Often we say that during summer we are going to do everything that we never had time for during the busy school year. However, tasks can seem daunting, and this can result in us feeling overwhelmed and “wasting” our summer away. Reading over the summer is extremely beneficial; it’s relaxing, makes you look smarter, and can be done anywhere. So to not “waste” your summer away, here are some suggestions for summer reading.
Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
The Hunger Games is a dystopian young adult book focusing on Katniss Everdeen as she tries to survive the Hunger Games in Panem. After a devastating war, the government of Panem started the Hunger Games. It forces the rebel areas or districts to send 24 teens to compete in a televised game to the death.
It’s a well-developed book that keeps you hooked as the conflict unfolds. With three main books: The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay, there is enough time to explore the fallouts of decisions and various characters while not seemingly dragging on forever.
For additional reading, she has written The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, which is set ten years after the war ends and 64 years before the original series. There is also a new book in the works although not a lot of details are known. If movies are more your thing, each book has a movie adaptation but I don’t know how faithful they were to the original. I have been reading through The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and have been enjoying it.
Megan from Reading Books Like a Boss shared, “Collins’s command of the delicate balance of character and plot is unparalleled. In addition to each character, the relationship development between the characters was beautifully done as well. Katniss shows tremendous strength and resilience, despite being so emotionally fatigued and tired. There’s a vulnerability within her that translated so well to the reader.”
A Walk Around the Block by Spike Carlsen
Stoplight secrets, mischievous squirrels, manhole mysteries, and other stuff you see every day (and know nothing about).
In his seventh book, he focused on the everyday things that most people ignore. He researched and interviewed people on topics such as mail, roadkill, bike lanes, and stop signs doing a deep dive on each topic. His research efforts brought him to stay with a pigeon racer and his 240 pigeons for the weekend and to Paris to do graffiti for several hours.
His book is ideal for people who desperately need a new fun fact for when the conversation slows or who have ever stared out the window in class wondering about something like why the telephone wires look like that. After reading his book, I have gained a new appreciation for everyday things that I usually ignore.
My biggest fear when reading it was that it would come off as a textbook. However, he uses a light-hearted tone with a lot of humor. In the end, it feels more like a friend that you have not seen in a while catching you up on what happened.
“You know, we read books about climbing Everest, going down the Amazon and going to the moon. But we really don’t know much about the world outside our front door,” says Spike Carlsen .
Wonder by R.J. Palacio
Jasmine Roach, 11th grader at Gateway and co-publicist for Book Club in the 24’-25’ school year, recommended Wonder by R.J. Palacio.
Wonder is a popular novel about a boy, August “Auggie” Pullman, with facial deformities who goes to a new middle school. He struggles to make friends and feels very ostracized at his new school. Throughout the book, he learns a lot about what his friends and family are going through. Auggie learns how to forgive but also people learn that he is just a normal kid.
Wonder is a great book to spread kindness over the summer. If you are looking to be more considerate of others for the next school year or just in life Wonder is an excellent pick.
“I feel like it has a good message for the readers”- Jasmine Roach.
Regardless of what you read, summer is the perfect time to do it. These are three books/book series that can give you a good place to start. Some honorable mentions that did not make the list are Renegades by Marissa Meye, Gearbreakers by Zoe Hana Mikuta, and As Long As the Lemon Trees Grow by Zoulfa Katouh. So, go enjoy the summer and get lost in a book!
