Bookclub: A summer read for every need
It’s time to relax and get stuck into a good book. From gripping fiction to stunning photography books and a Hollywood bio with a twist, we’ve found the best summer reads to help you recharge your batteries over the holidays.
Fabulous fiction
Trent Dalton’s All Our Shimmering Skies is the book everyone will be talking about this summer. It’s the follow up to Dalton’s award-winning debut novel, Boy Swallows Universe, and from what the critics are saying, this magical story (set against the backdrop of Darwin during WW2) is set to be another Aussie classic.
The Vanishing Half was one of the most anticipated fiction books of the year. Author Brit Bennett delves into what happens when 16-year-old twin sisters run away from their Southern black town and end up going down different paths as adults which sees their lives separated into black and white communities.
Summertime self-care
Kondo-ing your life was the ‘it’ thing to do last year and now Marie Kondo is at it again, only this time she wants us to declutter our job. Joy at Work: Organizing Your Professional Life is a NY Times bestseller that takes the KonMari Method into the office promising the kind of improvements in productivity that can only come with a tidy desk and mind.
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson is a fire-starter for anyone looking to use the summer break to make some big life changes. Just as it sounds, this book is about figuring out what’s important and not worrying so much about what’s not.
Motivate and inspire
Navy Seals are known for achieving the impossible and that’s exactly what David Goggins, author of Can’t Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds, is known for. The only man in history to complete elite training as a Navy SEAL, Army Ranger, and Air Force Tactical Air Controller, Goggins does more than motivate and inspire in his book, he teaches readers to push aside fear, pain and doubts to reach their full potential.
Central Coast photographer Ken Duncan used his COVID time wisely, collating a beautiful new coffee table book devoted exclusively to wildlife. Best known for his colourful landscapes, this is his first wildlife book and the 168 full-colour pages were 15 years in the making. Walking in the Wild features spectacular images of animals captured on every continent and is the escape into a world of wanderlust we all need this summer.
Real-life reads
As far as Hollywood bios go, 2020 was a year that saw Jessica Simpson, Mariah Carey and Matthew McConaughey all release memoirs but it’s the latter that seems to be surprising audiences the most. McConaughey’s Greenlights shares candid and entertaining stories and insights from the actor’s life, including a few unexpected revelations.
It’s the time of year to stop and take a breath, and if you want to get the most out of that breath, it might be time to add Breath to your summer reading list. Penned by journalist James Nestor, Breath explores how we’ve lost the ability to breathe correctly and travels the world to figure out how to fix it.
