Unprecedented high water levels on our lake this year could mean a bit of a delay getting the cottage dock installed and ready for another season of sunny lolling and reading. That doesn’t mean I can’t start thinking about what books I hope to be devouring in the midst of our Canadian spring and summer splendour. I did that in delicious anticipation last year, and I thought it might be fun to reflect and plan (and salivate a little) and do it again this year.
This is an ambitious list, but I know it’ll give me lots to choose from – new reads, overdue reads, and maybe even a reread or two.
- Clear Skies, No Wind, 100% Visibility, by Theodora Armstrong ✔
- Coping with Emotions and Otters, by Dina Del Bucchia ✔
- Journey With No Maps, by Sandra Djwa ✔
- We So Seldom Look on Love, by Barbara Gowdy (reread) ✔
- Music For Torching, by A.M. Homes
- Rosina, the Midwife, by Jessica Kluthe ✔
- The Miracles of Ordinary Men, by Amanda Leduc ✔
- The View from Penthouse B, by Elinor Lipman
- Monoceros, by Suzette Mayr
- Discovery Passages, by Garry Thomas Morse
- Bone and Bread, by Saleema Nawaz ✔
- In the Skin of a Lion, by Michael Ondaatje (reread)
- Your Call is Important to Us – The Truth About Bullshit, by Laura Penny
- The Soul of Baseball – A Road Trip Through Buck O’Neil’s America, by Joe Posnanski ✔
- The Truth About Luck, by Iain Reid
- Studio Saint-Ex, by Ania Szado
- Bender – New and Selected Poems, by Dean Young
(As I read them, I’ll tick them off my list … ✔)
(July update: Here is some of the reading material that made it to the dock.)
Is there anything else you’d recommend that I really need to read and that really lends itself to an accompaniment of summer breezes and beverages?
What are your spring/summer reading plans and desires? Please share them here in the comments, or send or tweet me (@bookgaga) a link to your list – would love to compare notes!
As I said last year, this list is subject to change, whim, fancy and recommendations from my erudite and persuasive book friends. Still, it’s nice to start dreaming, isn’t it?
There are lots of nice recommended summer reading lists out there. Here are some that particularly caught my fancy (hmmm):
- Warm Weather Reads: Recommended by Writers
from The Writers’ Trust of Canada - Summer book list with Becky Toyne
from CBC Day 6
I spot my fave summer re-read in the header photo on your site. Collected Works of Lydia Davis. When I gift it to a friend I always tell them it’s a good book to pick up and put down over several seasons. A lot of the stories in it she seems to be working on a translation in some seaside town… reminds me of my yearly summer getaway spot. It’s the perfect big heavy book to take away for a few weeks, lots to choose from as well, so you never get bored.
Lisa
Nice list! A few of those are on mine too, like Iain’s Truth about Luck and Saleema’s Bone and Bread. I really liked Clear Skies and Amanda’s…they’re not lying when they say it’s a novel of infinite heart. Enjoy!!
Thanks, Steph. Let’s see how well we stick to our summer reading plans, and what comes across our radars to entice and distract us. Should be interesting!