Welcome to our Summer Reading List! With the warm sun and longer days ahead, there may be no better time to immerse yourself in the captivating world of books. Whether you’re lounging on a sandy beach, relaxing in a cozy backyard hammock, or enjoying a quiet afternoon in the shade of a park, we’ve carefully selected a collection of titles that will introduce you to intriguing characters and stimulate your imagination.
We hope you enjoy our curated Summer Reading List and invite you to dive into these pages and be swept away by the power of words!
Finding Freedom
By Erin French
Long before the Lost Kitchen & HGTV came the story of Erin French growing up in rural Maine. Trained by working on the line at her Dad’s diner, Finding Freedom explores French’s experience in her first restaurant, her first marriage, and the loss of both, leading her to spiral into addiction and depression. French now owns one of the most acclaimed restaurants in the country, where reservations must be requested via postcard and awarded via a lottery system.
Signal Fires
By Dani Shapiro
Flashing back between 1985 & present-day, Signal Fires tells the story of the families on Division Street over the years. In 1985 three teenagers were drinking and crashed their car on Division Street. As a young doctor, Ben Wilf cannot save one of them. Years later, Dr. Wilf delivers a new neighbor’s son, Waldo Schenkman, in the family’s living room. Waldo is a brilliant but lonely child who later connects with an older Ben Wilf, who is now struggling with his wife’s dementia.
Demon Copperhead
By Barbara Kingsolver
Set in Appalachia, this book tells the story of Demon Copperhead, a boy born into poverty as the son of a teenage drug addict. Told from Demon’s narrative, it follows his journey through foster care, child labor, a failing education system, success on the football field, and ultimately his own struggle with addiction. Compared to David Copperfield, where Charles Dickens wrote about institutional poverty and its effects on children.
The Rent Collector
By Camron Wright
Sang Ly and her family live in a garbage dump in Cambodia, where she and her husband sift through trash to find recyclable materials to support their sickly son. Sang Ly finds a book in the trash one day and is determined to learn how to read so she can change her child’s future. She finds an unlikely ally in the rent collector for the garbage dump in her quest.
Pineapple street
By Jenny Jackson
A fun beach read that tells the story of an old-money real estate Stockton family. Escape into the world of the 1% as siblings Darley, Sasha, and Georgiana navigate generational wealth and define their own path. Darley, the eldest, followed her heart, trading her job and her inheritance for motherhood; Sasha marries into the Brooklyn Heights family and finds herself cast as the arriviste outsider; and Georgiana, the baby, falls in love with someone she can’t have.
Age of Vice
By Deepti Kapoor
This book has murder, gangsters, wealth, poverty, and corruption. Based in India and focused on Sunny, the son of a wealthy gangster, and Ajay, his servant who comes from the poor countryside. It reveals Sunny’s attempts to escape his family’s past and Ajay’s unfailing loyalty.
Hello Beautiful
By Ann Napolitano
From the author of Dear Edward, this story is set in Chicago and tells the tale of the four Padavano sisters, their relationships with each other, their parents, and their partners. Loosely referencing Little Women, the book navigates their losses, betrayals, and the bonds of family.
Greenwich Park
By Katherine Faulkner
Another great beach read! Based in London, this twisty mystery will leave you guessing until the end. A pregnant Helen befriends quirky Rachel in a birthing class that her husband is too busy to attend. Rachel comes with a lot of secrets that ultimately threaten Helen and her family.
The Light Pirate
By Lily Brooks-Dalton
Set in futuristic Florida, most of the state is underwater, and very few residents remain. The story centers around Kirby, an electric line worker, his pregnant wife, Frida, and their daughter, Wanda, who was born during a powerful hurricane. The story is told in four parts – power, water, light and time – and mirrors the rhythms of the elements and the sometimes quick, sometimes slow dissolution of the world as we know it.
The Last Dress from Paris
By Jade Beer
This book will take you through time. First, in current-day London, Lucille’s grandmother asks her to go to Paris to recover a Dior dress. Then, a jump to postwar France in 1952 follows the story of Alice Ainsley, who is married to the British ambassador to France and amasses a collection of custom Dior dresses, but not her husband’s affection.
