If you're like me, you probably have lists upon lists of books, TV shows, and movies you want to catch up on once school is over and summer rolls around. It's always nice to kick back with your favorite book at the beach, but sometimes I'm looking for something a little more...substantial. Something that makes me think, or gives me a whole new perspective on a topic.
I've compiled this list out of books that have been recommended to me, as well as books of which I've read excerpts, and am dying to read the whole thing.
If you're like me, and want to enjoy some great books this summer while still giving your mind a little work out, check out these six books from my summer reading list!
1. The Good Citizen: How A Younger Generation is Reshaping American Politics (Russell J. Dalton)
Just in time for the 2016 election, this book provides a new perspective on the changes of what it means to be a citizen in the U.S. in the 21st Century, and how these changes effect everything from voting patterns, to party ideology, to college students' volunteer activities. I've read the introduction, and it just made me want to get my hands on the whole thing!
2. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness (Michelle Alexander)
This book may not be the best for a care free day at the beach: it takes a hard look at mass incarceration in the U.S., and the problems and stigmas that African American males face in modern society. It's incredibly well written, and each turn of the page is like an "ah-ha" moment. If you're looking for a book that is brutally honest and intellectually stimulating, this is the one for you.
3. The Martian (Andy Weir)
On a lighter note, if you saw Matt Damon get left behind in space (again) in theaters last Fall, and were just dying to know—in great detail—how exactly he used the hexadecimal system to communicate with Earth, you've got to read Andy Weir's book. Weir leaves no question unanswered and no problem unsolved. This book has all the humor of the movie, and even more science to geek out about.
4. The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You're Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are (Brene Brown)
Perhaps you want to work on a little self help this summer? This book is an eye opening exploration of the pressures that we all place on ourselves and the ways we can learn to be more accepting and loving of our own flaws and characteristics. If you want to spend this summer doing a little self discovery, and prepare yourself for the year ahead, this is the book for you.
5. The Imperfectionists (Tom Rachman)
This book was just recently recommended to me, and I have to say I am intrigued. Focusing on the face-paced life of journalism, this book explores the different lives of several journalists and the everyday problems and struggles they face trying to keep their careers—and themselves—afloat.
6. Giovanni’s Room (James Baldwin)
This book is another recommendation, but one I am seriously looking foreword to reading. It's a story of sexuality and struggle in the 1950s, as one man living in Paris falls in love with an Italian bartender. If you've read any Baldwin before, I'm sure you'll be excited to read this work as well.
Happy reading!
