Page Turning Books to Take on Summer Vacations

I'm always looking for great books to read over summer vacation.  I love the kinds of books that are quick to read but well written, light without being dumb, substantial without making my brain hurt from thinking - a book that if I had to put it down to play with my kids in the pool that I could pick right back up and get right back into it.  If you are looking for a great book to read over summer vacation that fits those criteria, here are some suggestions from the books I've read over the past few years.


Fun Fiction:
What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty - I really enjoyed the premise of this book.  It made me think about the last 10 years of my life.  Am I who I want to be?  How did I get to this place in my life?  Is there anything I would change about the last 10 years? Liane Moriarty's books are all pretty fun and fast paced, but this one is my favorite.





The Martian by Andy Weir - It's odd for me to include a Sci-Fi book on my list, but this one, although outside of my reading comfort zone, made me cheer and race to the finish.  It does have a bunch of technical stuff in it, but the determination of the American hero in this book is fun to follow.





Best Romantic Reads With Substance:
The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion - I loved the non-traditional romance set up in this book.  I raced through this one at the very beginning of fall.  Cheesy to say it, but I fell in love with the story which follows Don and his intriguing "Wife Project" and how he accidentally falls in love with Rosie.





One Plus One OR Me Before You by Jojo Moyes- I'm embarrassed to say that I had never heard of Jojo Moyes before I picked up her book One Plus One in the "Hot Picks" section of my library.  At first I thought I wouldn't enjoy it, but Moyes has a way of pulling you into her novels, making you stay there and emoting all over the place.









Best WWII Historical Fiction: 

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doer - Ummm.... this book was pretty much amazing.  The short chapters which alternate story lines will keep you reading even with the lyrical writing style.  The craft that Doer shows astounded me, and so did the characters, the plot and the complexities of another side of WWII that I didn't know existed.






The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah - I didn't think I needed to read yet another WWII historical fiction novel, but Kristin Hannah proved me wrong.  I was breathless most of the time I read this book and I actually threw the book across the room because I got so upset while reading it.  It's fast paced, epic, romantic, and totally worth it.







Best Memoirs:

Brain On Fire by Susannah Cahalan - I gobbled this down in one day and just couldn't believe what I was reading at certain times.  It's crazy how much about the brain we really don't understand and seeing what can happen to a relatively healthy 20something was terrifying and fascinating all at once.







A House in the Sky by Amanda Lindhout and Sara Corbett - This book stressed me out so much that I got a headache reading it . . . because it's that amazing and that good.  I didn't want to talk to anyone or do anything but read my book.  It is a story of hope, to say the least, and survival and the will and determination that human beings have.







Best YA: 

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell - If you love any of the John Hughes movies you are bound to love this touching first love / coming of age story.  You can almost hear the soundtrack as you are reading the book which only makes it better.




We Were Liars by e. lockhart - It took me one day to finish this one, and after I finished it, I'm pretty sure my mouth was still hanging open in disbelief.  I picked my daughters up from school and they asked, "Are you okay, Mommy?" because I was still thinking about this book.






Thrillers: 

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins- I did not love this book, but you will turn pages quickly and it's a great book for the beach.  If you've been looking for something to read and you loved Gone Girl, you will most likely enjoy this thriller, too which has more than it's fair share of crazy women.





The Silent Wife by A.S.A. Harrison - I thought this thriller, while way less appreciated and touted than The Girl on the Train, was a way better read.  It has more psychological depth to it, and it will make your heart race often.




Happy summer reading everyone! If you have a book that you think should be on this list, pass it along.  I am always looking for great recommendations.

"The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry: : A book for book people

I love books more than I should.  I love the way they smell. I love the way they feel.  I love when I get to a point in a book where I don't want to stop reading, and I don't even remember turning the pages until I am at the very last page.  I love when I meet characters who speak my world and my truth.  I love reading real stories of real people who have overcome incredible hurdles.  And, of course, I love bookstores.  I mourned the day that Borders closed in York, Pa, even though my favorite bookstores are the small ones run by independent store owners who just love books.  When e-readers became the rave, I held fast to my tangible books with pages and covers.  There is something about the weight of a real book in my hands - the weight of it, the protection of it, that makes me feel more alive. When I lived in London, I got into the habit of always having a book tucked under my arm no matter where I went, that way I would never feel alone.  Reading books helps me feel more connected - way more than Facebook, or any type of social media ever could.

I am not alone in my passion for books, and when I find a book that is really written for book people but in an unpretentious, unassuming way, I want to rave about it. I passed by "The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry" by Gabrielle Zevin in the Hot Picks section of the Crystal Lake library several times before picking it up and reading the book jacket which said, "an unforgettable tale of transformation and second chances, an irresistible affirmation of why we read, and why we love." Yes, please.  I want to read a book that has all of that wonderful-ness inside of it.

The story starts with A.J. Fikry, a contentious, recent, young widower who own Island Book Store on the tiny Massachusetts, Alice Island.  After his wife dies in a tragic car accident when she is two months pregnant, Fikry spirals into a depression, drinking himself into isolation and rage.  He pushes away his sister in law, Ismay, who wants to pick him up and set him straight, and the very friendly Chief Lambiase who seems genuinely concerned for Fikry's well-being.  He is rude to everyone including his customers, employees, and even the very hopeful and persistent Knightley Press sales rep, Amelia Loman.  Everything changes when shortly after losing his prized possession, Tamerlane (a rare and valuable collection of Edgar Allen Poe poems), he gets a special package delivered to his store and he decides to keep it (or should I say to keep her).  Fikry's icy exterior melts the day baby Maya comes into his world and he decides to raise her as his own and eventually adopt her.

The short novel weaves its magic through the power of book people coming together in a decade long span of love, loss and redemption, not to mention some powerful statements about the beauty of reading and the meaning of our lives. By the end of the novel these statements increase as Fikry tries to articulate what he is not able to for Maya.  He says, "We read to know we're not alone.  We read because we are alone. We read and we are not alone.  We are not alone."  Fikry finds love, but he finds more than that, he finds a family and a new revitalization of his book store.  He comes to the realization, "We aren't the things we collect, acquire, read.  We are, for as long as we are here, only love. The things we loved.  The people we loved.  And these, I think really do live on."

Zevin, a seasoned YA writer,  presents a few twists and turns in her first adult fiction book, but each rings with believability. She paces the book brilliantly and even though it spans a decade, it feels like life - it's over before you know it.  For the book people out there, who just like Lambiase discovers and Zevin believes (as she stated in an interview with NPR) - everyone is a book person, you just need to find the right book, who like paper and how books feel in their back pockets, too, this is a book for you.