Summer Reading.

I love to read. During the school year, I try not to read too much because I tend to get sucked into books and, unable to put them down, stay up significantly past my bed time.

But, summer! Oh summer. How I love you. In summer, I indulge myself and read all the books I haven't had time to the rest of the year. Since the end of June, I have read books to my hearts content. Some with lots of substance, some entirely frivolous. Some good, some not so good. (I had been particularly looking forward to reading Shadow of the Night, sequel to A Discovery of Witches that I got sucked into in January.)



 

From here.

I shouldn't have to tell you that the Hunger Games trilogy is worth reading, but if I do, you can check out Kate's blog post about it. She sums up my feelings about it pretty clearly (including the part about Katniss being a bit obnoxious at times... maybe it's that I deal with teenage angst too often at work, it annoys me when it slips into my summers?) and I also read Mockingjay in one sitting. A single sitting that ended at 3:30 am when I thought "screw it, I'm not sleeping until I find out what happens."


  

From here.

I also read a fantastic gothic novel called The Shadow of the Wind. It is a thrilling whirlwind of a book, blending past and more past Barcelona with a riveting mystery. It is a spellbinding novel that I would highly recommend!

From here.

When I am in the mood for something light and frivolous, nothing can beat Janet Evanovich. Anything by her pretty much fits the bill of easy, breezy, fun summer reading. Latest on my list was Love in a Nutshell, which is classic Evanovich, in that there is a big lovable dog, quirky supporting characters, a little bit of romance, lots of laughs, and more mayhem than you can shake a stick at.

From here.

Last (on this list) but certainly not least, I highly enjoyed Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods. I love Bryson's writing style, and his hilarious account of hiking the Appalachian Trail blends quick, evocative narratives with histories of the region.









Summer's not over yet, but my reading will probably slow down a bit, since August promises to be busier than July. But, I can't think about going back to school yet... my reading list isn't complete yet!