5 Books You Must Read This Summer

By Alexia Gonzalez on July 14, 2014

Summer is always a great time to catch up on some leisure reading.  Considering the workload and pile of books that students are buried under during the normal school semester, reading without academic purpose seems kind of tedious to say the least.  However, personal reading can elevate your mood and stimulate your brain without having to feel like you’re completing an English homework assignment.  Reading is also a great way to enhance your daily use of vocabulary both in and out of the academic realm.  Prepare yourself for a successful fall semester and sound like the smartest kid in class with on-hand allegorical references and witty doses of literary knowledge that will surely impress any TA or professor. Take a gander at my picks for summer reads that will make you want to continuously turn the page. Not only are these novels great in paperback form, many of the books included in my list will be portrayed as feature films or shows on both the big and little screen. But I highly suggest that you read the book before watching the movie!

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand

The real life story of Olympic track star, war hero, ex-prisoner of war, and overall survivor, Louis Zamperini, will make you wonder whether any one individual can endure so much action within one lifetime.  His inspiring story of strength and resilience will be portrayed in the upcoming war epic motion picture directed by Angelina Jolie. Take a look at the trailer.

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

All right, so I know you’ve probably heard many females raving about this book, especially as a result of the recently released trailer for the upcoming movie adaptation (starring Ben Affleck), but I must admit the hype is substantial.  Flynn’s thriller novel launched the writer to best selling author status with her suspenseful twist on the average love story, when loving wife and daughter Amy Dunne goes missing on the day of her fifth wedding anniversary.  Flynn’s sharp wit and mysterious prose keeps readers guessing until the very end.  Watch the film’s trailer here.

The Cuckoo’s Calling by Robert Galbraith

J.K. Rowling’s first attempt at writing behind the pseudonym of Robert Galbraith has definitely proven successful.  The first book in the Cormoran Strike series highlights a private detective of the aforementioned named, who is hired to investigate the suicide of a famous British supermodel.  This crime fiction novel is intensely complex and compelling and written with a flourish that only Rowling can achieve.  Not only is the storyline ingenious and enticingly mysterious, readers will easily feel enthralled by the inner workings of Detective Strike’s mind and persona.  This is certainly not a book to miss out on.

This Is Where I Leave You by Jonathan Tropper

When the head of the dysfunctional Foxman family passes away, his dying wish is that they all gather to honor his life through the traditional Jewish practice of Shiva, which entails a week long period of mourning amongst the surviving family members.  Needless to say, the week results in much more than any member of the family could have anticipated.  Tropper’s comedic approach to a solemn scenario keeps readers laughing out loud through his incredibly witty and honest perspective on life and the inevitable approach of death.  The novel’s film adaptation set to release in September, unites a star-studded cast including Tina Fey, Jason Bateman, and Jane Fonda. Watch the trailer here.

Orange Is The New Black by Piper Kerman

If you haven’t already seen or heard of the hit Netflix series “Orange Is The New Black,” you must have been hiding under a rock for the past year.  Don’t feel bad; most viewers of the beloved comedy drama aren’t even aware that the series is based on a biographical novel of the same name.  The real-life Piper Kerman accounts her year in a women’s prison after she is detained for a drug deal gone wrong that she was mistakenly mixed into during a whimsical love affair.  Kerman’s experience at the federal correctional facility in Danbury, Connecticut, exposes her to an array of complex characters that  teach her more about herself than she could have ever imagined. Check out season one and two of the series on Netflix.

 

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