With the summer sun shining high, now is the perfect moment to delve into some captivating books. This season, we have curated a selection of five top books that are guaranteed to engage, inspire, and delight. Whether you’re lounging on the beach, enjoying a park, or having a peaceful afternoon at home, these picks offer a variety of stories and perspectives. From exciting adventures and touching family tales to explorations of cultural identity and historical events, our top summer choices will enhance your reading journey. Immerse yourself in these literary treasures and let your imagination take flight. Here are the top five reads for the summer according to The New Yorker.
Godwin
by Joseph O’Neill (Pantheon)
Fiction
Mark Wolfe, a technical writer from Pittsburgh, faces a period of emotional upheaval in this
intricately crafted novel. Amidst disruptions at work, he is swept into an escapade by his
unreliable English half-brother, an aspiring soccer agent, to locate a remarkably talented young African soccer player named Godwin before a rival does. Their quest leads them through England, France, Benin, and ultimately back to the United States. O’Neill’s novel, known for its introspective, wandering, and aphoristic style, combines comedic picaresque elements with musings on family, ambition, colonialism, and the history of soccer. “Football is not predictable,” one character remarks. “Life is not predictable.” This novel reflects that unpredictability.
Keeping the Faith
by Brenda Wineapple (Random House)
Nonfiction
In 1925, American society was undergoing significant transformations as religious influence
waned. New technologies were reshaping daily life, Darwin’s theory of evolution was gaining acceptance, and Protestant Christianity was declining, with fundamentalists seeking to bring the nation back to God. Wineapple delves into the subsequent Scopes trial, where a Tennessee teacher was charged for teaching evolution. With Clarence Darrow defending and William Jennings Bryan, a three-time failed Presidential candidate promoting Christian ethics, leading the prosecution, the trial showcased the mutual bias and animosity between the two sides. This dynamic echoes the current divide between the fervent religious right and the progressive left.
Fire Exit
by Morgan Talty (Tin House)
Fiction
In this captivating debut novel, a man grapples with his cultural heritage and family bonds while residing near Maine’s Penobscot reservation, where he was raised by his white mother and Native American stepfather. Forced to leave due to residency laws associated with tribal affiliation, he now watches over his estranged daughter, born from an unplanned pregnancy, who resides on the reservation with her Penobscot mother. As he cares for his elderly mother, he uncovers unknown facets of his past that he wishes to pass on to his daughter, believing they are part of her legacy.
Thom Gunn by Michael Nott (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)
A unique biography of the groundbreaking gay poet Thom Gunn is presented in this deeply
personal account. Through a collection of diaries, letters, and interviews, Nott takes readers on Gunn’s journey from his upbringing in London to his experiences in Cambridge, San Antonio, and San Francisco. Battling addiction and witnessing the devastation of AIDS among loved ones, Gunn’s introspections reveal his relentless pursuit of inner strength, his fears, and his zest for life. Nott eloquently captures Gunn’s relationships, fleeting and profound, and the men who influenced his poetic works.
Private Revolutions
by Yuan Yang (Viking)
Chronicling the lives of four Chinese millennials, all women, this journalistic account by Yuan Yang delves into the personal impacts of China’s economic and social transformations over the last three decades. Through profiles of a successful entrepreneur in Beijing, an urban migrant who lost her mother in a distant coal mine tragedy, and two labor activists with differing motivations, Yuan provides a vivid portrayal of their struggles and triumphs in the face of challenges like unpaid wages and unsupportive families. Drawing on her experience as a former Beijing correspondent and current British Labour M.P., Yuan captures the essence of these women’s pursuit of newfound freedoms.
