To kick off the start of summer reading season, ZSR librarians hosted a virtual Summer Reading Social on Tuesday, May 5th. This inaugural program allowed us to share our favorite titles from the past year and offer literary genre recommendations. Participants were also eager to share favorite titles and suggested reads for summer.

A screenshot of our virtual discussion of titles on our TBR (to be read list) during ZSR Library's Summer Reading Social.
A screenshot of our virtual discussion of TBR (to be read list) selections during ZSR Library’s Summer Reading Social.

We had several requests during the program to compile a list of all of the recommendations and make them available for our reading community. So, without further ado, here is a complete list of the titles that were recommended to add to your summer TBR (to be read) lists.

New Releases (our favs from the past year)

  • Dutch House by Ann Patchett
  • Generation Friends: An Inside Look at a TV Show that Defined an Era by Saul Austerlitz
  • How to Be Fine by Jolenta Greenberg and Kristen Meinzer
  • Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli
  • Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo
  • Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
  • The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern
  • Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld
  • Spitfire by M. L. Huie (WFU alum)
  • The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson
  • Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell
  • There There by Tommy Orange
  • Untamed by Glennon Doyle
  • The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates
  • Writers & Lovers by Lily King

Must-Read Nonfiction

  • Becoming by Michelle Obama
  • Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies, and a Conspiracy to Protect Predators by Ronan Farrow
  • The Conscious Closet by Elizabeth Cline
  • Dare to Lead by Brene Brown
  • Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
  • Dopesick by Beth Macy
  • Joyful by Ingrid Fetell Lee
  • Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
  • Know My Name by Chanel Miller
  • Life by Keith Richards
  • Midnight in Chernobyl by Adam Higgenbotham
  • The Millionaire and the Bard: Henry Folger’s Obsessive Hunt for Shakespeare’s First Folio by Andrea Mays
  • Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell
  • Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson

Historical Fiction

  • All the Light you Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
  • Any Human Heart by William Boyd
  • The Conqueror’s Saga by Kiersten White
  • The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai
  • The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
  • Hild by Nicola Griffith
  • Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
  • Johanna by Claire Cooperstein
  • Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
  • The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
  • The Rules of Civility by Amor Towles
  • Tangerine by Christine Mangan
  • The Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

Fantasy, SciFi & Speculative Fiction

  • Anita Blake Vampire Hunter series by Laurell K. Hamilton
  • Circe by Madeline Miller
  • Get In Trouble by Kelly Link
  • Exhalation by Ted Chiang
  • Hidden Kingdom by Kira Jane Buxton
  • The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers
  • Mr. Penumbra’s 24-hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan
  • The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
  • The Stormlight Archive series by Brandon Sanderson
  • Sourdough by Robin Sloan
  • The Winternight Trilogy by Katherine Arden
  • The Wool Trilogy by Hugh Howey

Mysteries, Thrillers & Suspense

  • The Cormoran Strike series by Robert Galbraith
  • Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk
  • The Dublin Murder Squad series by Tana French
  • Her Royal Spyness series by Rhys Bowen
  • If It Bleeds by Stephen King
  • No Country For Old Men by Cormac McCarthy
  • Rivers of London series by Ben Aaronovitch
  • Still Life series by Louise Penny
  • Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

Our Summer TBR (to be read) List

  • Aesthetic Intelligence by Pauline Brown
  • The Body by Bill Bryson
  • The City We Became by N.K. Jemsin
  • The Education of an Idealist by Samantha Power
  • The Falcon Thief by Joshua Hammer
  • The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Dare
  • Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel
  • The Lost Girls of Camp Forevermore by Kim Fu
  • The Moment Of Lift by Melinda Gates
  • The Other Americans by Laila Lalami
  • The Power of Ritual: How to Create Meaning and Connection in Everything You Do by Casper ter Kuile
  • The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson
  • Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern
  • Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
  • Uncanny Valley: A Memoir by Anna Wiener

What titles are on your summer reading list? Share your recommendations in the comments below! Happy Summer Reading!