Wow, things are heating up here in Tosa and I’m not talking about the weather. Check out the
Tosa Town Square and you see that opinions are divided on topics like the upcoming mayoral race, the Hoyt Park Pool and the Tosa schools’ new early release policy.
And so, I thought I’d dive into a safer topic – one that has summer written all over it (pardon the pun) but won’t have people shaking their fists in indignation. Let’s talk books. No, wait. Seriously! I’ve been reading a lot this summer and really enjoying it. For whatever reason, perhaps because I am a book club enthusiast, I’m sometimes asked what I’m reading. (Prepare to be wholly unimpressed.) So, here goes!
One of my absolute favorite books yet this summer is
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen about a young man who inadvertently runs away with the circus. Love her writing style, her characters and her stories. She’s an easy read without feeling like you have to hide the cover in embarrassment. And you shouldn’t, because summer is for fun reading – a time to rest your brain and feed it a little bit of mind candy, don’t you agree? I enjoyed this book so much (did I mention that I hate spoilers and never give away plot details?) that I picked up one of her other titles,
Flying Changes. Another fantastic read about a mother and daughter and their passion for horses.
A friend gifted me with a beautiful book called
Sister of My Heart by Chitra Divakaruni. It’s simply a wonderful story of friendship between two girls in India, spanning a generation and a bit of the globe. I found it heartwarming and a great read.
A title that I actually finished well before summer but I think is a good “beach read” is
Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult. If you’ve ever read one of her books, she has a unique way of weaving a bit of a mystery with realistic characters with whom you can identify. If you were stunned by the events at Columbine and Virginia Tech (and who wasn’t?), you’ll find this book to be a very different perspective on this devastating and difficult topic. It’s a very fast read that will make you think and want to hug your teens and hold them close.
If you subscribe to Sports Illustrated (one of my favorite magazines), you’ve likely been entertained for years by Rick Reilly’s column, The Life of Reilly on the last page of the magazine. He’s a fantastic writer that somehow manages to take turns being hilarious one week and thought-provoking the next.
Hate Mail From Cheerleaders is a compilation of some of his best or most controversial columns from the past several years. It’s a fun read for a sports fan or someone that appreciates good contemporary, topical writing. One of the very best columns in the book is the last one about Patrick Henry Hughes and his dad Patrick John Hughes who are the only two-person marching-band member in college football. If you don’t get misty-eyed reading it, I’d be very, very surprised.
For something completely fluffy in the chick-lit department,
Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin is a romp through the lives of two young career women in Manhattan told by the more serious of the two friends. The sequel,
Something Blue, tells the follow-up story from the perspective of the other friend. They’re easily readable and forgettable, but sometimes that’s fun on a hot summer day.
So that’s it. I’d love to hear about anything fun that you’re reading…emphasis on the word “fun.” We’ll get more serious once school is back in session. Happy reading!
