Our Summer Reading list:
Reading during the school year is, and always will be, a struggle for me. My best reading is always done over summer break, when I don’t need to worry about preparing for university throughout my small break between semesters and instead I can fully immerse myself inside a new world, whether it be contemporary, fantasy or science fiction.
So today, I present to you, a summer reading list curated by yours truly, filled with all my favourite books. Some contemporary, some thriller, some fantasy - something for everyone. I hope you find your next read within this list and discover some favourites!
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
I think most people on Earth have heard of this book (or at least, the movie) but if you haven’t, I’ll give you a quick run-down.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower follows Charlie, a freshman in highschool, through a series of letters he writes. The letters feel intimate, like Charlie is confiding in a friend, as he navigates high school and everything that comes along with it. There is some trigger warnings as the book is hard-hitting and touches on some serious issues - such as rape, abuse and mental illness - but Chbosky doesn’t delve into these matters as everything is written from Charlie’s point-of-view. With that being said, please take precautions when reading!
(I reread this book this year for the first time since 2012 and I can assure you, this book definitely holds up over time.)
Content Warnings: Rape, abuse, mental illness.
Genre: Young adult, hard-hitting contemporary.
Diversity: LGBT+ main character.
The Female of the Species by Mindy McGinnis
The Female of the Species follows three main characters - Alex, Peekay and Jack. Three years ago, Alex’s older sister was murdered and the killer walked free, so casually, Alex killed him (see what I mean by morally gray?). Peekay is Alex’s new friend and Jack is her new boyfriend, we follow Alex befriending them after she doesn’t know if she can trust people anymore.
However, this book so much more than Alex just killing someone and us following as she deals with it. There’s beautiful friendships in this book, it says great things about rape culture, the plot line was incredible, the ending made me cry! There’s not much I can really say about this book without giving much away.
Content Warnings: Rape, murder, animal abuse (not graphic).
Genre: Young adult, thriller contemporary.
Radio Silence by Alice Oseman
Radio Silence’s main characters are Aled and Frances, and the novel follows them during their final years of schooling. Frances spends all her time studying (something she calls ‘School Frances’) and when she’s not, she’s making fanart for her favourite podcast, Universe City. Aled is a quiet boy in the year above who gets straight A’s and is secretly the creator of University City who goes by the name Radio Silence. Aled and Frances develop such a realistic friendship over the course of the novel, I found myself reminding myself that they’re not actual people. This books set in England, and while I’m not from there, I’ve seen friends say this novel tackles the university system in the U.K brilliantly (and even captures the elitism and pressure of Oxbridge!) that I’d recommend it to anyone struggling during their final years of schooling.
Content Warnings: Mental illness, animal abuse (not graphic).
Genre: Young adult, hard-hitting contemporary.
Diversity: No joke almost every character is LGBT+ and Frances is biracial (Ethiopian and white!)
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Evelyn Hugo is a reclusive Hollywood movie icon who, as the title suggests, has had 7 husbands. The novel follows Monique, a writer, who has been asked to visit Evelyn’s apartment in order to write her biography. The novel is told during two timelines - the current day, where Monique and Evelyn bond and write, and also in the past from the 1950s to the 1980s, where we learn about Evelyn’s rise and fall in Hollywood and her interesting love life. Because this novel is the perfect balance of present and past, it’s perfect for someone who doesn’t quite like reading historical fiction but what’s to dip their toes into the genre. Evelyn is a complex and interesting character who tells stories of ruthless ambition, friendship and the story of who her one true love was all this time. I wish I could tell you everything I loved about this book, but I’d be here for days!
Content Warnings: Death of a loved one and child, talk of suicide, abortion, miscarriage, physical abuse, cheating, drunk driving and homophobia (So many, I’m sorry!).
Genre: Adult, historical fiction.
Diversity: Multiple LGBT+ characters, Evelyn is Cuban, Monique is Black. Multiple side characters are also POC.
