While winter is unquestionably peak reading season, summer is the absolute best time of year for outdoor reading. There’s something really special about taking a good book and a cold beverage to a comfy chair in the shade. I’m a pretty eclectic reader, so my summer 2020 reading list included books on race, cozy mysteries, fantasy, memoir, and much more. Read on for my favorite reads in summer 2020.
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First Frost by Sarah Addison Allen
This book is the absolutely perfect cozy October read for those of us who love autumn but aren’t into horror. The story of an unusual family in Bascom, North Carolina, First Frost is about what happens when a mysterious stranger rolls into town just as everything seems to be falling apart. Addison Allen’s writing is comforting and lovely with a touch of magic. It’s perfect for a Sunday afternoon spend in a cozy chair with a glass of apple cider.
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
Identical twins Stella and Desiree Vignes always knew they were destined for more than their small Louisiana town. When one twin decides to use the fact that they pass for white to her advantage, the divergent paths their lives take follows a course all the way to their daughters in California in the 1990s. The complex characters, sumptuous writing, and riveting plot will stay with you long after you finish this book. Chock full of hard, open-ended questions, The Vanishing Half is an amazing book to bring to a lively book club.
Secondhand Spirits by Juliet Blackwell
Continuing with the October-in-summer theme, Secondhand Spirits is the first book in the Witchcraft Mysteries series by Juliet Blackwell. After deciding to settle in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood of San Francisco, powerful witch Lily Ivory immediately finds herself face to face with the demon La Llorona- and is determined to stop it. Equal parts vintage clothes lover, powerful witch, and Texas lady, you’ll fall in love with Lily and the ragtag crew she builds at her vintage shop.
The Daevabad Trilogy by S.A. Chakraborty
1001 Nights meets Game of Thrones in this sweeping fantasy trilogy. Orphan Nahri grows up fending for herself on the hardscrabble streets of Cairo, until one day she comes face to face with a legendary djinn and discovers that she’s the last living member of a powerful magical dynasty. Swept off to the secret city of Daevabad, Nahri discovers the life she was born to live – a life more beautiful (and more fraught) than she could ever imagine.
Untamed by Glennon Doyle
When Glennon Doyle was on tour for the bestselling memoir detailing how she saved her marriage – she fell in love with someone else. This revelation led to a series of events that caused Doyle to examine her life. It also forced her to re-examine how she had been taught to live it. Woven through with witty anecdotes, Untamed shows how she ripped her life apart – and put it back together.
Mythos by Stephen Fry
Zeus. Persephone. Athena. Hermes. Prometheus. These are the figures of some of the most influential epics of the ancient world. Told with a Stephen Fry’s classic dry wit, this retelling of Greek Mythology is as hilarious and fun as it is complete.
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
Francis Nolan is a dreamer. The daughter of a charming alcoholic father and a tough, hardworking mother, this account of her childhood in Williamsburg, Brooklyn is a nostalgic peek at a normal life at the turn of the century. Semi-autobiographical in the style of David Copperfield and Betsy-Tacy, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn will have you feel the triumphs and tragedies of the Nolan family as acutely as if it were your own.
The Color of Compromise by Jemar Tisby
“The only question now, is what the church will do now that its complicity in racism has been exposed?” This history of the American church’s relationship to race is fascinating, heartbreaking, and thought-provoking. With meticulous research, Tisby paints a portrait of a shameful history and a brighter way forward. This book is a must read for any Christian who wants to do the work of anti-racism.
Summer 2020 had a lot of favorite reads for me! It’s always lovely to turn to stories in tumultuous times.
