4 June 2022

Summer Reading List 2022

MAMMA MIA IT'S SUMMER AGAIN. I thought we'd never come out of this past winter alive but here we are, ready to bask in the sunshine but also indoors with the AC how we like it. 

Here are our picks for summer reading, let us know what you think!


Meant to Be by Emily Giffin

This is textbook summer chick lit and the perfect poolside book. Giffin is most popular for her books Something Borrowed and Something Blue and even though it's been a while for me, I'd definitely be into re-exploring this. Especially nowadays where I feel like I need activities that take 0 brain cells.

Sparring Partners by John Grisham

This is part of Grisham's new foray into the novella (which I still don't even know what that is) but could be cool if you like his writing. It's a legal drama, of course, but it includes several characters he's written about previously.

The Hotel Nantucket by Elin Hildebrand

I've been 50/50 with Hildebrand novels lately but that won't stop me from reading them. I love to be taken to Nantucket Island through her books and there's something very comforting about returning to the same landscape over and over. Again, peak poolside chicklit.

City of Likes by Jenny Mollen

I've read and enjoyed both of Mollen's nonfiction novels: I Like You Just the Way I Am, and Live Fast Die Hot but this is her first fiction novel and I'm really excited to check it out. It's about "momfluencers" and I can see it being a very easy, funny read. 

Deep Water by Patricia Highsmith

I am very into reading this after my recent watch of the movie adaptation by the same name. The movie promised to be an erotic thriller but it was hardly erotic. I have higher hopes for the book.

The Idiot by Elif Batuman

I heard this recommended on a podcast and made a note of it. This book was a Pultizer Prize finalist, and I am enough of a snob for that to really mean something to me! - MH

The Lying Life of Adults by Elena Ferrante

This will be my first ever Ferrante novel and I am really looking forward to it. After watching Maggie Gyllenhaal's film The Lost Daughter (based on a Ferrante book) I knew I had to try reading one of her novels. I assume this one is also set in Italy or somewhere hot? Seems topical. - MH

Lapvona by Ottessa Moshfegh

Ottessa Moshfegh very quickly became one of my most watched-for author's of the last few years. I am obsessed with My Year of Rest and Relaxation but unfortunately was disappointed with some of her other books. Still, the release date of Lapvona (which sounds weird as hell) is set as a reminder on my phone! - MH 

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

RIP to Larry McMurtry - who passed away quite recently. One of my favourite podcasts did a bookclub on Lonesome Dove and paired it with the TV miniseries. My parents are always taking notes of books that I mention and they surprised me with this one of my 29th birthday. I have been plotting to read it in the summer ever since. Maybe this is finally the year! - MH

Dune by Frank Herbert

I am not a huge science fiction reader (but love a TV or movie set in this genre) but Ben recently bought a copy of Frank Herbert's famous Dune. He hasn't gotten around to reading it yet, so maybe I will. I have a few coworkers who enjoyed the series and it would be fun to talk to them about it. - MH



Atomic Habits by James Clear

This was my first audiobook because I thought I'd not really care about it but was interested because so many of my colleagues were talking about it... it was amazing. I was captivated. I think of some of the quotes from here multiple times a day. This will change your life. - MG

101 Essays that will Change the way You Think by Brianna West

Someone I'm not proud to spend a lot of my life watching on YouTube has been reading this and posting little excerpts etc. and I think it looks very interesting. I haven't read it yet but it's on my list. I love a good essay collection. - MG

The Making of the Atomic Bomb by Richard Rhodes

I bought this book so many years ago because Mark Duplass recommended it on one of his best reads of the year list. It also won the Pulitzer for non-fiction. Unfortunately this book is MASSIVE and that has been my biggest deterrent. I want to try reading one chapter of this every few nights, while also having a fiction book on the go (something I almost never do). - MH 

Burning Questions: Essays and Occasional Pieces by Margaret Atwood

I would say Meg and I are pretty big Margaret Atwood fans. I did not know she had a book of essays coming out and was surprised when I saw it at Indigo. I picked it up immediately and will pick away at them this summer! - MH

Bittersweet by Susan Cain

Susan Cain was on Glennon Doyle's podcast We Can Do Hard Things promoting this new book and I thought it sounded very interesting. It's mostly about how sad mopes like me can actually be more well-rounded than others (kidding.. sort of). - MG



