Books are just about the only part of our culture right now that is chugging on, more or less as normal. And thank goodness for that, because summer reading is going to be excellent this year (and not just because we're potentially going to be spending most of it still in quarantine). From books about outbreaks to books that offer complete escape, here's what you'll want to have on your nightstand for those warm summer nights.
And if all else fails, there's always Midnight Sun.
1. The Brothers York, by Thomas Penn (June 16)
I have a vast, sad void in my life now that I've finished Hilary Mantel's trilogy about Thomas Cromwell, and I can't wait to fill it with this War of the Roses biography about the house of York. Already out in the U.K. where it was named one of the best books of 2019 by The Guardian and the Telegraph The Brothers York also earned an endorsement from Mantel herself, who writes that "with insight and skill, [author Thomas] Penn cuts through the thickets of history to find the heart of these heartless decades." One might recognize the biography's central trio of brothers Edward IV; George, Duke of Clarence; and Richard III from the works of Shakespeare, yet the history behind the plays is well worth your time; Lit Hub calls it a "juicy, impeccably researched work."
2. Mexican Gothic, by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (June 30)
This is maybe less of a "beach read" than it is a great book to take camping, if only because its spooky Bram Stoker-esque atmosphere is way better for reading by the light of a campfire. (For a quarantine-appropriate alternative, try reading it under the covers with a flashlight). The book begins in Mexico City in the 1950s, when the beautiful bachelorette Noem is summoned home from a party by her father due to his receiving a concerning letter from Noem's cousin, Catalina. Though it is rambling and strange, Catalina claims in the note that her new husband is trying to poison her and that their grand home in a remote mountain village is "sick with rot, stinks of decay, brims with every single evil and cruel sentiment." Off Noem goes to find out what's happening, only to be pulled deeper into the nightmare.
3. The Only Good Indians, by Stephen Graham Jones (July 1)
The Only Good Indians earned the rare triple crown of starred reviews from the trades, and its author, Stephen Graham Jones, has been described as "the Jordan Peele of horror literature." But if that weren't enough to get you hyped, the novel follows the supernatural events that unfold after four young Blackfoot men kill a pregnant elk on forbidden tribal land. Years later, a demonic force comes to take revenge for the bloodshed in this story that, in the words of Publishers Weekly's starred review, "works both as a terrifying chiller and as biting commentary on the existential crisis of indigenous peoples adapting to a culture that is bent on eradicating theirs."
4. Utopia Avenue, by David Mitchell (July 14)
Cloud Atlas author David Mitchell has made us wait five years for his next novel, but at a chunky 600 pages, Utopia Avenue sounds like it's going to be worth it. The book presents itself as the "unexpurgated story" of a British psychedelic rock band that "released only two LPs during its brief and blazing journey from the clubs of Soho and draughty ballrooms, to Top of the Pops and the cusp of chart success, to glory in Amsterdam, prison in Rome, and a fateful American fortnight in the autumn of 1968." Each chapter title is apparently taken from the name of one of the band's songs, and focuses on one of its four members. Addressing the ambitious undertaking, Mitchell has said, "Can a novel made of words (and not fitted with built-in speakers or Bluetooth) explore the word-less mysteries of music, and music's impact on people and the world? How? Utopia Avenue is my rather hefty stab at an answer."
5. The Pull of the Stars, by Emma Donoghue (July 21)
Emma Donoghue's novel about the 1918 influenza had its publication date bumped up to this summer because, well, duh. "Back in October 2018, the centenary of the Great Flu prompted me to start The Pull of the Stars, set in a Dublin maternity ward at the height of the misery in 1918," the Room author told the Irish Times. "Two days after I delivered my final draft, COVID-19 was declared a pandemic." Admittedly, the misery of disease might be the last thing you want to read about right now, but Donoghue's book which centers on health-care workers in a city hospital under quarantine is described as "deeply involving and profoundly moving." Read if you're an enthusiastic 7 p.m. applauder (and if you're looking for more coronavirus-adjacent literature, start here).
