Summer reading - the highlights
The school summer holidays are, for me, the perfect time to catch up on reading. I have read more than ever this summer, and it has been a joy to read new books by debut authors like myself, as well as books that have been on my to-be-read list for a little while. As always, some of my reading is linked to my current work-in-progress; some is for the joy of immersing myself in a good story.
I have loved so many books this summer. Here are my top six:
THIS TIME TOMORROW by Emma Stroud – a beautiful story of time-travel and friendship, the bond between a father and daughter, and a love-letter to childhood memories. I found this incredibly moving, as well as loving the New York City setting. I moved to the Upper West Side recently, and there was much to recognise and enjoy. This book made me think about what I would want to do differently if I went back to my teenage years – so much, of course! But Stroud’s novel provides a powerful and refreshing message about how to come to terms with the past.
THE GARDEN OF EDEN by Ernest Hemingway – the last uncompleted novel of Hemingway, I have my friend Bryerly Long to thank for recommending this book to me, after I told her about the novel I am currently writing. This was an exciting read, as precise and lean as all Hemingway’s writing, but with a sensual and erotic quality that felt different. The relationship between a young married couple on their honeymoon, and a beautiful woman who joins them, is complex, dangerous, and thrilling.
LOVE’S EXECUTIONER by Irvin Yalom – a rare dip for me into non-fiction, this was a fascinating read. Yalom, a psychotherapist, tells the story of ten patients and his work with them to help them understand their ‘existence pain’. He writes about the challenge of developing the capacity to tolerate uncertainty, both for the therapist and the patient, and of his own struggles to reconcile his human emotions with his role as a psychologist.
THEY’RE GOING TO LOVE YOU by Meg Howrey - perhaps it is my recent move to New York City, but I am finding myself drawn to novels set in the American dance world. This is a beautifully written novel set in New York City during the AIDs crisis, as well as present-day Los Angeles. It is about the life of Carlisle Martin, a girl navigating her desire to follow in the footsteps of her dancer parents. This is a novel about ambition, love, and the pervasive and inescapable secrets of the past.
THE SPECTACULAR by Fiona Davis - It was when I first visited New York City last year that I read The Chelsea Girls, another theatre-themed historical fiction novel by Fiona Davis that helped me to fall in love with my soon-to-be new home. The Spectacular is set in New York City in the 1950s, and is about a Radio City Rockette and a hunt for a dangerous criminal – the ideal mix of dance, drama, and crime. I read this in one spectacular Saturday afternoon in New York City.
MORGAN IS MY NAME by Sophie Keetch – I have fond memories of studying Medieval Literature when I was at university, in particular the often vilified character Morgan le Fay. This is the first novel in a trilogy, and I will be reading the next book as soon as it comes out. A dramatic, fast-paced, and sensual novel, I loved Morgan’s character. An absolute triumph.