Reading Life #14: Define your reading season
The method I used to build a seasonal reading list I'm pretty dang excited about
This is Reading Life, a monthly series featuring a short essay on reading reflections, tips, and the bookish life. Start finding book recommendations you love by upgrading to paid today!
One of the reasons I love reading self-help books is because you can often transpose the ideas from them onto other areas of your life.
A book about digital minimalism helped me build healthy technology habits but also taught me how to happily miss out on all the books I was overwhelmed by. A book about mindful photography helped me slow down in my photography practice and inspired me to bring more intention into my reading and reflection habits.
In March, I read Alison Bornstein's Wear It Well. It gave me a much-needed refreshed mindset about getting dressed and making my closet feel like me. The biggest takeaway that helped me was the popular three-word method that Bornstein developed.
This method encourages you to drill down on the three words that define your style and let them guide your choices when putting together an outfit or purchasing something to add to your closet. I love this framework and have started thinking about how I could implement it into my reading life.
A few weeks after I started mulling that idea over, I was thinking through the reflection questions in
’s Summer Reading Program. They are fantastic questions designed to help you determine what you want out of this reading season. This reflection, paired with the idea of the three-word method, led me to realize I could pick out three words (or, in my case, phrases) to apply to my summer reading to help guide it.It felt like a great guiding light to create a season of reading that feels like me and makes picking up books fun.
Just as picking outfits is now fun because I have a clear sense of my style and a closet of clothes I love, this will (hopefully!) help make picking out my next read fun and easy because I have a clear sense of the mood I want from this season of reading and a list of books that align with this.
I immediately started jotting ideas down as I thought about satisfying summer reading experiences of the past, what I wanted more of this season, and what my reading time would look like this summer. Isn't it nice to drill down and understand what you love and let that help you build a reading list you will be delighted to pull from?
And, of course, there is still room for play and discovery. This isn't prescriptive. You can still explore new titles, authors, and genres. You can still keep your eyes peeled for the next great recommendations. But defining your words or phrases helps you know if something will be right for you.
To share an example from Bornstein's book, a white tee shirt is a staple in most closets. But the key is to find out what type of white tee shirt you love and style it in ways you love. Do you love cap sleeves, ribbed, v-necks, or fitted shirts? And do you pair it with jeans or joggers? Or perhaps a flowy floral skirt. The idea is that you can always find a version you love.
So, I honed in on my three (okay, four) words for my summer reading so that my reading this season will feel like me. I then looked at my shelves and my TBR and jotted down a few titles that fell within those categories that excite me (a principle borrowed from Bornstein's yes/maybe/no piles).
And I've ended up with a list that I am pretty dang excited about. Here's what I'll be pulling from the rest of this season.
Summery romances. Romances set in summer or that have that fizzy feeling of summer and feel like pure fun.
Summer Fridays by Suzanne Rindell
One Last Summer by Kate Spencer
A Novel Love Story by Ashley Poston
Just One Taste by Lizzy Dent
Seaside settings of all kinds. I love a book set by the sea, no matter the genre. For me, I look for books that are the epitome of the literary beach read.
Sandwich by Catherine Newman
The Cliffs by J. Courtney Sullivan
The Wedding People by Alison Espach
The Shell Seekers by Rosamunde Pilcher
Books that strike the perfect balance of literary and pleasure. These are my favorite kinds of books. They are well-written and explore heavier themes but are immersive and approachable.
Real Americans by Rachel Khong
The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
Margo's Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe
Astonish Me by Maggie Shipstead
Long Island Compromise by Taffy Brodesser-Akner
A long, hot summer. I can't resist these types of books. They take place over the course of a hot summer, which only adds to the tension.
Instructions for a Heatwave by Maggie O'Farrell
Who Will Run the Frog Hospital by Lorrie Moore
Book club reads. These are my ‘required’ reading—the books my local book club, which I lead, voted on to read this summer.
Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton
The Husbands by Holly Gramazio
The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
What do you think? Would you try this method for yourself?
Life Lately
📚 Reading. I’ve had such little reading time this month, which I’m trying to be at peace with. But I have been slowly making my way through this family drama on audio and really, really loving it.
🎧 Listening. I recommended this last week, but I have not stopped thinking about this podcast. I loved it so much. I’ve also been listening to back episodes of my favorite (now retired!) bookish podcast while endlessly editing photo galleries these last few weeks.
📺 Watching. We are rewatching Seinfeld, and I am delighted! I’m also watching the new season of Bridgerton with two of my best friends during our weekly virtual movie nights. And I watched this buzzy movie last weekend and I do not understand all the hype!
🧶 Making. I’m back on my bag kick and working on the most summery tote that will be perfect for the beach and picnics. It’s working up pretty quickly and I love the texture of it.
💯 Enjoying. Daily walks around the cove each morning! My sleep schedule went wonky this winter and I’ve finally gotten it back to a regular place, so it’s so nice to wake up at the same time each day and get outside first thing for some fresh air and daylight. It makes my day so much better.
And, in case you missed them…
I would also love to hear what you’re reading and loving lately. Feel free to leave a comment below!
I wrote a post declaring my summer TBR and promptly changed it the next week. I love making stacks and piles and then forgetting it all for whatever strikes my mood. I just added The God of the Woods and Birnam Wood to my summer TBR too!
The “literary beach read”!!!! The term I have been searching for! I just read J. Courtney Sullivan’s Maine (per your rec, I believe!) & LOVED it so I will definitely be adding some of these to my summertime tbr! Thank you!