During May and June at the library our patrons begin to ask
about this year’s popular beach and vacation books, so we try to keep ahead of
that demand. The local schools send us their summer reading assignments in
early June so those titles need to be ordered and organized for the library
before school lets out. Sometimes it is difficult to find something good to
read in this transitional reading season when we are preoccupied with preparing
for summer reading. This year, however, I have hit the reading Triple Crown of
three good books in a row. In no particular order, they are:
10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-help That Actually Works by Dan Harris. While reading this book I could imagine Dan
Harris sitting over a cup of coffee and talking to me about his journey to
manageable enlightenment. He starts with
the same doubts as many of us and a certain wariness of the spiritual overtones
frequently associated with meditation.
Conversations with Eckhart Tolle and Deepak Chopra are just stops along
his road. After finishing this book I
started recommending it to various family members – so much more polite than
suggesting psychological counseling.
I recommend this book to everyone who thinks being 10% calmer would be a
good, attainable goal. Plus, I like this
book so much that I bought it – something I rarely do.
The second book on my list is, strictly speaking, a trilogy
by Jill Shalvis. Shalvis is well known
for contemporary romance and the Animal Magnetism series is wonderful fun. Each book features a really attractive (sensitive,
but troubled) man, a really lovely (strong with baggage from her past) woman, a
collection of rescue kittens and puppies, and mountains found far, far away
from New Jersey. In addition to the
rescue animals, a duck, lamb and parrot frequently appear.
My third title, The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin, is about a bookstore owner
on Alice Island. The main character,
A.J. Fikry, is just eccentric and quirky enough that he reminded me of the
Richard Brautigan book about the librarian who only accepted books into his
library but never allowed anything to leave.
The two books have nothing in common except a certain degree of likeable
quirkiness. Back to Alice Island,
however, each chapter starts with Fikry’s take on a classic short story. I am not a fan of short stories, but I am
tempted to try again with his suggestions.
The book is short and sweet, the characters are likeable, and the ending
is equal parts sad and hopeful.
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| Springtime by Claude Monet |
Related links:
Amazon's 2014 Best Summer Reads Lists - Use the library's Amazon Smile account when ordering through Amazon.
Our past blog posts about beach reads
Link to the Berkeley Heights Schools Summer Reading Lists
NEH Summer Reading List for college-bound students
'Two Quirky Books' including another about a bookstore
'Two Quirky Books' including another about a bookstore
- S.Bakos
