Summer e-reads

Writing that last blog entry compelled me to compile my summer reading list and tell you about it (briefly).

This summer, I read exclusively on the Kindle that I bought my beloved during the last holiday season. This was the first summer of actual Kindle use and it taught us a valuable lesson—we both need one in order to vacation happily. On one of our flights, a lady told us that when a family has more than one, books are automatically downloaded to all, making it practical to have two (fall purchase imminent).

I had intended to engage in “serious summer reading” surrounding the theme of environmental decay. Instead, I read thrillers and my second playboy bunny memoir.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo—Stieg Larsson
The Girl Who Played with Fire
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets’ Nest
The Constant Gardener—John Le Carre
Sh*t My Dad Says—Justin Halpern
Sliding Into Home—Kendra Wilkinson-Baskett
The Passage—Justin Cronin

The “Millennium trilogy”, as the Stieg Larsson books are called, was captivating in the beginning. I’m not normally a reader of thrillers, but totally get that they are exciting, fast-paced page turners. It was good at first, then it got a little boring, and when bored, it becomes easier to see the short-comings in writing style. Granted, the books are translated, but they lack a certain lyricism that I enjoy. They also seemed uneven, and the characters lacked 3 dimensions.

Becoming interested in the thriller genre, I moved on to the Constant Gardener, which was amazing. It was very well-written and heartbreaking. It was as much a love story as it was a spy thriller. When I finished reading it, the Millennium thriller looked a lot worse.

From here, I decided that I needed some light plane-reading. Kendra Wilkinson’s book came out this summer was only $10 on the Kindle, so I made a commitment. I should preface this by admitting that this is the second post-Hef memoir I’ve read from a bunny this year. I’m not sure what’s going on in my brain, but apparently I have a budding interest in the Playboy mansion. The memoir was weak, as she is only 23 years old. She’s likeable enough, but I already saw the movie thirteen, so her teenage exploits were almost passé. And then….well we kind of already know. I’d recommend reading it when it gets down to .89 on the Kindle, which is how much Jane Eyre currently costs.



I read Shit My Dad Says and recommend it. I know you can get his tweets for free, but the book is really funny and I laughed so hard that I cried when reading it. There are a bunch of stories about his dad, in addition to his best zingers.

Finally, I read the epic (800 page) new vampire, post-apocalyptic novel, The Passage. It was by far the most amazing thing I read this summer. There was so much attention to developing characters and their nuances. It was also thrilling and did a great job of making me feel the emptiness of the new world. I think this is going to be the first in a trilogy (also, religious undertones abound, especially towards the end), which kind of blows my mind, as when I was reading it I thought, “I hope this never ends”.