Summer is my favorite time to read. The conditions are perfect: no homework to worry about, beautiful sunny parks to sit in, just enough rainy days to spend inside reading. I think I read more books in summer than the entire rest of the year. With only a month left to my summer break (cries 😭) you can be assured that I have been making the most of my vacation and have been reading as much as I can. 

Yellowface was one of my most anticipated reads of 2023. The book caused a stir before it was even released and I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. Yellowface is a gripping page turner addressing topics of racism and cultural appropriation in the publishing industry.

During summer, I love a good suspenseful, captivating, page-turner to cuddle up with in a cabin in the middle of the woods and finish in one weekend. This year, The Guest is going to be that book.

Chloe Gong’s debut novel This Violent Delights, a fantasy retelling of Romeo and Juliet, is one of my favorite books ever so when I heard she was releasing another Shakespeare fantasy retelling, this time based on Antony and Cleopatra, I knew I had to get my hands on it.

Cherie Dimaline is one of my favorite YA authors with her book The Marrow Thieves still being one of my favorite books I’ve ever read so when I saw that she was releasing a new YA novel this year I knew I had to get my hands on it.

Dance is a beautiful thing but it can also be a very hard world and culture to navigate. When it All Syncs Up deals with many of the issues of the dance world like racism and body shaming, however, it is also a hopeful novel about finding out who you are, love, and friendship. 

A prequel to the Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series Kill Joy shows us where it all began with Pip solving her first murder, granted this one is just for her friend's murder mystery party.

Shortcomings is the perfect graphic novel to read this summer. It's a short and subtle read and its movie adaptation comes out in August!

Originally attracted to this graphic novel for its beautiful cover, I was quickly pulled into it for its emotional storyline. A memoir about growing up as a Korean immigrant in New Jersey, Lee explores mental health, family relationships, friendships, and many other important topics that come with growing up.

The highly anticipated return of the cousin duo that gave us This One Summer and Skim, two of my favorite graphic novels, Roaming is a graphic novel about two high school best friends who meet up to spend their first college spring break together in New York City. Of course, sightseeing, adventures, drama, fights and more occur. 

Monsters tries to tackle one of the most important questions “What Do We Do with the Art of Monstrous Men?” Dederer tackles the works of many famous monstrous men and leaves you thinking about your relationship with their work. An interesting and thought provoking read.

I love to run. Nothing compares to the feeling once you hit that runner’s high on a long run. For a long time, however, I struggled to find joy in running. In a running world full of faster boys it can be hard to be confident in my skills, Running is the feminist and queer handbook to running that I wish I had been able to read earlier.

Wes Anderson is by far my most watched director. I have seen all his films and I remember watching The Royal Tenenbaums as a kid when I was far too young to even understand it. Of course, I was super excited for his new movie Asteroid City. This collection of essays shares Anderson’s inspirations for the film and is a super interesting read.

I have been known to defend any female character to my friends despite how unlikeable she might be. I just can’t help it. So as soon as I saw the title of this book, I had to read it. Unlikeable Female Characters examines the history of female characters in media and how these “unlikeable” characters help us celebrate every aspect of being a woman.