A very strange thing I was jealous of as a child: kids who had reading assignments over the summer.
I was a little book monster who could never get enough, and even though I count very few assigned titles from school as books I genuinely enjoyed reading (Catcher in the Rye being one of them), I think I liked the idea of spending some part of my summer vacation reading with a purpose.
As an adult now, I also like the idea of putting the “what do I read next?” decision in someone else’s hands (with parameters, of course!). Because, let’s face it, I am unlikely to reach the end of my physical or mental TBR list in my lifetime (and actually, I hope I don’t, because what a sad day that would be).
A few years ago, deep in Covid lockdown with two young children home with me 24/7, I dreamt up my first adult summer reading list. I remember wanting so desperately to find a reading list curated by someone else because I just did not want to do any more emotional labor, but what I wanted didn’t exist: a mix of buzzy new titles and backlist options that had stood the test of time, centered around the themes I enjoy reading.
My reading that summer wasn’t entirely successful (I read 7/17 books I had selected), but I thoroughly enjoyed the process of planning my list and then the relief of knowing “what do I read next?” was already decided for me.
When my writing community announced a summer book Bingo challenge styled after the one Seattle Public Library hosts each summer, I knew I was in. If you’ve never participated in book Bingo before, imagine a 5x5 grid with a different prompt or theme for each square. To win a Bingo you could read five books corresponding to the prompts across the board, up and down, or diagonal. If you’re feeling ambitious you can aim to read 25 books, one for each of the prompts.
Thinking about my less than 100% success rate with my previous summer reading list, I strategized a bit more when coming up with my list for this year. I knew there would be no way to read 25 novels or memoirs, so aimed to choose a handful of poetry books and graphic novels on my list (one of the prompts is “by a local poet” and one is simply “graphic novel,” but I knew I’d need more than just those two). I spent, no joke, a solid week tweaking my list (and I enjoyed every second of it).
I also tried to fit in books I already have, or have been on my mental TBR list for awhile. This has gotten me excited about finally getting to some titles I’ve heard amazing things about, like Memorial by Bryan Washington and Small Things like These by Claire Keegan.
I thought a handful of rereads would be a good idea, too; I’m sure I won’t love every new-to-me title on my list so it’s nice to have a couple of all-stars I can turn to after I slog through something that doesn’t really resonate. I read Tove Jansson’s The Summer Book for the first time last year and vowed to read it every summer; it was a good fit for the “in translation” prompt. I read Steve Martin’s Shopgirl many years ago when it was first published, and watched the film as well. I’m excited to revisit both for the “adapted for film” prompt.
And while I certainly want to blackout my Bingo board this summer, my overarching goal for my reading life is to read like a writer. I am paying careful attention to how a writer tells a story, and not just my enjoyment of it. Many of the titles I chose were picked because they mirror themes in my own work.
Even if you’re not a writer you can approach your list with a goal in mind. Perhaps you want to read more of a particular author or genre, or to read outside of your comfort zone by trying new formats or amping up the diversity of voices you read.
Here’s to a summer of 5 star reads!
A Bookshop list of everything I’m reading this summer and if you’re the journaling-type, here’s a journal with me featuring my list.