6. The Queen of Tuesday, by Darin Strauss (August 18)
Publishers solicit blurbs in order to sell books the quotes are essentially advertising material but when two-time Pulitzer Prize-winner Colson Whitehead gets behind a novel, you sit up and listen. His endorsement of the "gorgeous, Technicolor take on America" sits on the cover of Darin Strauss' forthcoming Queen of Tuesday, which weaves together memoir and fiction as it circles around its central character, actress and I Love Lucy star Lucille Ball. Strauss' grandfather was at a party with Ball (hosted by Fred Trump!) in New York in 1949, and the novel imagines an affair between the two. While fictionalizing a real person in such a way can be fraught, Strauss is the winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award (for Half a Life) and I trust that Lucy is in good hands.
7. Sisters, by Daisy Johnson (August 25)
If you're not aboard the Daisy Johnson train yet, well, where have you been? Johnson became the youngest author to ever be shortlisted for the hyper-prestigious Man Booker Prize in 2018 at the age of 27 for her debut novel, Everything Under, and she follows it up with Sisters, a story about teenagers July and September who move to a remote family home on the seaside with their single mother. While we don't have too many details about the book yet this far out, her publisher calls it "alive, original, and surprising" as well as a "seriously smart and compulsively readable novel about a young woman attempting to find her own agency within an all-consuming relationship." The Guardian hails Johnson as being "the next generation," writing that Sisters is a "short, sharp explosion of a gothic thriller whose tension ratchets up and up to an ending of extraordinary lyricism and virtuosity." Sold.
8. Migrations, by Charlotte McConaghy (August 25)
Don't judge a book by it's cover, although if you must, it might as well be the gorgeous Migrations, the U.S. debut of Charlotte McConaghy. Franny Stone arrives in Greenland with the goal of finding the world's last flock of Arctic terns as they make their final migration, and convinces the captain of the Saghani to ferry her in the pursuit. (There is, as you might expect, more to Franny than she initially lets on to the captain). Early descriptions make it sound like a novel with a topical climate change theme and a plot that examines the slippery brink of extinction. Shelf Awareness praised it as "brimming with stunning imagery and raw emotion" and "the incredible story of personal redemption, self-forgiveness, and hope for the future in the face of a world on the brink of collapse." Bonus: In the sweltering days of August, its descriptions of the frozen Arctic can cool you down.
9. This Is the Night Our House Will Catch Fire, by Nick Flynn (August 25)
Another Bullshit Night in Suck City author Nick Flynn is publishing yet another memoir with a fantastic title, this one called This Is the Night Our House Will Catch Fire. The book appears to reference the fire set by his mother in their house when he was seven years old, a story he revisits now that he is a parent himself. The book also deals with him excavating the emotions around his mother's suicide when he was 22, and cheating on his wife. Flynn is never not terrific I sometimes can't make up my mind if I prefer his prose or poetry more and This Is the Night Our House Will Catch Fire is already garnering early praise that reflects that fact. "Readers will devour this powerful memoir of letting go," Publishers Weekly promises in its starred review.
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9 books to read this summer - The Week
- Travel & Resources: HONG KONG - Gay Asia and... - Utopia - December 8th, 2016 [December 8th, 2016]
- DELHI / NEW DELHI: Massage and Spas - Utopia - December 8th, 2016 [December 8th, 2016]
- Utopia (book) - Wikipedia - December 8th, 2016 [December 8th, 2016]
