Written by Suzanne Nash
I am sitting at the Infinity Pool at Keswick, enjoying the breeze after a successful Farm Tour and it is the perfect time for me to reflect on great pool reads for the summer. When I am exhausted and don’t want to do anything else, reading is my relief and my renewal and I have great new list sure to tempt you into a lazy afternoon read.
Mary Morony is back again with her latest installment in the Apron String’s trilogy. Done Growed Up once again follows the ups and downs of the Mackey family. The characters you fell in love with in Apron Strings are back struggling to survive the turmoil of a family torn apart. Sallee watched her parent’s painful divorce and is coping with the aftermath, while her sister has headed to college in New York and her brother has become filled with anger and resentment. Ethel still remains the constant comforting presence in the lives of the Mackeys. She tries to hold the family together even as Sallee’s parents are discovering that being single isn’t as easy as it looks. This is a perfect Southern book to enjoy poolside with a cool lemonade.
If you are interested in International fiction touching on political history try Beneath the Lion’s Gaze by Maaza Mengiste. This tale takes place in Addis Ababa Ethiopia in 1974 when political upheaval threatens Hailu’s family. Hailu is a doctor whose wife is dying and whose sons Yonas and Dawit are struggling to find their way in a hotbed of rebellion. While his mother lays dying in the hospital Dawit feel compelled to join the rest of the students protesting the Emperor’s control over the country. Thousands are starving while the Emperor enjoys a lavish lifestyle so the students feel that replacing him with another leader is necessary. Once the overthrow takes place, however, no one is prepared for the blood bath that ensues. This is a heart rending account of the dangers of rebellion, no matter how justified. Too often the power grab after the destabilization of a government is as bad as or worse than the evils prior.
Another book that deals with the horrors of war and the repercussions is a classic book that I think everyone should take the time to read…..Viktor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning. The first part chronicles Frankl’s experiences in Auschwitz and then the second part of the book discusses the ideas he developed while interred. These ideas were about finding meaning for your life and his therapy based on this is search for meaning is called logo therapy. Written in 1946, this book describes what the average prisoner experienced in Auschwitz and explains how finding purpose and meaning in life encouraged longevity among the prisoners. Imagining the outcome of hopes and dreams that support your purpose can affect how you live and survive. This book will inspire you to look at your life and determine what you hold onto as your purpose and what provides meaning that can sustain you through tough times.
Nina George’s masterpiece, The Little Paris Bookshop: A Novel will completely delight you if you dream of owning a bookshop. I can absolutely imagine living on Monsieur Jeanne Perdu’s barge called Lulu, moored on the Seine in the heart of Paris. Perdue dispenses wisdom and books to relieve the soul ache of his customers but he is unable to diagnose or cure his own broken heart. This is a beautiful gem of a book filled with vivid imagery and wonderful literary references that will charm book lovers everywhere. So take an armchair journey to Paris and float through the canals to Province without ever having to leave home!
I hope you enjoy the beginning of summer and take time to get a stack of books to take with you as you lounge in the sun or start out on your summer holidays. For me, nothing says summer more than a pile of books in my beach bag!