It’s summertime! Here in the PNW, that means sunny days. Well, mostly - but we’ll take it. We’re lucky to also live just a short drive to the beach, and our coastline is quite beautiful, with forests running alongside the sea. Pack a picnic and hit the road! But make sure to pack your beach reads with you.
“Beach read” is a relatively recent term which first started appearing in trade journals around 1990. However, these books trace back to the Victorian era, when publishers realized that summer vacation travel presented an opportunity for light, fun bestsellers set at resorts and beaches. Beach reads lean into romance, beach or island locations, getaway trips, and summer weddings. They are light reads, don’t require intense concentration, and contain pretty simple plots. Here, I’ll help you pack for your trip:
Things to Take to the Beach:
- Towels
- Any book by Elin Hildebrand (books take place on Nantucket Island)
- Cooler and ice or ice packs
- The Summer Place by Jennifer Weiner - a summer wedding is set at a family vacation home, but the family must overcome challenges and dysfunctions to make it happen
- Any book by Mary Kay Andrews (settings along the lower East Coast)
- Sunscreen, SPF 30+, preferably mineral-based
- How Stella Got Her Groove Back by Terry McMillan - divorcée Stella heads off on a spur-of- the-moment trip to Jamaica, and meets someone
- Cut-up fruit (melon, berries, oranges)
- Any book by Debbie Macomber (she writes about Washington and Oregon coasts)
- Sandwiches
- One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle - a grief-stricken daughter heads to the Amalfi Coast on a trip that she had planned to take with her beloved mother
- Wide-brimmed hat
- Any book by Carl Hiaasen (he writes about Florida in all its absurdity)
- Bottles of water
- People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry - two college friends reunite for a weeklong beach vacation
Things to NOT Take to the Beach:
- News magazines
- White swimsuits (unless pre-checked for sheerness)
- Any book by an English philosopher
- Ice cream sundaes
- Business suits
- Hardcover books with a page count higher than 300
- Baby oil
New at the Library
Fiction
- The Griffin Sisters’ Greatest Hits by Jennifer Weiner
- Old School Indian by Aaron John Curtis
- The Original Daughter by Jemimah Wei
Nonfiction
- A Dumb Birds Field Guide to the Worst Birds Ever by Matt Kracht
- Boat Baby: A Memoir by Vicky Nguyen
- The #1 Dad Book - Be the Best Dad You Can Be–In 1 Hour! by James Patterson
Children
- Ant Party by Ross Montgomery
- Top 10 Strangest Animals by Brenna Maloney
- Survive This Safari by Natalie D. Richards
