What’s On My Reading List

Much like the way I consume television and video games, I’m also the kind of person who likes to savor, not binge, books. I take 20 hours longer to beat most video games than the average person, I enjoy the weekly show drip versus dropping an entire season in one night, and the same can be said about what I read. I like digesting books slowly, maybe 30 pages a day, or whatever I can squeeze in on my commute.

For this reason, my To Be Read pile has become quite the stack lately. Here is what’s on my reading list, from books I’ve enjoyed recently to ones I plan on reading soon. Hopefully these can spark some inspo for your next read, too.

Others Were Emeralds by Lang Leav

Now, this book doesn’t come out until September 5, but I was fortunate to receive an advanced copy from the author herself. Much like Lang’s other novels, this one is so poetic and beautiful. The story follows Ai, the daughter of Cambodian refugees, through high school where she and her tight-knit group of friends “lead seemingly ordinary lives, far removed from the unimaginable horrors suffered by their parents.” However, “that carefree innocence is shattered in their last year of school when Ai and her friends encounter a pair of racist men whose cruel acts of intimidation spiral into senseless violence.” Tragedy, grief, and a mental health crisis follow.

It is a beautiful story of love, loss, and friendship—one that kept me reading long into the night. I highly recommend adding this book to your list, especially if you are already a fan of Lang’s work. You can preorder it here.

If We Were Villains by M. L. Rio

This is the book I am currently reading and, at the time of writing this, am half-way through. It follows Oliver, one of seven young Shakespearean actors at Dellecher Classical Conservatory, where he and his friends “play the same roles onstage and off: hero, villain, tyrant, temptress, ingénue, extras.” However, in their fourth and final year, “good-natured rivalries turn ugly, and on opening night real violence invades the students’ world of make-believe. In the morning, the fourth-years find themselves facing their very own tragedy, and their greatest acting challenge yet: convincing the police, each other, and themselves that they are innocent.”

I highly recommend this if you are into Shakespeare, murder mysteries, and honestly, just beautiful, poetic writing. It is quite the page-turner.

Radically Content by Jamie Varon

To be fair, I read this book last year. However, I am reading it again because it is definitely one of those books you should reread every so often, or at least pull out whenever you need it. (And right now, I do.) This summary says it best: “Packed with revelatory insights, Radically Content is an exhale. A respite from the chaos of our current world. A calm place to land when you’ve had enough with trying to be enough.”

It was such an eye-opener the first time I read it, and is filled with Aha moments that are even more reassuring the second time. This quote is still among my favorites, and is always a good reminder: “If you don’t consciously feed yourself positive thoughts, you’ll ingest the complaints of everyone else.”

Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

I had this book on my Amazon wishlist for some time, but once I saw my friend Michelle reading it, I knew I had to go ahead and get it. A brief description: “Sam and Sadie—two college friends, often in love, but never lovers—become creative partners in a dazzling and intricately imagined world of video game design, where success brings them fame, joy, tragedy, duplicity, and, ultimately, a kind of immortality. It is a love story, but not one you have read before.”

The praise list on Amazon is seemingly endless, which only excites me more. It’s a chunky book for sure, and for that reason, I’ve been a little intimidated to start it, but it just might be the perfect read for summer.

All Grown Up by Jami Attenberg

I’ve been a big fan of Jami’s newsletter and #1000wordsofsummer series for a few years now, and have been eager to read this book for quite some time. It’s praised as “a wickedly funny novel about a thirty-nine-year-old single, childfree woman who defies convention as she seeks connection,” and as a single, childfree woman in her (early) 30s, it felt like it was right up my alley! Can’t wait to start this one soon, too.

Madame Clairevoyant’s Guide to the Stars by Claire Comstock-Gay

As a huge fan of Claire Comstock-Gay, the wildly popular astrology columnist for New York magazine’s The Cut, I had to get my hands on this book. It is “a soulful exploration of the twelve astrological signs embodied by our living ‘stars’—from divas to philosophers, poets to punks—and the ways they can help us better understand ourselves and each other.”

I indulge in all things astro daily for guidance and for fun, so I’m intrigued by this book and can’t wait to dive into it and learn about it a little more.

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What are you reading this summer? Do you have any book recommendations for me? I’d love to hear them!