Summer Reading

I am a voracious reader. I always have been. Since moving in April, I have a significant commute on the train every day. I decided to banish my blackberry during this time and read books instead. I got a library card and everything. (Which just means I check out five books there and then pick up another five at the bookstore. I can't help it. When I see a novel I really want to read, I am unable to resist. I have impulse problems).

Anyhow, I thought I'd share some of the books that I've read and loved recently.

I actually first read The History of Love two years ago and nearly had a panic attack when I couldn't find it on my bookshelves a few weeks ago. It's one of my favorite books and I try to re-read it once a year or so. A beautiful & authentic story of love. One of the best-written books I've come across.

Lunch in Paris is such a delightful read. If you harbor even the slightest bit of interest in romance, food, or Paris, pick up a copy.

Another all-time favorite. Molly Wizenberg is one of my heroes. She writes the food blog of all food blogs: Orangette. Perhaps you've heard of it? I read her debut book, A Homemade Life, in one sitting last fall. I laughed, cried and then spent hours in my kitchen followed by hours in my bed writing personal memories down in a notebook. No review of mine will do this book justice so just do yourself and favor and read it.

The Last Child was one of my recent impulsive bookstore purchases about a thirteen-year-old boy's journey to uncover the truth behind his twin sister's disappearance. I've always been a sucker for a good thriller and this one definitely lived up to my expectations. Great plot twists that keep you guessing and a set of characters that instantly draw you in.
Coetzee is a brilliant writer. Disgrace is another one I read a few years ago and constantly recommend to others. It isn't a light read. It will make you cry. But it's so well-written, chronicling the ties that bind and the ties that break us as individuals, as families, as communities. A literary masterpiece. (It did win the Nobel Prize after all).

A perfect summer read. The Professors' Wives' Club offers healthy doses of female friendship, secrets, scandals, relationship troubles and self-discovery. I'd fondly dub it "high quality chick lit." Definitely worth a read.

Happy Reading!