The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer
I used to be a huge Science Fiction Fantasy (SFF) nerd back in 2016-2017 but I haven’t read much lately, but trust me when I tell you, this is one of the best SFF series ever. It’s 4 books, 1 novella, 1 short story collections that are all retellings of your favourite fairytales.
You start with Cinder, which is a retelling of Cinderella, then Scarlet, a retelling of Red Riding Hood, Cress, a retelling of Rapunzel, next, the novella titled Fairest - actually based on the Wicked Queen from Snow White. After Fairest is the real Snow White retelling - Winter and finally, Stars Above, the short story collection of everyone being happy!
My favourite book in the series is Cress (Rapunzel was always my favourite princess!) but the way Marissa Meyer intertwines the story lines of every character still amazes me. You start in New Beijing and somehow end up in France, The Sahara Desert and even space!
Content Warnings: (Over the course of 5 books) Mentions of violence, death, sickness, mental manipulation.
Genre: Young adult, science fiction and slight dystopian.
Diversity: Multiple members of main ensemble are POC.
My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing
I’m going to be honest with you all. This book is nasty and not for someone who doesn’t like thrillers. But who knows, maybe someone has a sick taste in books like me and they’ll love it as well. So, this book follows a normal married couple. Except for the fact they kill people to keep their marriage alive. There’s not much else you can say about thrillers without giving the whole plot away.
It caught me off guard with its plot twists in all the right ways. Every-time I thought I’d figured it out, I was wrong and it’d throw another twist at me. This is Samantha Downing’s DEBUT NOVEL! I’ll definitely be checking out more of her stuff in the future. Her writing is so captivating and interesting and if you think you can read this book, I 1000% recommend (if you think you can handle it).
Content Warnings: Not graphic depictions of torture, murder, physical abuse, suicide.
Genre: Adult, mystery-thriller.
Wayward Children by Seanan McGuire
The Wayward Children series is a collection of novellas (so less than 200 pages each) that feature a new main character. The children of the novel all travel to fantastical and magical worlds through doors that match each child better than the world they were born into (in this case, Earth). However, it’s not that simple, and sometimes characters are thrown out or they leave their worlds and find it hard to adapt, so they travel to Eleanor West’s Home for Wayward Children.
The worlds Seanan McGuire creates in these novellas are so incredibly perfect and engaging and since the novels are short, you can read them super quickly in a sitting. My favourite book so far is Down Among the Sticks and Bones (Book #2) that features Jack and Jill in their new world that involves mad scientists and magic! At this rate, every single book in this series is an automatic 5/5 stars and I won’t ever shut up about this series until everyone I know has read it.
Content Warnings: (Over the course of 4 books) Homophobia/Transphobia (challenged in text), fatphobia, death/murders, eating disorders, cancer
Genre: Young adult, fantasy.
Diversity: I think everyone (or at least, almost everyone) is LGBT+ and POC characters also book 3 has an overweight main character!
The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
Written in verse, The Poet X is definitely one of my favourite books I’ve read this year. It’s about a young girl who lives in Harlem, who expresses herself through slam poetry as she becomes aware of her own body, her sexuality and all her emotions. It’s an incredible and heart-wrenching. If you are into audiobooks, I highly recommend listening to it, as Elizabeth Acevedo narrates it herself. This book tackles so many important topics with such incredibly realistic characters. With it written in verse, I didn’t expect to be so invested in the story - I thought it’d be a good read, nothing impactful as I didn’t think I’d connect with it… but I ended up crying numerous times.
Content Warnings: Sexism/misogyny, homophobia, slut-shaming, sexual harassment
Genre: Young adult, hard-hitting contemporary.
Diversity: Xiomara + her family are Dominican, other main characters are also POC, LGBT+ side characters.
By Taylah Singh
(she/her)
Taylah is a twenty year old, studying social science and linguistics in Newcastle, Australia. She loves books, learning languages and her dog.
ig: taaylahadams