Even though the temperature gauges still read very HOT, we have reached the unofficial end of summer. The lakes lowered. Pools closed. Summer vacations have come and gone. Kids returned to school. The To Do List has gotten longer. What does this mean for reading? Far less time for pleasure reading.

Let’s make those reading moments count. In an effort to offer book suggestions outside my own reading, I asked my friends and followers on social media to share their favorite books of the summer. Here are a five:

  1. Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett: This is the most popular book of the summer, and I cannot stop recommending the audiobook. Readers agree! A young woman trying to save her family and an 11-year-old girl trying to survive become friends in 1933 Mississippi. Previous recommendations.
  2. Whistler by Ann Patchett: I have not read Whistler yet, but it comes highly recommended. The storyline is about choices- those we make ourselves and those made for us.
  3. Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth: The audiobook is on my To Be Read list. When a young neighbor will stop at nothing to befriend an 81 year old curmudgeon, a hidden history is revealed.
  4. The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion by Beth Brower. Despite having the series recommended time and again, I have not read Emma It is an eight volume series about Emma’s upper middle class life and observations in Victorian England. Each volume is about 100 pages and readers compare the writing to Jane Austen.
  5. Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman: This science fiction series is outside my normal reading genres. Readers are addicted. After aliens destroy all man made structures on Earth and turn the planet into a fantasy dungeon, Carl and Princess Donut try to stay alive in a video like reality TV show.

What are your favorite books of the summer?

What I am Reading:  The Thoroughbreds by Elin Hilderbrand

What I am Listening to:  American Scoundrel:  Roy Cohn’s Dark Journey from Joe McCarthy to Donald Trump by Kai Bird and Susan Goldmark

What I am Watching: Ted Lasso Season 4

Look for books at Knox County Online Library or your local independent bookstore each week.

Linda Sullivan is an avid reader and wants to inspire you to become one, too. For more recommendations or to talk books, reach out to her at thebookwhisperertn@gmail.com. She can also be found @thebookwhisperertn on Instagram.

Enjoyed this article. Read more Book Whisperer reviews by Linda Sullivan.

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