LOOKING FOR NEW BOOK PICKS TO ESCAPE FROM THE SUMMER HEAT AND ROUTINE?
If you are yearning to stick your feet in the sand or find some quiet time in a shady spot, this is the perfect time for these page-turning bookshelf picks. For recommendations, we turned to our TWE’s book critic Meg Flynn who has new novels that are sure to peak a variety of interests. Everything from journalists competing for a story to an aspiring artist tracking down figures in a famous painting (and more) will keep your eyes or ears glued.
Meg, a former guest on TWE and the Co-Owner with Emily Welch of Black Rock Books in Bridgeport, CT, shares her four recommendations along with a pick from bookseller Kerry May.
Meg adds, “Don’t forget the kids!” and chose a book that’s an ode to a childhood favorite. It may be one of yours, too. It’s one of ours!
MEG’S TWE SUMMER BOOKSHELF PICKS:
By Emily Henry (hardcover)
Readers, rejoice, Emily Henry is back to kick off our summer season! Two journalists, Alice and Hayden, spend the summer competing to tell the story of a prominent socialite who has been out of the spotlight for decades. As they comb through Margaret’s past to pitch her story, they learn even more about themselves, and each other. Fans of Taylor Jenkins Read’s The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and Henry’s past oeuvre alike will find much to love here.
By Carley Fortune (paperback)
When I read a Carley Fortune book, I feel at home. Her writing, her characters, her settings, are all so inviting– it feels like reading about a good friend. One Golden Summer was no exception. Feeling burnt out by her career and life, Alice returns to the lake where she spent a fateful teenage summer. She creates a bucket list of all the carefree things she has never felt carefree enough to do, and gets some help along the way from someone she never expected to meet. This can be read as a standalone, or a companion to Every Summer After, featuring some of Fortune’s most beloved characters.
By Jessica Berger Gross (publishes June 17) (hardcover)
A Brooklyn family relocates to upstate Maine, dreaming of a lower cost of living, slow-paced, idyllic small-town life. What they find instead is a culture shock that forces them to confront themselves, each other, and the social dynamics of their new home in ways they had not anticipated. Unflinchingly grappling with the “me too” movement, cancel culture, and the perils of the internet and isolation on young brains, Jessica Berger Gross handles these topics with care and hope. Told from the alternating points of view of each member of the Blum family, this is a funny, timely and ultimately charming debut novel you’ll want to add to your summer reading list.
By Fredrik Backman
Recommended by Kerry May, Bookseller (hardcover)
From the author of Beartown and A Man Called Ove, Fredrik Backman is back with another beautiful and heart wrenching novel. One painting, two stories told in alternating timelines; in present day, 18-year-old Louisa is an aspiring artist, set on tracking down the three enigmatic figures immortalized in a famous seaside painting. Twenty-five years earlier, we follow as those three friends share a summer that creates the essence of this painting. Backman captures what it means to love, grieve, laugh, cry, and just be human.
by Jashar Awan (for the kids) (hardcover)
Recommended by Kerry May, Bookseller
“This book is about a girl who loves trash trucks. I like this book because I like trash trucks. My favorite part is when she takes the cereal outside.” – Apollo, age 5
A charming ode to the trash truck, and the routines of family life. Mabel’s fixation on her Monday morning will feel familiar to any parent whose child looks forward to the simple, domestic routine of watching the trash truck on their weekly route. Enjoy the lovely illustrations by Jashar Awan, downloadable activities like this one below and the fun to read aloud.
Thank you, Meg and Kerry, for choosing these intriguing stories for TWE’s Bookshelf picks and the ode to the trash truck. Summer is now off to a very good start!
Lead Photo Caption: Bookseller Kerry May, (l) and Meg Flynn, Co-owner Black Rock Books/CT (r)
Social Media for Black Rock Books/CT:
Website: Black Rock Books
Facebook: Back Rock Books
Instagram: Blackrockbooksct
Some links in this post may be “affiliate links,” meaning TWE receives a small commission (at no extra cost to you) if you use that link to make a purchase.
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