- Who is authorized to bind your family business to contracts? - Lexology (registration) - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Meanwhile in Canada Things Are Just as Bad - New York Times - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Stellaris: Utopia expansion lets you craft megastructural ringworlds - PC Gamer - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- JME Will Play Himself In A New Movie About A Vegan Utopia - The FADER - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- 'Stellaris' Utopia DLC Gets First Trailer; Will Introduce New Buildings And Perks - iDigitalTimes.com - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Utopia Pipeline project to bring 300 temporary jobs to New Philadelphia - New Philadelphia Times Reporter - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- With violin in hand, Mark Menzies finds hope for the future in the past - Los Angeles Times - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- The village aiming to create a white utopia - BBC News - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Brooklyn's A/D/O Co-Working Space Is Building a Utopia for Creatives of All Kinds - Artsy - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Revolution: Russian Art review from utopia to the gulag, via teacups - The Guardian - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- A notable show BAMPFA's 'Hippie Modernism: The Struggle for Utopia' - Berkeleyside - February 9th, 2017 [February 9th, 2017]
- In praise of utopias, not dystopias: Salutin - Toronto Star - February 10th, 2017 [February 10th, 2017]
- British Airways Concorde 'Alpha Foxtrot' Arrives at New Bristol Home - AirlineGeeks.com (blog) - February 11th, 2017 [February 11th, 2017]
- The Bannon-Trump Arc of History | The American Spectator - American Spectator - February 13th, 2017 [February 13th, 2017]
- Plotting 'No-Place' in 'Utopia Neighborhood Club' - Seattle Weekly - February 15th, 2017 [February 15th, 2017]
- Bruno Ganz on New Film About Last Days of East Germany: 'This Is a Subject That Will Never Let Me Go' - Variety - February 16th, 2017 [February 16th, 2017]
- Utopia releases its next version of master data governance solution for enterprise asset management - SDTimes.com - February 16th, 2017 [February 16th, 2017]
- Drought-crazed utopia flushes away common sense - NewHampshire.com - February 16th, 2017 [February 16th, 2017]
- New Barbarians: Inside Rolling Stones' Wild Seventies Spin-Off - RollingStone.com - February 16th, 2017 [February 16th, 2017]
- Katy Perry's New Music Video Might Just Be Her WILDEST Yet - TeenVogue.com - February 18th, 2017 [February 18th, 2017]
- Lenkom Theater: From Soviet utopia to post-modern dystopia - Russia Beyond the Headlines - February 20th, 2017 [February 20th, 2017]
- Utopia Opera Presents THE GRAND DUKE, 3/3-3/11 - Broadway World - February 21st, 2017 [February 21st, 2017]
- Chuck Huckelberry: Pima County sees the world as it is - Arizona Daily Star - February 21st, 2017 [February 21st, 2017]
- Mardi Gras brings on the fun - Tullahoma News and Guardian - February 22nd, 2017 [February 22nd, 2017]
- Anglea Henderson-Bentley: New take on Jack the Ripper an idea whose 'Time' has come - Huntington Herald Dispatch - February 23rd, 2017 [February 23rd, 2017]
- Knowledge can fight ignorance: New speakers series will shed light on Yemen - Detroit Metro Times - February 23rd, 2017 [February 23rd, 2017]
- Utopian sci-fi survival horror game, PAMELA, enters Steam Early Access on March 9th New Screenshots - DSOGaming (blog) - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- Reese Witherspoon on New Zealand: 'You can't capture it in pictures' - Newshub - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- $168000 headphones to go on display - The New Paper - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- A peek inside the Downtown Project with Aimee Groth - Las Vegas Review-Journal - February 25th, 2017 [February 25th, 2017]
- Utopia is coming, with a basic income for all - The Times (subscription) - February 27th, 2017 [February 27th, 2017]
- Government shakeups and political unrest are coming to Stellaris in its Utopia expansion - PCGamesN - February 27th, 2017 [February 27th, 2017]
- The board hoard: your guide to the best new board games - The Guardian - February 28th, 2017 [February 28th, 2017]
- Tempted To Move Out Of The U.S.? New Zealand Wants To Help ... - Forbes - February 28th, 2017 [February 28th, 2017]
- New Utopia | Prometheism.net - Part 4 - February 28th, 2017 [February 28th, 2017]
- Utopia expansion for Stellaris coming in April, new trailer - PC Invasion - PC Invasion (blog) - February 28th, 2017 [February 28th, 2017]
- THE SOUND OF MUSIC to Welcome New 'Georg von Trapp' on Tour in Hershey - Broadway World - March 1st, 2017 [March 1st, 2017]
