We may be biased, but no summer itinerary is complete without a truly great reading list. While you may have your travel plans ironed out, it’s time to figure out what book to bring along. Luckily, we’ve put together a list of incredible books that are, like most things, best enjoyed under the sun with a cold drink in hand.

 

Pack the Perfect Road Trip Read:

Immersive books about characters on epic journeys that will make hours on the road fly by.

Lonesome Traveler by Jack Kerouac

An exhilarating collection of essays from Beat poet Jack Keroac capturing his journey across the world—from California to Morocco—as he works a series of odd jobs, including a railway brakeman, a steward on a tramp steamer, and a fire lookout in the Cascade Mountains.

“An incredible, animal word-energy.”—The New York Times

 

 

Flight by Sherman Alexie

A hilarious yet heartbreaking novel following an orphaned Native American boy who travels back and forth through some of the most violent moments in American history in search of his true identity.

“Funny and provocative—a trip worth taking.” —Ann Cummins, The Washington Post Book World

 

 

My Name Was Gerry Sass by Tiffany Hanssen

When a hitman for hire is murdered, his adrenaline-fueled daughter jumps into his prized Mustang and embarks on a quest for revenge. A propulsive and darkly funny new novel about family, grief, and faith.

“A gripping midwestern noir in the tradition of Fargo and A Simple Plan—fast, blisteringly funny, and surprisingly heartfelt.”—Dan Chaon, author of Ill Will

 

Butterflies in November by Audur Olafsdottir

Translated from the Icelandic from Brian FitzGibbon

An uplifting road trip novel that follows a heartbroken young woman and the four-year-old deaf-mute boy thrust into her reluctant care as they travel across Iceland with a glovebox filled with their lottery ticket winnings.

“Zany, surprising, full of twists and turns, it left me breathless.”—Ann Hood, author of The Book That Matters Most

 

I Cheerfully Refuse by Leif Enger

Set on the waters of a sentient Lake Superior in the not-too-distant future, a grieving musician sets sail on a rollicking and wild quest to find his recently departed, deeply beloved, bookselling wife.

“Heartbreaking, frighteningly prophetic and defiantly hopeful.”—The Wall Street Journal

 

 

Lounge Under the Sun with a Love Story:

Put on some sunscreen and bask in these hot, heavy, and sometimes heartbreaking love stories. Don’t forget to grab a cold drink to cool yourself down.

A Private Man by Stephanie Sy-Quia

From one of the Observer‘s Best Debut Novelists of 2026, a lush narrative that traces the slow-burn love story between a Catholic priest and a progressive theology teacher across Rome and England during the twentieth century.

“Full of secrets, sensuality, devotion, and doubt.”—ELLE

 

 

John of John by Douglas Stuart

An Instant New York Times Bestseller and Oprah’s Book Club Pick

When art school graduate Cal returns to his Hebridean island home, he is reunited with his sheep-farming, Calvinist father and his profanity-loving maternal grandmother. Navigating the pressures of the island, Cal uncovers well-kept family secrets in this singular story of duty, passion, and the transformative power of love.

“Evocative, devastating and full of heart.”—ELLE

 

Heart the Lover by Lily King

An intimate exploration of desire, loss, and friendship, this New York Times bestselling novel charts the decades-long reverberations of a passionate love triangle between three college friends.

“One of the most emotionally devastating and soulfully wise novels I have ever read.”—Priscilla Gilman, The Boston Globe

 

 

Writers & Lovers by Lily King

An unforgettable portrait of an aspiring novelist navigating grief and the pressures of a creative life as they fall in love with two very different men at the same time.

“Generously infused with heart and soul and wit and wisdom.

 

 

 

Catch Up on the Classics:

Take yourself back to school this summer by checking out one of these iconic books from the literary greats.

Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett

Dubbed “one of the true masterpieces of this century” (The New York Times), this tragicomic play follows two men eternally waiting for the arrival of a mysterious figure called Godot as they search for meaning in the human condition.

“A play suffused with tenderness for the whole human perplexity; with phrases that come like a sharp stab of beauty and pain.”—The Times (London)

 

Queer by William S. Burroughs

Set in 1950s Mexico City, the story of an American expatriate afflicted with heroin withdrawal who becomes dangerously enamored with a younger and emotionally distant ex-navy man.

“Burroughs’s voice is hard, derisive, inventive, free, funny, serious, poetic, indelibly American.”—Joan Didion, author of The Year of Magical Thinking

 

 

The Silent Cry by Kenzaburo Oe

Translated from the Japanese by John Bester

In Nobel Prize-winning author Kenzaburo Oe’s powerful 1967 novel, two brothers return to their ancestral village in Western Japan after decades of separation, forcing them to confront the ghosts of their family’s past and secrets that could irrevocably change their futures.

“A major feat of the imagination.”—The Times (UK)

 

The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov

Translated from the Russian by Mirra Ginsburg

An unforgettable tale combining fable, fantasy, political satire, and slapstick comedy to recount Satan and his eccentric entourage’s visit to the atheist Soviet Union in the 1930s.

