start with something flight and fun from the paranormal romance section at the library. (I know, I know. But it’s a fun easy read!)
So far this summer I have read “The Shack ” and “The 4 Corners of the Sky” both for bookclub. I find that being in a bookclub pushes me to read things I wouldn’t always choose on my own. I just finished the non-fiction “The Dirty Life” and loved it. I’d like to read the “Hunger Games” trilogy and “The Kitchen Daughter.” During the school year I read almost entirely fluff when I’m not reading school related things. So I do try to read slightly more intelligent stuff in the summer when my attention span is a *little* longer.
Comment on July 13, 2011 at 8:34 pm
I go for the “beach” reads. Nothing real heavy. I want easy reads, escape into another world, dreaming books. Books that make me smile, maybe even cry a little, but have happy endings. I also will pick up books that inspire me, energize me, and keep me grateful. Real good “toes in the sand” books!
Comment on July 13, 2011 at 9:17 pm
