Front of Book: Great Escapes

The best—and worst—book picks of the month from our favorite magazines.

As summer sets in, the common thread in this month’s magazines’ book picks was getting away—to a beach, an exotic locale, or a long forgotten era. Some recommendations are promising, while others beg the reader to keep their sweet distance.

The worst of the lot comes, predictably, from Cosmopolitan. First, of course, is the steamy excerpt from the latest endorsed trashy novel—Jill Sorenson’s Crash Into Me. It’s about a detective who finds herself falling for the suspected murderer she’s supposed to be investigating (like you didn’t see that one coming). As if the title weren’t bad enough, the excerpt actually contains the phrase “convulsing in ecstasy” and ends with the main character’s realization of what “she’d known all along: she was in love with him. If only she could prove his innocence…” If only. The other four books that Cosmo proclaims make up “Your Summer Reading List” include Paula Froelich’s Mercury in Retrograde, Gillian Flynn’s Dark Places, and Jennifer Manske Fenske’s The Wide Smiles of Girls. The first is unqualified chick lit, the second’s a thriller, and the third is a tear-fest. Froelich’s Mercury, about three diverse women in one New York apartment complex, has the Erica Jong seal of approval, so I’d call it your best bet. The icing on the cake, however, is the fourth book to complete your Cosmo-approved beach bag essentials—Beowulf on the Beach: What to Love and What to Skip in Literature’s 50 Greatest Hits, by Jack Murnighan. Ugh, as if we really need another breezy idiot’s guide on "How to Pretend to Be Well-Read." I’m panning that one so hard it could be served with bacon on the side.

The getaway theme continues at Vogue, the (much more promising) list entitled “Be Transported.” They suggest: Colm Toibin’s Brooklyn, Aleksandar Hermon’s Love and Obstacles, Lisa See’s Shanghai Girls, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s The Thing Around Your Neck, and Monica Ali’s In the Kitchen. See’s Shanghai Girls is undoubtedly a good pick, following her bestselling Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. Toibin’s novel, about an Irish immigrant girl in 1950’s New York, is allegedly beautifully written with a provocative ending. Hermon and Adichie’s books are both collections of short stories; the former set in war-torn Bosnia and the latter in both America and Nigeria. But when it comes to prime summer reading, my vote is for Ali’s In the Kitchen. The English writer won awards for her last novel, and this one, about the increasingly complicated life of its protagonist, an executive chef at a posh hotel, is sure to be a good read.

At Essence, the trend continues with “Great Escapes.” It recommends that on your summer trip to the Vineyard you take along Sag Harbor by Colson Whitehead. This one’s already gotten a lot of buzz, and from what I’ve read, deservedly so. Before meeting up with long last pals, the mag advises you to pick up Connie Briscoe’s Sisters and Husbands, the sequel to her '90’s bestseller Sisters and Lovers. I’m questioning the scenarios, but the books seem like ideal summer reading.

The magazine also proclaims that “African writers are experiencing an overdue renaissance”, citing the Rob Spillman-edited collection of stories, Gods and Soldiers, new writer Kwei Quartey’s Wife of the Gods, Adaobi Tricia Nwauban’s I Do Not Come to You by Chance. Short stories seem to be in this month. However, I’m most excited about Nwauban’s novel, for its unique premise—it’s about Nigerian Internet scammers—as much as for the writer’s present under-the-radar status.

So prepare yourself for your summer literary getaway—it starts at the library and ends with a tan.


--Allison Geller


Photo courtesy of Media Bistro.