Books of Summer

Today marks the end of the first week of school for most of us in the Twin Cities. And for me, it also marks the end of my most productive reading season. This summer, I’ve read at least two dozen books – possibly more. I’ve lost count.  And that doesn’t include the manuscripts from my writing critique partners that I dive into each week.

Reading, without a doubt, has been one of the highlights of my summer.

For the past four years or so, my book list has primarily focused on young adult literature – my absolute favorite to both read and write. This summer, however, it was a bit more diverse. I read some mystery, like Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn – which might be my number one novel of the summer. I read adult paranormal, like A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness. I lost myself in fun summer stories like Elin Hilderbrand’s Barefoot and Nantucket Nights. I even tried some self-published novels including Colleen’s Hoover’s Slammed and Tammara Webber’s Easy – and they both impressed and captivated me.  I also became utterly fascinated with the erotic romance genre and found amazing stories in the middle of some very hot sex (more on that in another blog). And finally, I fell in love with YA all over again with these incredible books:

·         I Hunt Killers, Barry Lyga

·         Everybody Sees the Ants, A.S. King

·         Stolen, Lucy Christopher

·         The List, Siobhan Vivian

·         Forget You, Jennifer Echols

·         Divergent, Veronica Roth

I know as the leaves begin to change and work demands and kids’ activities start to ramp up, my reading will slow down a bit. But I hope the diversity in my book choices does not. This year, I’d like to read more literary fiction, history, horror, and a good biography or two.  Right now, I feel so full of intriguing stories, amazing characters, impressive plot lines and wonderful words that I can barely contain myself.

And I hope all of this will lead to my most productive writing season ever.