Couple sharing summer reading

Summer Reading Lists

Ready for a road trip this summer? How about understanding ageism? Looking for some inspiration on how to save the world? Let’s keep it On the Brightside this summer with fabulous reads to spark the imagination, keep the mind curious and be thoroughly entertained for hours.

Resilience for Older Americans

Our first of three lists is based on Seattle Public Library’s Resilience for Older Americans Month. It includes personal and public journeys of discovery and activism in fiction and nonfiction.

Eclectic Summer Mix

For a truly mixed bag of unique and interesting titles to sample this summer, try any or all of these best sellers.

  • Our Souls at Night, by Kent Haruf Addie and Louis, both widowed, have known each other for decades in the small town of Holt, Colorado. Addie has a proposition for Louis, which ultimately shakes both of their quiet lives.
  • Oh William! by Elizabeth Strout Lucy Barton is a writer, but her ex-husband, William, remains a hard man to read. Discover why the two remain connected all these years.

Bill Gates’ Summer Book List

And finally, Bill Gates has a share-worthy summer book list. Though they’re seemingly heavy topics for vacation reading — gender equality, political polarization, climate change, and hard truths of life — Gates says they, “don’t feel heavy” (minus the nearly 600-page Lincoln Highway).

  • The Power, by Naomi Alderman By asking what would happen if all the women in the world suddenly gained the power to produce deadly electric shocks, this book explores gender roles and gender equality.
  • Why We’re Polarized, by Ezra Klein When it comes to the increasing polarization in America, Klein argues the cause of this split is identity—the human instinct to let our group identities guide our decision making.
  • The Lincoln Highway, by Amor Towles Set in 1954, this book is about two brothers trying to drive from Nebraska to California to find their mother. It illustrates how personal journeys are never as linear or predictable as we might hope.