BOOKS ABOUT BOOKS
It's summer. You are looking for something breezy to read. You want to be entertained yet still educated. It's too hot for a sizzling mystery that requires investigative energy on the part of the reader. Non-fiction on the beach is a bit geeky.
So how about a few books about reading books?
Here is a list of some old books about reading--books that are well worth dusting off and re-reading especially if you love getting lost between the covers of a good read, and if you love books that tell you what books you should be reading:
The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett is a gem. 120 pages of pure joy. It takes place in England near Buckingham Palace. The Queen discovers the joy of reading when she strolls into a mobile library and through the portal into the land of book lovers. Written in 2007, it is timeless. You will laugh all the way through.
The End of Your Life Book Club is not funny. It is bittersweet but truly informative. It ask you: what books have meaning? That's the question Will Schwalbe asks his mother, Mary Anne, as they sit in the waiting room of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. In 2007, Mary Anne returned from a humanitarian trip to Pakistan and Afghanistan suffering from what her doctors believed was a rare type of hepatitis. Months later she was diagnosed with a terminal illness but she and her son are going to take a trip down memory lane through books. The back of this book is a guide to every book we all should read.
The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend is a lovely novel by Katarina Bivald. It came out three years ago and is really a love story between a woman called Sara, and her books. Sara changes a broken town by bringing books and stories to life. Heartwarming and full of summer charm, it will keep you dreaming about the magic of reading.
Lastly, my favorite: The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin. This book is a gift to book lovers. It is the story of a man whose wife has died and whose bookstore, Island Books, is in trouble. Funny, tender, and inspiring, the bookstore and its owner get a second chance when a young sales rep shows up to dust off a few covers.
Happy Reading!