This summer, while you’re lounging by the pool or relaxing at the beach, you’ll probably want some good books to read. Here is a comprehensive list of books from different genres that you will love reading while you’re basking in the sun or cuddling up inside your house by the air conditioning vent.
1. "If This Isn’t Nice, What Is?" by Kurt Vonnegut
This collection of Kurt Vonnegut’s graduation speeches is witty, cynical and brilliant. Vonnegut delivers some of his best lines and some of the most helpful and humorous advice to new college graduates entering the world of employment, politics and marriage. Though a few of the speeches were given decades ago, Vonnegut’s words still resonate and are relevant today. This is a must-read for Vonnegut fans, recent graduates and people who are just looking to laugh at the major turning points in life.
2. "An Astronaut’s Guide to Life on Earth" by Col. Chris Hadfield
Colonel Chris Hadfield was an astronaut who spent most of his life determined to pursue his dream of going to space. Needless to say, he succeeded -- and then he wrote a book about it. But this isn’t just an autobiography: Hadfield teaches numerous valuable lessons about determination, parenting, and achieving success. He paints the parallel between preparing for space travel and living your everyday life; he illustrates how the lessons he learned in NASA can help people in their daily endeavors. Hadfield’s words and life are inspirational, but his philosophies alone are what make this book so enjoyable and thought-provoking.
3. "Tell No One" by Harlan Coben
You really cannot go wrong with Harlan Coben novels, but this 2001 mystery just might be his best. The novel follows pediatrician David Beck, who is still tormented by the memories of his wife’s murder eight years earlier. But when he receives a message on his computer with a phrase that only he and his wife knew, David turns this fictional world inside-out and uncovers a number of startling secrets and plot twists that are bound to have you up all night reading.
4. "Ballistics" by Billy Collins
Sometimes novels can be too lengthy when you’re melting out in the sun, so it’s always important to add a book or two of poetry to your reading list. Former poet laureate of the United States, Billy Collins, published this collection of poems back in 2008. Collins writes a variety of poems in different styles, and though most are brief, he packs so much emotion and substance into all of them. Collins is intelligent and hilarious, and it is easy to see why he was once the poet laureate of the United States.
5. "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls
"The Glass Castle" is one of the most moving memoirs I have ever read. Jeannette Walls’ story stretches from her earliest memory all the way to adulthood. Walls illustrates how she and her siblings were molded by their very eccentric parents. Her father, when sober, was brilliant and philosophical, but when he was drunk, he was destructive and unpredictable. Her mother was an artist; however, she was too concerned with her art to be bothered with raising a family. Walls’ scenes, portrayal of characters and juvenile depictions throughout the memoir make this book such an engaging read.
6. "Charlotte Street" by Danny Wallace
Danny Wallace is a British humorist better known for his memoir "Yes Man," which was turned into a film starring Jim Carrey. Wallace’s "Charlotte Street" is a fiction effort with just as much wit. The novel follows Jason Priestly, who’s in a rut after he left his teaching job and his girlfriend broke up with him. His life changes one day when he is left with the disposable camera of a beautiful stranger he met briefly on Charlotte Street. Instead of throwing the camera away, Jason decides to search for the girl, and his tale, along with his comedic friends, make this novel a fun read.
7. "Bad Move" by Linwood Barclay
Linwood Barclay has written a ton of engaging mystery novels that are hard to put down; this one is just as entertaining, but it strays away from his typical style. "Bad Move" follows work-from-home science fiction writer Zack Walker and his “wisecracking, news-junkie journalist” wife and their two teenage kids. The family moves to a quiet suburb that turns out to be not-so-quiet. Walker is a witty and likable protagonist, and the combination of his fluent storytelling and the original, inventive story will have you reading non-stop until the mystery is solved.
8. "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time" by Mark Haddon
Mark Haddon wrote this novel from the point of view of an autistic teenage boy named Christopher. In the novel, Christopher searches for the murderer of his neighbor’s dog. Christopher presents the characters and events interestingly and is able to illustrate so much, even though there is so much he doesn’t understand. The story is deep and emotional and makes for a phenomenal read.
9. "The Street Lawyer" by John Grisham
Michael Brock is just your average attorney at a giant D.C. law firm when a hostage situation he is involved in completely alters his perception of his profession. What was once a way of simply making money has now become a way to help those who need it most. "The Street Lawyer" sucks you in within the first few pages, and from then on, Brock’s story is entertaining and thoughtful, and the novel’s message is powerful. Grisham has a very crisp way of writing, and it is once again exhibited very well in this book.
10. "One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest" by Ken Kesey
You have probably already read this one, but if you haven’t, you should certainly add it to your summer reading list immediately. Kesey set this 1962 novel in an Oregon psychiatric hospital where the narrator and hospital patient “Chief” Bromden creatively tells the stories of the patients, the staff members, and the hilarious antics of the hospital’s most eccentric patient, Randle Patrick McMurphy, and the wicked Nurse Ratched’s attempts to “ruin” him. The tale is witty and engaging, and Kesey’s characters are dynamic and help mold this story into the classic that it is.
