One of the best things about this time of year is being freed from the many deadlines that cast a shadow over us from the months of September to May. In the summer sunshine you can finally enjoy being outside– touch the grass, feel the sand slip through your fingers, perspire under the shades of blue that elude you otherwise. It is the perfect time to sink your teeth into some gripping narratives. After all, no beach day is truly complete without the perfect book. Pop on your sunglasses, it’s going to be a scorcher! Here are 5 books I think you should add to your reading list this summer:
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
“I was at lunch, this is two or three months ago, and it must have been a Monday, because it was shepherd’s pie. Elizabeth said she could see that I was eating, but wanted to ask me a question about knife wounds, if it wasn’t inconvenient?”
If you have walked past this book in your local bookshop, stop and purchase a copy right away (or borrow one from the library)! In a peaceful retirement village, four friends, Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim, and Ron, meet up once a week to investigate unsolved murders. One day, a brutal killing takes place on their very doorstep. The Thursday Murder Club find themselves in the middle of their first live case. Osman’s prose is crackling with wit and heart. It is intelligent, and a thoroughly entertaining mystery.
Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Humour
Best enjoyed with: Ice-cold soda on a big beach towel with a view of the waves 🥤🌊
My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante
“This morning Rino telephoned. I thought he wanted money again and I was ready to say no. But that was not the reason for the phone call: his mother was gone.
“Since when?” “Since two weeks ago.” “And you’re calling me now?” My tone must have seemed hostile, even though I wasn’t angry or offended; there was just a touch of sarcasm.”
Translated from Italian, My Brilliant Friend is the brilliant first novel in Ferrante’s Neapolitan Quartet. The series chronicles the transformation of a nation, as well as the intense lifelong friendship and rivalry between Elena Greco and Raffaella Cerullo—Lenù and Lila. The novel is a meticulous masterpiece. It is engrossing, compelling, with gritty, raw language that is so emotionally charged that it sucks you in straightaway. The quartet has also been adapted into a TV series, which is fantastic too!
Genres: Fiction, Italian literature, Coming of Age, Historical
Best enjoyed with: Limoncello under the shade of a giant beach umbrella 🍋⛱️
My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell
“This is the story of a five-year sojourn that my family and I made on the Greek island of Corfu. It was originally intended to be a mildly nostalgic account of the natural history of the island, but I made a grave mistake by introducing my family into the book in the first few pages.”
Gerald Durrell was an acclaimed British naturalist, conservationist, zookeeper, and writer. My Family and Other Animals is full of heart and humour. It is the semi-autobiographical account of prepubescent Durrell’s time in Corfu with his eccentric, English family, and of course, the animals on the island. This is an entertaining read, peppered with Durrell’s richly detailed descriptions and playful humour. If you enjoy this one, you could also pick up Durrell’s Birds, Beasts and Relatives, or even check out the TV series, The Durrells!
Genres: Memoir, Humour, Travel, Natural History
Best enjoyed with: Ice cream float under a big, leafy tree 🍨🌳
The Comfort of Strangers by Ian McEwan
“Each afternoon, when the whole city beyond the dark, green shutters of their hotel windows began to stir, Colin and Mary were woken by the methodical chipping of steel tools against the iron barges which moored by the hotel café pontoon.”
Colin and Mary are away on holiday together in an unnamed city. One evening, they find themselves lost in the labyrinthine streets and canals. They meet Robert, a stranger with a dark history, and become drawn into a world of violence and obsession. McEwan’s language is supple and fluid. The prose has a rich, cinematic quality that plays with perspective. It is chilling, ironic, and enthralling.
Genres: Fiction, Thriller, British
Best enjoyed with: Coffee at a beach cafe ☕️
Passing by Nella Larsen
“It was the last letter in Irene Redfield’s little pile of morning mail. After her other ordinary and clearly directed letters the long envelope of thin Italian paper with its almost illegible scrawl seemed out of place and alien. And there was, too, something mysterious and slightly furtive about it. A thin sly thing which bore no return address to betray the sender. Not that she hadn’t immediately known who its sender was.”
In the 1920s, Irene Redfield is a Black woman living an affluent life with her husband and children in the thriving neighbourhood of Harlem. One day, she happens to reconnect with her childhood friend Clare Kendry, who is similarly light-skinned. Irene discovers that Clare has been passing for a white woman after rupturing ties to her past– going as far as hiding the truth from her racist husband. This is an American Literature modern classic. The recent film adaptation with Tessa Thompson as Irene is also brilliant. This is the perfect opportunity to check out the book before diving into the film.
Genres: Literary fiction, Race, Historical, Classics
Best enjoyed with: Iced tea on a table next to a big window (perfect for people watching) 🍹
I hope that you enjoy these recommendations. If you have any favourite books that you would like to recommend please share them in the comment section below!
