6 summer book recommendations for different kinds of readers — including reluctant ones
Meghan Desjardins from Amherstburg's River Bookshop shares some of her favourites
With schools out and summer vacations booked, there might be time to catch up on a little light reading over the next couple of months.
So CBC went looking for some outstanding literary oeuvres to appeal to a range of different demographics.
We invited local bookseller Meghan Desjardins from River Bookshop in Amherstburg, Ont., to showcase some of her favourites.
Here's what she recommended:
The best book for avid readers - Dark Like Under by Alice Chadwick
Chadwick's debut novel is set in a secondary school in the 1980s in the immediate aftermath of the death of a popular teacher, according to information from its publisher.
The book has already earned praise from the Irish Times, the Guardian and Vogue U.K., among other outlets, for its mesmerizing account of the inner lives of its characters and the minor dramas unfolding around them.
It "explores friendship and connection and legacy in a really meaningful way," Desjardins said.
And it's from a local publisher.
"I would want to make sure that [people] know about things that Biblioasis Press is doing in Windsor," Desjardins said.
"They do a lot of cool stuff."
WATCH | Top summer read for kids and adults:
The best book for reluctant readers - Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid
The New York Times best-selling Reid is a writer who "can get someone out of a reading slump or get someone into books who maybe didn't think they were interested," Desjardins said.
"She's one of the few authors that almost all of us here have read."
Her newest book, Atmosphere, is the story of Joan Goodwin, a professor of physics and astronomy who is selected to join NASA's space program and finds "a love she never imagined" while preparing for her first flight, according to its publisher.
Then, according to the synopsis, "in December of 1984, on mission STS-LR9, it all changes in an instant."
The best book for young readers - Song for a Whale by Lynne Kelly
Song for a Whale is about 12-year-old Iris, the only deaf person in her school, according to information from the book's publisher.
"People often treat her like she's not very smart," the synopsis says.
Then she learns about a whale who communicates on a specific frequency that no other whale communicates on, Dejsardins said.
And she identifies with it.
"She decides to try and sing to this whale so that they can communicate with each other. And it's really beautiful," she said.
The best book for really young readers - The Wild Robot on the Island by Peter Brown
The Wild Robot on the Island is a picture book companion to Brown's Wild Robot series of science fiction novels for children and youth.
The books chronicle the life of a robot named Roz who mysteriously springs to life on an island and is forced to survive in the natural world far from civilization.
"The Wild Robot is a chapter book for, you know, middle grade age," Desjardins said.
"Now there is a picture book for young kids as well. So younger kids can enjoy the story with really beautiful illustrations by the author."
The one book Desjardins would take with her to a desert island
"One of my favourite recent books is called Toward Eternity by Anton Hur," Desjardins said.
"It's actually his debut novel, and I just absolutely adore it. … As soon as I finished reading it, I actually wanted to start reading it again right away."
The book, according to its publisher, is set in a near-future world where a new technology is eradicating cancer by replacing the body's cells with android cells, rendering people virtually immortal.
The story centres around a literary researcher who teaches an AI to understand poetry.
The scientist behind the cancer-curing technology then transfers the AI into an android body.
"As Yonghun, Panit, and other nano humans thrive—and begin to replicate—their development will lead them to a crossroads and a choice with existential consequences," the synopsis reads.
The book "explores the question of if you have all your cells replaced, are you still the same person?" Dejardins said.
"It explores identity. … And it also explores things like poetry and art … humans versus artificial intelligence and what art means to humans."
The best book for Pride Month - Interesting Facts About Space by Emily Austin
One of Desjardins' favourite recent reads is the latest release from Austin, a Canadian author based in Ontario.
The book, according to its publisher, tells the story of Enid, a woman obsessed with space who has a fear of bald men and who is at once trying to find love on dating apps and trying to forge a new relationship with her estranged half-sisters after the death of her absent father.
"When she unwittingly plunges into her first serious romantic entanglement, Enid starts to believe that someone is following her," the synopsis reads.
"As her paranoia spirals out of control, Enid must contend with her mounting suspicion that something is seriously wrong with her. Because at the end of the day there's only one person she can't outrun—herself."
The book features the lesbian main character exploring why she has her phobia and dealing with it, Desjardins said.
"And it really deals with mental health as well and in a really smart way," she said.
"So I thoroughly enjoyed it, and I'll be reading her other books now as well."