These book will have you laughing, crying and thinking by the time you're through!

What better time to catch up on reading than summer?  Grab one of these good reads, head to the beach, and camp out.  You'll appreciate the break from reality and quiet time. 

1. THE GLASS CASTLE by JEANNETTE WALLS 

You will not believe the childhood that author Jeannette Walls experienced.  Walls’ memoir illustrates her nomadic upbringing with her nonconforming parents, three siblings and their dog.  This memoir will make you gasp, giggle, cringe, and beg for more all while redefining what it means to function within a dysfunctional family.

2. THE GIVER by LOIS LOWRY

A dystopian novel that unveils the imperfections of a “perfect” society where everything is monitored, watched, and controlled.  No one experiences pain, war, ailments, or even sex, and no one knows what exists outside of their strict community.  The film debut of this book will be released next month, August 15th.  

3. JUST KIDS by PATTI SMITH

Patti Smith: singer, author, poet and artist captures her life in New York City during the late sixties and seventies with her lover, photographer Robert Mapplethorpe.  Just Kids represents the heart and soul of starving artists alike, the bliss and destruction of young lovers, and what it was to live in New York City in the middle of it all. 

4.  GONE GIRL by GILLIAN FLYNN 

What happens when the wife of perfect husband Nick Dunne goes missing?  Everyone points the finger at him.  Gone Girl is a  murder mystery thriller that illustrates love and loss, secrets, and lies in marriage.  Flynn’s thought provoking novel will have you scratching your head until the very end and asking yourself “whodunnit?” A movie adaptation of the novel staring Ben Affleck hits movie theaters October 3, 2014. 

5.  WILD by CHERYL STRAYED

Cheryl Strayed’s memoir tells a well-known story of losing everything, feeling numb, and trying to change your life.  Strayed had lost control of her life: her mother passed away, she began using heroine, got divorced and was broke.  In an attempt to renew herself, Strayed goes on an impromptu 1,100-mile hike along the Pacific Crest Trail without any previous backpacking experience.  Her journey captures the physical, emotional, and psychological journey of a woman trying to find herself.  On December 5, 2014, a movie adaptation of Wild will be in movie theaters staring Reese Witherspoon. 

6. THE OPPOSITE OF LONELINESS by MARINA KEEGAN

“Do you wanna leave soon?   No, I want enough time to be in love with everything… And I cry because everything is so beautiful and so short.”

Marina Keegan, a 22-year-old magna cum laude graduate of Yale University who had a job waiting for her at The New Yorker, died in a car accident five days after her graduation.  The Opposite of Loneliness is a collection of Keegan’s essays and stories that illustrate Keegan’s remarkable ability to write engaging, powerful, and moving pieces directed towards the millennial generation.