“Magnificent . . . a gloriously ironic gothic masterpiece . . . had me rapt with bliss.”—Patrick McGrath, The Guardian (UK)

 

Valley of the Dolls by Jacqueline Susann

A mesmerizing novel starring three young women struggling to thrive in the entertainment world in 1960s New York as they battle addiction, manipulative men, competitive rivals, and the pressures of fame.

“Like reading a very, very long, absolutely delicious gossip column . . . Magnetic.”—Nora Ephron

 

 

Closer by Dennis Cooper

Now featuring an introduction by cultural critic Lynne Tillman

A haunting exploration of 1980s Middle America, alienation, and the very limits of experience, following the enigmatic George Miles.

“A story about how desire can persist to the brink of self-destruction and beyond . . . A work of considerable courage.”—Thomas R. Edwards, The New York Review of Books

 

Travel via Novel:

No travel plans this summer? Explore the world through these incredible novels from the comfort of your air-conditioned living room.

The Parisian by Isabella Hammad

A young Palestinian man grapples with the past, his identity, and conflicting loyalties as he journeys from his home in Ottoman Palestine to study in France and back again as those closest to him strive for independence in a world on the verge of falling apart.

“Dazzling . . . A deeply imagined historical novel with none of the usual cobwebs of the genre.”—The New York Times Book Review

 

 

Cold Victory by Karl Marlantes

A brisk historical thriller set in Helsinki at the beginning of the Cold War, in which a Russian and American diplomat challenge each other to a perilous cross-country ski race with life-altering consequences.

“A masterful, fast-paced winner.”—Kristin Hannah, author of The Nightingale

 

 

Heart Sutra by Yan Lianke

Translated from the Chinese by Carlos Rojas

A wryly satirical campus novel set at the Religious Training Center at Beijing University, where disciples of China’s five main religions gather for a year of intensive study and training. Shot through with Lianke’s trademark humor, he highlights the best and worst in mankind and interrogates the true costs of division.

“A deeply satisfying read . . . Yan’s storytelling has a luminous, irrepressible quality.”—Lily Meyer, NPR

 

The Story of a Goat by Perumal Murugan

Translated from the Tamil by N. Kalyan Raman

A heart-warming fable told through the eyes of a sickly goat taken in by a poor Tamil farmer and his family, whose life serves as an allegory for contemporary society and hierarchies of caste.

“Written with breathtaking and deceptive simplicity.” —Parul Sehgal, The New York Times

 

Gabriel’s Moon by William Boyd

During the height of the Cold War, a travel writer reluctantly turns to espionage after he becomes entangled in an international web of duplicities and betrayals. Traveling from the vibrant streets of London to the frosty squares of Warsaw, this novel is a captivating, classic spy thriller.

“A hugely enjoyable and satisfyingly intricate historical thriller . . . Gripping.”—Malcolm Forbes, The Washington Post

 

Read It, Then Watch It!:

Excellent books with equally impressive screen adaptations. Prepare to be the person at your next movie night chiming in with: “Well, actually, in the book . . .”  

H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald

An unflinching and beautiful evocation of grief following a woman’s journey of adopting and training a wild goshawk. Now an acclaimed feature film starring Claire Foy and Brendan Gleeson, available for streaming on Amazon Prime.

“Beautiful and nearly feral . . . so good that, at times, it hurt me to read it.”—Dwight Garner, The New York Times

 

 

Mr. Loverman by Bernadine Evaristo

From Booker Prize-winning author of Girl, Woman, Other, a ground-breaking and hilarious novel set in London about two older Caribbean men—childhood friends and secret lovers—who must reckon with being closeted in a rapidly changing world. Now a BritBox limited series starring Lennie James.

“Brokeback Mountain with ackee and saltfish and old people.”—Dawn French

 

Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan

An international bestseller set in a small Irish town in 1985, in which a coal miner uncovers disturbing secrets at the local convent, forcing him to confront both his past and the complicit silences of a town controlled by the church. Now an acclaimed feature film starring Cillian Murphy, available on Hulu and Disney +.

“A profoundly moving and universal story. Get two copies: one to keep, one to give.”—The Washington Post

 

Pedro Páramo by Juan Rulfo

Translated from the Spanish by Douglas J. Weatherford

An enchanting, surreal novella following a man’s quest to find his estranged father through a haunted town in Mexico that is populated entirely by restless, wandering ghosts. Now a Netflix feature film directed by Rodrigo Prieto starring Manuel García-Rulfo Lapuente.

“One of the masterpieces of twentieth-century world literature.”—Susan Sontag, author of Notes on “Camp”

 

The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen

A propulsive, darkly comedic novel about a half-French, half-Vietnamese former army captain who serves as a double agent in the aftermath of the Vietnam War. A gripping spy novel and a blistering exploration of identity and America. Now an HBO Original Limited Series on Max starring Hoa Xuande, Robert Downey Jr., and Sandra Oh.

“Intelligent, relentlessly paced, and savagely funny.”—The Wall Street Journal (Best Books of the Year)

 

The End We Start From by Megan Hunter

A lyrical, poetic tale of a new mother’s attempts to seek refuge from a not-so-distant future London which has been submerged underwater. Now a major motion picture starring Jodie Comer, streaming on Hulu and Disney +.

“A beautifully spare, haunting meditation on the persistence of life after catastrophe.”—Emily St. John Mandel, author of Station Eleven