Whether it’s during a flight, by the pool, or while curled up with a cocktail by a full-speed fan, summer reading is an absolute must. With schools out, perhaps summer is perfect to pursue eagerly self-refinement while immersing in the fictional-romantical world and cerebral thrilling stories. I for one always keep books on hand, especially while traveling or at the beach.

 

 

This summer’s books are smokin’ hot! You’ll end up having to detach from these addicting and thrilling reads. With Juneteenth, a definite must-read and a necessary browse is Watermelon and Red Birds by Nicole A. Tayor. I’ve already made a few of the dishes, and can’t wait to try more!

And for those Podcast lovers out there, binge by the pool with the Really Personal Podcast in your ears. From Dating attachment styles to masculine roles in relationships to self-discovery… it’s all on the podcast. Subscribe and Explore. Cheers!

@maryannlife Summer must-reads for the win! #books #reading #summervibes #inspiration #motivation ♬ Everybody Wants To Rule The World X Electric Love – darcy 🦦

 

Must-Read Summer Books

Watermelon and Red Birds by Nicole A. Taylor 

ll-day cook-outs with artful salads, bounteous dessert spreads, and raised glasses of “red drink” are essential to Juneteenth gatherings. In Watermelon and Red Birds, Nicole puts jubilation on the main stage. As a master storyteller and cook, she bridges the traditional African-American table and 21st-century flavors in stories and recipes.

 

Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson

Just Mercy is at once an unforgettable account of an idealistic, gifted young lawyer’s coming of age, a moving window into the lives of those he has defended, and an inspiring argument for compassion in the pursuit of true justice.

 

 

 

 

Finding Me by Viola Davis

This is Viola Davis’ story, from a crumbling apartment in Central Falls, Rhode Island, to the stage in New York City, and beyond. This is the path she took to finding her purpose but also her voice in a world that didn’t always see her.

 

 

 

 

Lily’s Promise by Lily Ebert

In these pages, she writes movingly about her happy childhood in Hungary, the death of her mother and two youngest siblings on their arrival at Auschwitz, and her determination to keep her two other sisters safe. She describes the inhumanity of the camp and the small acts of defiance that gave her strength. Lily lost so much, but she built a new life for herself and her family, first in Israel and then in London.

 

 

 

Two Nights in Lisbon by Chris Pavone

Ariel Pryce wakes up in Lisbon, alone. Her husband is gone―no warning, no note, not answering his phone. Something is wrong. The clock is ticking. Ariel is increasingly frustrated and desperate, running out of time, and the one person in the world who can help is the one person she least wants to ask. With sparkling prose and razor-sharp insights, bestselling author Chris Pavone delivers a stunning and sophisticated international thriller that will linger long after the surprising final page.

 

 

 

Flying Solo by Linda Holmes

Starting from her recently canceled wedding and about to turn forty, Laurie Sassalyn returns to her Maine hometown of Calcasset to handle the estate of her great-aunt Dot, a spirited adventurer who lived to be ninety-three. Alongside boxes of Polaroids and pottery, a mysterious wooden duck shows up at the bottom of a cedar chest. Laurie’s curiosity is piqued, especially after she finds a love letter to the never-married Dot that ends with the line “And anyway if you’re ever desperate, there are always ducks, darling.”

 

 

Such A Fun Age by Kiley Reid

With empathy and piercing social commentary, Such a Fun Age explores the stickiness of transactional relationships, what it means to make someone “family,” and the complicated reality of being a grown-up. It is a searing debut for our times.

 

 

 

 

Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel García Márquez

Set in a country on the Caribbean coast of South America, this is a story about a woman and two men and their entwined lives. From the author of the legendary One Hundred Years of Solitude.

 

 

 

 

Leonard and Hungry Paul by Rónán Hession

In this charming and truly unique debut, popular Irish musician Ronan Hession tells the story of two single, thirty-something men who still live with their parents and who are . . . nice. They take care of their parents and play board games together. They like to read. They take satisfaction from their work. They are resolutely kind. And they realize that none of this is considered… normal.

 

 

 

The Hotel Nantucket by Elin Hilderbrand

Fresh off a bad breakup with a longtime boyfriend, Nantucket sweetheart Lizbet Keaton is desperately seeking a second act. When she’s named the new general manager of the Hotel Nantucket, a once Gilded Age gem turned abandoned eyesore, she hopes that her local expertise and charismatic staff can win the favor of their new London billionaire owner, Xavier Darling, as well as that of Shelly Carpenter, the wildly popular Instagram tastemaker who can help put them back on the map.

 

 

 

Ikigai by Héctor García and Francesc Miralles

According to the Japanese, everyone has an ikigai—a reason for living. And according to the residents of the Japanese village with the world’s longest-living people, finding it is the key to a happier and longer life. Ikigai reveals the secrets to their longevity and happiness: how they eat, how they move, how they work, how they foster collaboration and community, and—their best-kept secret—how they find the ikigai that brings satisfaction to their lives. And it provides practical tools to help you discover your own ikigai. Because who doesn’t want to find happiness in every day?

 

 

10% Happier by Dan Harris

In 2014, Dan Harris published his memoir 10% Happier. The book—which describes his reluctant embrace of meditation after a drug problem, an on-air freak-out, and an unplanned “spiritual” journey—became an instant bestseller, and Dan, to his own surprise, became a public evangelist for mindfulness.

       

 

 

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