Summer Reading List 2017

My finalized summer reading list is here! There are 46 books, which is a lot, but I'm ambitious.

Last summer I aimed for 50, finished about 40 by the end of the summer, then got stuck on a big one that took a while to get through. Some of the books on that list I ended up abandoning, which is fine. Not all books are for everyone! I'm expecting the same thing to happen with a few off this list as well, and that's okay.

I have divided the books into 6 sections, which all felt natural. One issue I ran into last year was that I read more "easy" books early on and then left the books I didn't feel like till the end, which obviously made me want to read them less and less as they sat there, taunting me. I'll try to be better about balancing books from each category this summer.

Please read at least some of these books with me and then obviously talk to me about them!

Been Meaning to Read
This will be the year I conquer these books that have been nagging me forever (not in a bad way!).
  • A Man Called Ove, Fredrik Backman. Rec: Tyler 
  • The Magicians, Lev Grossman. 
  • An Untamed State, Roxane Gay. 
  • Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe. Rec: Nikki 
  • Tracks, Louise Erdrich. Rec: Nikki 
  • Wednesday Wars, Gary D. Schmidt. 
  • Housekeeping, Marilynne Robinson. 
  • Harriet the Spy, Louise Fitzhugh. 
Based Only on the Recommendation
These are books I probably would have never picked up, but I'm doing it for you, friends.
  • Paths of Glory, Jeffrey Archer. Rec: Jared 
  • White Teeth, Zadie Smith. Rec: Carol Ann 
  • The Martian, Andy Weir. Rec: John Wiest 
  • Outlander, Diana Gabaldon. Rec: Hanna 
  • Lab Girl, Hope Jahren. Rec: Hannabeth 
  • Cutting for Stone, Abraham Verghese. Rec: Emma 
Series
For book club with Rebekah.
  • The Lunar Chronicles (Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, Winter, Fairest), Marissa Meyer. 
  • The Neapolitan Novels (My Brilliant Friend, The Story of a New Name, Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay, The Story of a Lost Child), Elena Ferrante. 
  • To All the Boys I've Loved Before; P.S. I Still Love You; Always and Forever, Lara Jean, Jenny Han. 
Nonfiction
I'll be looking for an audiobook.
  • Sacred Symbols: Finding Meaning in Rites, Rituals, and Ordinances, Alonzo L. Gaskill. Rec: Jared 
  • A House Full of Females: Plural Marriage and Women's Rights in Early Mormonism, Laurel Thatcher Ulrich. Rec: Carol Ann 
  • The Gardens of Democracy: A New American Story of Citizenship, the Economy, and the Role of Government, Eric Liu and Nick Hanauer. Rec: Travis 
  • The Price of Inequality: How Today's Divided Society Endangers Our Future, Joseph E. Stiglitz. Rec: Kara 
  • Still Missing: Amelia Earhart and the Search for Modern Feminism, Susan Ware. Rec: Katharine 
  • Food Freedom Forever, Melissa Hartwig. 
Typical Summer Reads
Either easy-breezy, or very popular.
  • Lincoln in the Bardo, George Saunders. Rec: Rachel 
  • The Night Circus, Erin Morgenstern. Rec: Jared 
  • Charms for the Easy Life, Kaye Gibbons. Rec: KP 
  • Dark Matter, Blake Crouch. Rec: Conner 
  • Dead Until Dark, Charlaine Harris. Rec: Hanna 
  • The Dog Stars, Peter Heller. Rec: Mary 
  • The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint, Brady Udall. Rec: Tin Tin 
Diverse YA Books
Trying to find books that my students will like that aren't A Hood Chick Story.
  • Outsiders, S.E. Hinton. 
  • The Education of Margot Sanchez, Lilliam Rivera. 
  • How It Went Down Kekla Magoon. 
  • All American Boys, Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely. 
  • The Crossover, Kwame Alexander. 
  • When Dimple Met Rishi, Sandhya Menon. 
  • Everything, Everything, Nicola Yoon.

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