The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

This is the kind of historical fiction I will likely never read but how could I overlook that the adaptation will star Meg and I's beloved Fanning sisters Dakota and Elle. This is a Fanning fan blog if you weren't aware. Melanie Laurent is directing it (I really should have let Meg write this one up since she's obsessed with her) and it just does not have any potential to be a bad movie. - MG

Blonde by Joyce Carol Oates

I've never read anything by Hoyce Carol Oates, which even I myself find shocking, but I am dying to read this. My obsession with Ana de Armas continues as she will star in this upcoming adaptation of Oates' biography of Marilyn Monroe and would you look at that cover???? It's gorgeous. - MG

Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll

This is something else I typically wouldn't read but I just have a feeling it's going to be a big movie so I wanted to include it for those of you who enjoy thrillers. The cover includes a quote comparing the writing to Gillian Flynn which feels a bit obnoxious but I guess gives you an indication of what to expect genre wise. Mila Kunis and Connie Britton are set to star in it. - MG

The Power by Naomi Alderman

I really loved Alderman's Disobedience and also the adaptation of it so I was very excited to see another book of hers was being adapted. It seems like a gender piece with a dystopian / sci-fi twist. I don't recognize anyone associated with the adaptation but it's going to be a 10 part series on Prime. - MG

Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen

It felt impossible to do this list and not include Sarah Dessen's first novel to be adapted. Dessen is definitely more of a young adult writer but I could definitely dip my toes back into her stuff for a re-read at the age of 31. It's being made into a movie for Netflix and although I don't recognize any of the people I will definitely watch it. Dessen shaped both mine and Meg's teen personas (and even sort of our adult ones). - MG

The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen

I am terrible for running out and buying a book with extreme urgency and then not picking it up for at least two years. I am starting to feel some pressure to read this because the A24 series is in production. - MH

The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry

I saw the trailer for this miniseries on Apple TV+ and immediately checked to see if it was at Indigo or deliverable through Prime. It wasn't available on any of those platforms, but funny enough my friend Allie mentioned it to me a day later and said I could borrow her copy! I am kicking off my summer reading with this book right now. - MH

Pieces of Her by Karin Slaughter 

This book does not seem like something I would personally be interested in reading, but I have been meaning to binge the Netflix series they just put out on it starring Toni Collette. If you like mystery/thriller I think this would be a great read for you! - MH

Pachinko by Min Jin Lee

I am really interested in picking this book up because I have heard AMAZING things about the Apple TV+ series on the book. I really love books that span over generations and this does exactly that. - MH

The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes 

This is another book that seems slightly out of my element, but I cannot wait to watch the TV series starring Elizabeth Moss. I listened to an interview with her where she mentioned how helpful she found the source material in her acting process. This is a creepy read about a serial killer and there's some kind of weirdo/surreal element to it apparently. Sign me up! - MH 



The Copenhagen Trilogy by Tove Ditlevsen

These memoirs came out in the late 1960s and early 1970s, but within the last few years they were published as a trilogy and translated into English. I saw this mentioned on a best of the year list, but only added it to my cart when I saw the main character in Sally Rooney's Conversation with Friends Hulu adaptation reading it. It sounds grim as hell, but that doesn't bother me. - MH

Off with my Head by Stassi Schroeder

This feels a bit icky to include but I just can't help my love for Stassi. It's icky because it's basically her memoir of how she 'survived' being 'cancelled' after Bravo fired her from Vanderpump Rules for racist comments. Does she deserve a redemption arc? I don't know... Am I going to read this anyways? Yes. - MG

The Rural Diaries by Hilarie Burton Morgan

I read this last summer and absolutely loved it (full review here). It just feels like summer weather to me and if you're at all interested I think it would be a great poolside read. - MG

I'll Show Myself Out by Jessi Klein

I don't know a lot about Klein other than that she's a comedian but I've heard her promoting this book on various podcasts and it's right up my alley. I love essay and I love reading about moms just trying to survive. - MG

Mean Baby by Selma Blair

Last, and probably least, we needed a new celebrity memoir to round this out. I like Selma Blair the way anyone does but I'm not rushing to read this. I think if you're into memoirs though it would be a good read because she has lived a very interesting life. - MG


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