During the semester it is nearly impossible to even think about looking at a book that isn't related to class. Even if you're lucky enough to read something that isn't a dry, lengthy textbook, you'll probably still be stuck in weeks of analysis until you can't even remember why you liked the book in the first place.
One of the greatest things about college is that summer reading is a thing of the past, so once you sell back all your course books you can read whatever you want for the next few months. Here are a few recently released and upcoming books that will be sure to provide some leisurely and/or stimulating beach reading.
"Heart-Shaped Box" by Joe Hill
Don't let the author's generic-sounding name throw you off - Joe Hill has a big name connection in the publishing world. Hill changed his name to try to earn recognition independent from the influence of his father, horror master Stephen King. The younger King only gained widespread attention after revealing his lineage, but make of that what you will. "Heart-Shaped Box" does Papa King proud, as Hill shows he's blessed with his father's storytelling ability. The novel follows a washed-up rock god with a penchant for the supernatural who buys a ghost off the Internet. The first half is creepy enough to keep you sleeping with one eye open for a while. If the second half doesn't live up to the beginning, the worst that can be said about it is it is a suspenseful new take on a genre that Hill's father had seemingly exhausted of new ideas.
"The Road" by Cormac McCarthy
Speaking of Stephen King, Cormac McCarthy's much lauded new novel traverses some of the same post-apocalyptic paths that King has gone down many a time, most notably in "The Stand." McCarthy conjures up a lot of gruesome images worthy of King (a room full of people imprisoned by cannibals, a roasted infant), but McCarthy is playing a whole different game than the horror kingpin.
"The Road" focuses exclusively on the journey of an unnamed father and son across an American landscape devastated beyond imagination and patrolled by bands of cannibalistic "bad guys." McCarthy weaves bouts of brutal and beautiful language -which are unlike anything you've recently read - with the fundamental bond between father and son. He crafts a world that seems to absorb all light and hope that enters, replacing it with gray ash. But like the similarly brilliant "Children of Men" (2006), based on P.D. James' novel of the same name, "The Road" deals with the presence of hope under conditions where hope and faith should be impossible. Oprah was right - this one's for the ages.
"The Yiddish Policeman's Union" by Michael Chabon
Chabon's last novel, "The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay," firmly established the author among the foremost writers of his generation. "Kavalier and Clay" spanned the 20th century and traveled from Eastern Europe to New York City as it looked at the lives of two comic book prodigies. Chabon follows up that ambitious undertaking by taking a cue from Phillip Roth's alternate history, "The Plot Against America." While Roth's vision of a Lindbergh-led America may have seemed extreme to some, Chabon imagines a situation even more surprising: Alaska as the post-World War II Jewish homeland. On this premise, Chabon builds a noir-inspired detective story that is sure to have few peers this summer.
"Falling Man" by Don DeLillo
Author of the darkly comic "White Noise" and the sprawling "Underworld," DeLillo is one of the biggest names in contemporary American fiction, and his newest novel looks at the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11. Even taking his impressive r?©sum?© into account, it's still possible to be skeptical of even the most accomplished writer trying to take on that day.
So far almost everything artistic dealing with Sept. 11 has been met with lukewarm reviews, either for succumbing to maudlin sentimentality or for becoming too dedicated to a documentary style. Early reviews say DeLillo is back in top form and may deliver a work that encompasses the psychological ripple of the century's defining event. It begins as the towers fall and leads the reader through affected lives, even portraying the mind of one of the hijackers. This might make for heavy stuff for summer reading, but it should undoubtedly be worth it.
"The Ministry of Special Cases" by Nathan Englander
Englander became one of the hot young authors to watch with his short story collection "For the Relief of Unbearable Urges" in 1999, which earned him comparisons to Bellow and Roth. After a seven-year absence, Englander returns with his first novel, an examination of Argentina's "Dirty War." Perhaps it was the pressure of living up to the high expectations of his debut collection that led to this wait, but initial reactions from critics indicate Englander hasn't only matched those expectations, he's exceeded them.
"On Chesil Beach" by Ian McEwan
McEwan's past two novels, "Atonement" and "Saturday" were worlds apart in subject matter, but both brilliantly written. "Atonement" was a historical drama deeply involved in the act of writing and being an author, while "Saturday" bordered on being a thriller and was intensely interested in the Iraq war and terrorism. Weighing in at a slim 208 pages and dealing mostly with one couple's relationship, McEwan seems to have focused the scope of his attention with "On Chesil Beach."
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
No introduction is necessary for this one. Millions of books have been sold since Harry and friends first enrolled at Hogwarts in 1997 (to make you feel old, the entering freshman class at Tufts was seven or eight when this series started). Everybody on the planet, save a few stuffy English professors, has read the series and, whether they'll admit it or not, talked to someone about their theories about what will happen in the final book. Chances are you already have it pre-ordered, and July 21 is circled on your calendar. Just make sure you don't show up in costume at the bookstore at midnight - you're getting a little old for that.
