Recreational reading always seems to go by the wayside during the school year. Between classes, extracurriculars, meeting with friends, eating, showering, doing homework, sleeping, and then getting up to repeat the entire process again; reading for fun usually falls to the bottom of the list of things to do. With more of a singular focus such as taking one or two extra classes, getting an internship, or working at the local coffee shop, summer provides a bit more free time and is great way to catch up on those novels sitting on the corner of your desk you’ve been meaning to read all year. These are 5 books I am looking forward to reading in the coming weeks and can’t wait to share my thoughts on them with you.

1. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

The film adaptation of this psychological thriller received a lot of press and commentary after its release in the fall of 2014. I thought it fitting to read the novel, which received equally good reviews, before watching the movie. A wedding anniversary, a bitter husband, and a murder mystery in Missouri – what could possibly go wrong?

2. Coding Freedom: The Ethics and Aesthetics of Hacking by Gabriella Coleman

After reading a couple excerpts from this book for an anthropology paper first semester and becoming entirely engrossed in reading about the cultural phenomenon of computer hacking and the community of hackers that exists within it, I vowed to go back and read the full book when I got the chance. It’s not every day you get to read about the intersecting relationships of coding within political, legal, and private realms.

3. Yes Please by Amy Poehler

After mourning the end of an era of watching the TV show "Parks and Recreation," starring Amy Poehler as Leslie Knope, I figure the appropriate next stage of grief is to read Poehlers’ memoir. I also figured it was about time I jumped on the bandwagon of reading the humorously anecdotal and simultaneously inspirational life stories of female comedians.

4. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” Besides the fact that I feel this quote might accurately portray my relationship with this book while trying to read it, I love the satisfaction after reading a good classic. Besides, if "Les Miserables" taught me anything, it’s that a fictional story set within French history is totally worth reading about.

5. Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur

This book was a recommendation from a friend who said it was a super healing and empowering read. I thought this would be a great way to end the summer, and start my sophomore year of college with a fresh, new perspective. Plus, collections of poetry and short prose are basically my jam anyways.