I know many of us are still looking at snow outside our windows, but it’s not too early to think about collecting a stack of books for a vacation on the beach, nights in a hotel, or just a quiet, warm evening on the back deck. Here are a few suggestions for 2013 summertime reading that have fascinated me:
1. Degas In New Orleans – Christopher Benfey (1997)
Edgar Degas, an important early Impressionist painter, spent time in New Orleans with American cousins during the late Reconstruction period. Benfey writes a thoroughly interesting documentary of Degas’ time there with contemporary local luminaries, while the painter captures this period in American Louisiana history with some of his most famous work.
2. Battleborn – Claire Vaye Watkins (2012)
With unusual skill for such a young talent, Watkins conjures a host of restless souls in this series of short stories based in the early boom time of post-wild west Nevada. Her style is reminiscent of John Updike’s short story linguistic magic.
3. The Sun Also Rises – Ernest Hemingway (1926)
Parisian nightlife, Spanish bullfights, afternoon fly-fishing and romantic, expatriate angst – Papa hit his creative stride with this quasi-autobiographical novel about the search for meaning within post WWI’s “lost generation.”
4. Stars In Their Courses – Shelby Foote (1997)
Adapted from Foote’s epic three-volume history of the Civil War, this is the definitive description of the three day Battle of Gettysburg. Shelby Foote humanizes the event like no other, and this book makes timely reading for the 150th anniversary of the battle on July 1,2,3 of this year.
5. Neither Here Nor There – Bill Bryson (1992)
Recreating his collegiate European travels two decades later, Bryson weaves hilarious tales that have the reader laughing from Amsterdam to Rome. If you can’t afford a European vacation this summer, this book is the next best thing.
6. Too Many Cooks – Rex Stout (1938)
The detective Nero Wolfe, Stout’s corpulent creation, along with his witty assistant, Archie Goodwin, are at their finest uncovering a murderer amidst an august gathering of gourmands. Fair warning – the Nero Wolfe mysteries are a classic series that will hook you for years.
7. The Marseille Caper – Peter Mayle (2012)
Peter Mayle has entranced readers with his autobiographical books on life as an Englishman in Provence, France. His newest book is another of his comic mysteries en par with the humor of P.G. Wodehouse.
8. An Eye For An Eye – Anthony Trollope (1879)
Downton Abbey fans, Trollope was the original master of serialized British drama and suspense. Long before TV, magazine readers waited for the latest installment of happenings among the aristocracy, and the regular folk who served them. This book about tragic love is set in Ireland, and reaches its climax on the cliffs of Moher.
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