Quick reads for your summer – The Skyline View

With spring in full swing and May approaching, it might be time to start creating a summer reading list to dive into once the semester is over. Here are some potential books that depending on your taste, you could digest quickly and immerse yourself in.    

“Daisy Jones & The Six” by Taylor Jenkins Reid focuses on a fiction rock band that was up and coming in the 1970’s. This book is told through the characters in the present being interviewed for a documentary of the band; each chapter goes between the different characters recalling their journey back in the 70’s. With this unique storytelling, you get to see different accounts of the same situations and how misinterpretations or different perspectives affect all their relationships. With perspectives from everyone involved, it makes their personalities believable and you get a good sense of each character. It shows realistic conflict and miscommunication. All of these aspects will have you turning the page for more, making this a quick read during a sunny day.

“Sula” by Toni Morrison centers around two girls, Sula and Nel, throughout their friendship from childhood to their messy relationship during adulthood. This poetically written story set in a small town, not only has intriguing characters, complex relationships, and an interesting setting but also speaks on racism and childhood trauma making this book not just a quick light hearted read, but also leaves you with something to think about. 

“Maybe In Another Life” by Taylor Jenkins Reid follows Hannah Martin in two different lifetimes. One where she stays at a party with her ex-boyfriend and another where she decides to decline his offer to stay and goes home. After these establishing chapters, the chapters split and each one alternates between these two lifetimes, showing the domino effect of how the outcome of just one decision changes her life completely. Throughout this book, Martin is met with hardships and traumatic events that adds depth and chances for relatability throughout the story. While these moments can be a bit dark, they keep you invested until the end. 

“Normal People” by Sally Rooney follows the on and off relationship between two high school students that continues into their 20s. Like “Daisy Jones & The Six”, this book shows the difference in perspectives and realistic communication within relationships. Normal People does a great job at showing how different personalities can affect life style and communication with others and how even when no one is technically in the wrong, arguments can start and strain can be put on a relationship. While this book is very character based and big plot events don’t really occur, as one of the shortest books on this list, at around 273 pages, you can read through this very quickly. 

Whether you’ve read books similar to these or they introduce completely new concepts and authors to you, these books can be great choices to bring along with you during any of your other summer activities and can possibly expand your book taste.