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If you're a fan of spy novels or cold war fiction, pick up Free Agent by Jeremy Duns. Very well written novel by a first-time novelist (and first of a planned trilogy).

I recently picked up Dean Koontz's Velocity. It's an excellent fiction novel that takes you on a fast spaced journey of Billy, a bartender in San Jose, who is taken on a wild ride by a serial killer. I haven't been able to put it down since.

My book club just read Brooklyn by Colm Toibin. In nearly three years of reading 10-12 books a year with this group, it is the first one that all of us loved. A wonderful coming of age story about a young Irish immigrant who moves to Brooklyn in the 1950's.

"A World I Never Made" by James LePore is a great read - this well written novel grabs you from the first chapter and takes you on a thrilling adventure. A fathers journey to reunite with his missing daughter opens many unexpected doors.

I like big fat books in the summer, so I'm reading Fiona McCarthy's bio of William Morris. I think it weighs about ten pounds.

When I feel like switching off to fiction, I have The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe.

The senior writer at Salon has never read Thomas Wolfe? Pathetic.

THE MAGUS by John Fowles

Great show today, Andrea Bernstein!

"Seeds" by Dr. Sasha Vukeljia (just published by first time author): wonderful personal story about mother/daughter relationship and her amazing story of her journey from the former Yugoslavia to the US. Very uplifting and pleasant reading!

Tom Wolfe's 'Bonfire.." is one of the best summer page-turners, full of excitement and laughs. Its a very digestible classic with surprisingly rich language.

Anything by Christopher Moore or Christopher Buckley. They're both great satirical writers. Buckley turns serious subject matter into laughable prose and Moore is just hilarious. Both are fun, light and always enjoyable.

I hear what you are saying about lighter summer reads, BUT: I have to recommend Daniel Goleman's "Ecological Intelligence: How understanding the hidden impacts of what we buy can change everything." The crisis of our times dictates that even in the summer we should be thinking about how to mitigate our negative impact on the planet and on civilization. Thanks for the suggestions!

Liz

Reading The Polished Hoe, By Austin Clarke

Exciting Caribbean Thriller!

Definitely doing some light reading this summer. Just picked up the latest Stephanie Plum it always makes me laugh and takes me away from my day to day. Additionally, i have on my immediate list is Dark Star Safari and The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo. Looking forward to both of them.

Am half-way through Tana French's "The Likeness" and am enjoying it immensely!

i have "the elegance of the hedgehog" waiting for me at the library right now. i read the first couple of pages and i am intrigued. i love first-person narratives with eccentric characters.

I'm reading Jim Thompson -- best mystery writer, EVER.

I just finished "The House at the End of the Road", a newly published book by W. Ralph Eubanks in which he recounts the lives of his interracial grandparents. The story is fascinating, and Eubanks provides many thought-provoking reflections on race in contemporary society.

I haven't yet decided what I am going to be reading this summer, but whatever I decide it has to be available for the Kindle. My days of lugging several tomes around trying to decide are over. E-books: Less clutter, less weight, easy search capability and much convenience.

Gone Tomorrow by Lee Child - A Jack Reacher novel is always welcome, especially in summer.

I just read "A World I Never Made" by James LePore and I highly recommend it as a great summer read--it is a page turner unlike many page turners because it is very well written with excellent character development. From the first scene where a father intentionally mis-identifies a body that is supposed to be his daughter (but is not) who has allegedly committed suicide, I was hooked and remained so throughout the compelling story.

After listening to Leonard' Lopate's interview with Guillermo del Toro about his and Chuck Hogan's new novel, "The Strain," I was instantly sold. It's a brilliant, crude, modern take on the Vampire genre that stays true to old allegories with a more contemporary twist. I finished it in 4 days and now I'm really angry that I have to wait till next summer to read the 2nd part of the trilogy. This book reads like a screenplay and will most likely be a film with in the next 5 years. I wouldn't recommend this book for those who can't handle graphic horror imagery.

Fantastic summer reads I rarely hear mentioned:
Elizabeth Cunningham's marvelous trilogy inspired by the life of Mary Magdalene; a glorious revisioning: Magdalene Rising, The Passion of Mary Magdalene, and Bright Dark Madonna. Also Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series. Can't beat these on holiday. And just published, a wondrous book: The Mystery of Grace by Charles deLint.

I always appreciate a return to the classics: J.D. Salinger's
"The Catcher in the Rye". It always makes me smile and especially during the summer.
His entrancing dialogues and comic relief are perfect for any state of mind.

I'm enjoying "A Fortunate Age" by Joanna Smith Rakoff. It chronicles--and humanely satirizes--the lives of recent college graduates living in New York in the late 1990s and early 00s. It's an homage to Mary McCarthy's "The Group" from 1954, and it's quite funny.

One of the best things I've read so far this summer is Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's "The Thing Around Your Neck." While some of these stories revisit themes from her last novel on the Nigerian Civil War, it also expands on related topics without becoming redundant. Besides, her mastery over the English language is so beautiful.

Also, I should add Sarah Hall's "Daughters of the North." I read the whole thing on the subway in a few days, and it just made me wish my stop wasn't approaching every morning so I could keep reading.

Despite my ever-changing reading line-up, I'm off to a good start: Every Man Dies Alone by Hans Fallada. It doesn't sound it but it's a compelling, readable novel about life and resistance in Nazi Germany that resonates well beyond its setting. Great character study.

I have a hard time deciding with so many wonderful options... That's why I'm starting with Barr Schwartz's "The Paradox of Choice: Why More is Less" (Harper Perennial). He has given some amazing talks at the TED Conferences...

I'm taking a C20th classic to Cape Cod with me...Lolita.