- At BAMPFA, 'Hippie Modernism' Proves the Fight for Utopia is Far from Over - KQED - March 1st, 2017 [March 1st, 2017]
- Watch brutal Xenomorph attack in new 'Alien: Covenant' trailer - CNET - March 1st, 2017 [March 1st, 2017]
- Stellaris: Utopia Path to Ascension release date trailer - Gameplanet - March 1st, 2017 [March 1st, 2017]
- Utopia Frozen Yogurt and Coffee House | Ellensburg, WA - March 1st, 2017 [March 1st, 2017]
- Stellaris Utopia Gameplay Expansion Out In April - Attack of the Fanboy - March 2nd, 2017 [March 2nd, 2017]
- Dr. John to headline Utopia Fest in final year at Four Sisters Ranch ... - austin360 (blog) - March 2nd, 2017 [March 2nd, 2017]
- JUSTIN JOHNSON: It's a TRAP! - SCNow - March 2nd, 2017 [March 2nd, 2017]
- Want utopia? Start with universal basic income and a 15-hour work week - Wired.co.uk - March 3rd, 2017 [March 3rd, 2017]
- Extreme Channel 4 reality challenge Mutiny makes its sailors suffer - iNews - March 3rd, 2017 [March 3rd, 2017]
- Rutger Bregman: 'We could cut the working week by a third' - The Guardian - March 4th, 2017 [March 4th, 2017]
- March 4, 2017 - EDP Foundation - Utopia/Dystopia / Hctor Zamora: Order and Progress - E-Flux - March 4th, 2017 [March 4th, 2017]
- Utopia for Realists and How We Can Get There by Rutger Bregman ... - The Guardian - March 6th, 2017 [March 6th, 2017]
- A taste of 'Utopia' - Otago Daily Times - March 6th, 2017 [March 6th, 2017]
- Father John Misty references Taylor Swift in new song, 'Total Entertainment Forever' - EW.com - March 6th, 2017 [March 6th, 2017]
- 'Time After Time' delivers Jack the Ripper to modern-day New York - The San Gabriel Valley Tribune - March 7th, 2017 [March 7th, 2017]
- Father John Misty Explained The Taylor Swift Sex Line In 'Total Entertainment Forever' - UPROXX - March 7th, 2017 [March 7th, 2017]
- Why everyone hates the GOP's new health plan - The Week Magazine - March 8th, 2017 [March 8th, 2017]
- Hello Cuba, Adios Utopia: Cuban Art in Texas - Observer - March 11th, 2017 [March 11th, 2017]
- Why Canada will come to regret its embrace of refugees - New York Post - March 11th, 2017 [March 11th, 2017]
- Utopia in the Time of Trump - lareviewofbooks - March 11th, 2017 [March 11th, 2017]
- Whole of It: 'Free Cake at the Top' - Scottsbluff Star Herald - March 12th, 2017 [March 12th, 2017]
- Portugal's MAAT could become the world's most exciting venue for art and architecture - The Architect's Newspaper - April 8th, 2017 [April 8th, 2017]
- Stellaris Utopia DLC Review - Paradox's spacefaring grand strategy ... - PC Invasion (blog) - April 8th, 2017 [April 8th, 2017]
- The post-Brexit fantasy of a utopia of flammable sofas - New Statesman - April 8th, 2017 [April 8th, 2017]
- Why Open Borders Would Strengthen Our Economy | The Huffington ... - Huffington Post - April 8th, 2017 [April 8th, 2017]
- Best of the Week: Focal Utopia, Sonos Playbase, Sgt. Pepper reissue, new 4K Xbox and more - What Hi-Fi? - April 8th, 2017 [April 8th, 2017]
- Stellaris: Utopia review | PC Gamer - PC Gamer - April 8th, 2017 [April 8th, 2017]
- Utopia lost: Man wants Berrien 'town' on the map - Valdosta Daily Times - April 8th, 2017 [April 8th, 2017]
- Psych Ward: The Hulk - Marvel (press release) (registration) (blog) - June 6th, 2017 [June 6th, 2017]
- Men Are from Mars, Wonder Woman is Also from Mars - VICE - June 6th, 2017 [June 6th, 2017]
- Jordie Bellaire: Vision Visionary - Marvel (press release) (registration) (blog) - June 6th, 2017 [June 6th, 2017]
- The Dark Side of Globalization - American Spectator - June 6th, 2017 [June 6th, 2017]
- China's next 'city from scratch' called into question - Financial Times - June 7th, 2017 [June 7th, 2017]
- Wonder Woman's dueling origin stories, and their effect on the hero's feminism, explained - Vox - June 7th, 2017 [June 7th, 2017]
- Introduction: Open Utopia | The Open Utopia - June 7th, 2017 [June 7th, 2017]
- Paperback Row - New York Times - June 8th, 2017 [June 8th, 2017]
- NEXUS pipeline revved and waiting - News - Times Reporter - New ... - New Philadelphia Times Reporter - June 8th, 2017 [June 8th, 2017]
- MAVI Museum of Visual Arts - E-Flux - June 9th, 2017 [June 9th, 2017]
- World-famous author has found his writing utopia outdoors, under a tarp, in Davis - Sacramento Bee - June 9th, 2017 [June 9th, 2017]
- Let's break down the incredible Black Panther trailer - The Verge - June 10th, 2017 [June 10th, 2017]