Listen, as someone who is working on consistency, summer reading is one of those things I always wanted to get into. Like, really, really into. You hear people having these long lists and goals of reading however many books they can and I always admired that sort of dedication to reading various literary works in one's free time. But, for whatever reason, that has been hard to start or maintain over the years. By taking this as an opportunity to hold myself accountable and restart the book addict that was once in me as a child (and you – the reader of this post – are now a witness in helping me maintain this personal vow), I will be listing a few books I will read this summer break from front to back. I cannot say the same when it comes to other books I might pick up along the way, but who knows. I might be convinced after this to keep the list going and going.
Let me know what you will be reading this break and if you have read any of these books! I'm sure – without spoilers – people will be interested to hear all about it.
Happy Summer reading!
(I am doing a bite-size summary of the book description itself and might miss or mistake some important details. I highly encourage going to the link accompanying the summary below to get the most accurate information – which will redirect to the book description via Goodreads. Be warned of possible spoilers if you decide to read the reviews below the description within the site.)
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1 Kiss Me First by Lottie Moggach
What is the book about?
The story follows a young woman who is a bit of a loner in her real life, finding her place in an online community. Through this website, after impressing the site's founder, she is then invited to be part of a project. The project itself consists of her getting to know another woman through e-mail, chat and Skype, learning every little detail about her. The reason? She will have to impersonate her. Soon.
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2 The Aunt Who Wouldn't Die by Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay
What is this book about?
This is a book that focuses on three generations of Bengali women. Having just married, one young woman finds herself walking around the decaying mansion of the family she married into to find the body of her great aunt-in-law. Now a ghost who is out for revenge on the family she herself married into at a young age, she gives her niece-in-law the keys to a mysterious box of gold to keep hidden. Though, Somlata - the young woman - has her own ideas when she witnesses her new family nearing bankruptcy.
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3 Kraft by Jonas Lüscher
What is this book about?
Following a German professor that has everything going wrong in his personal life, he is invited to be part of a competition in California. The competition surrounds the question of why this world is the best in comparison to others and how to further improve it with technology. Kraft struggles to think of a reason to justify why this world is the "best" as his life crumbles, but he is motivated - no matter the cost - to find one as the prize money could change his life for the better.
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4 The Queue by Basma Abdel Aziz
What is this book about?
The book takes place in Egypt, but now has a central authority called 'the Gate' after the event of a failed uprising. While citizens are required to obtain permission from the Gate to go about their daily events, it never opens for anyone. For this reason, the queue continues to grow longer and longer. Among these people, a man who was shot during said uprising is now dying and being refused by officials to help or to even acknowledge the bullet itself. It is then up to a doctor to figure out whether the man lives or dies because if he chooses to save his life, he puts his career on the line by breaking the law.
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5 Eartheater by Dolores Reyes
What is this book about?
In a slum in Argentina, a young woman who begins to crave and eat dirt has visions of lives that have been lost. Disturbed by learning the truth surrounding the death of her mother when she first started, she keeps these visions to herself until she forms a relationship with a police officer. The news of her abilities began to travel across her community, now going to her for help to uncover the mysteries of what has happened to their loved ones.
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6 Tell Me An Ending by Jo Harkin
What is this book about?
Imagine living in a world where you get the opportunity to remove any bad memory that you have. In this futuristic universe, that happens. Following four individuals that deal with the consequences of having forgotten their memories, they are given a chance to either remember what they have chosen to forget or to remain as they are.
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7 Disquiet by Zülfü Livaneli
What is the book about?
Set in the contemporary Middle East, the story follows two individuals. One of them is a Yazidi Syrian refugee and the other is a young man that is passionate about helping those in a refugee camp. While the young man falls in love, his family has other feelings that will set the relationship further into tragedy.
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8 Black Water Sister by Zen Cho
What is this book about?
Following a woman who is still in the closet, broke and going back to a country that she hasn't been in since she was a child, there comes a moment in time when she starts to hear voices. Chalking it up to stress, one of these voices claims to be her grandmother, who was a spirit medium - the avatar of a deity called the Black Water Sister. Her grandmother decided that she will help settle a score against a gang boss who offended the god and while she is up to do it, she also will have to fight to regain the reigns to her life and body or else.
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9 A Burning by Megha Majumdar
What is this book about?
A Muslim girl is accused of being a terrorist due to a comment she posted on Facebook. A gym teacher takes this as an opportunity to launch himself to the right-wing political party. An "outcast" can set Jivan - the Muslim girl - free, but could come with severe consequences. Three lives intersect with each other in contemporary India, touching on many complex themes like justice, class, corruption and so much more.
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10 The Cat Who Saved Books by Sōsuke Natsukawa
What is this book about?
A high school student meets an unlikely character when he is about to close a secondhand bookstore that he inherited from his grandfather. This talking cat demands his help. Why? To help him save books that are unread and unloved by their owners. On their journey, they come across different challenges and characters in order to set books free, ending it with one unforgettable challenge that will test their bravery.
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