Holiday Reading

03/07/2008 by Esther.

July— and both as booksellers and readers—we’re thinking of holidays and ‘holiday reading’. For some, the term suggests light reading, escapist literature for this period, however brief, of escape from the day-to-day. For others, it’s an opportunity to catch up on the books that the demands of the year have prevented us from reading or to begin on the long list of books we’ve always meant to read. There is too, the vicarious holiday reading of those who, like me, who aren’t going anywhere but enjoy reading about the places we might like to go.

The excellent ‘Four Seasons in Rome’ by the American novelist and short story writer Anthony Doerr is an account of a year spent as a visiting fellow at the American Academy in Rome, Doerr evokes-enchantingly-both the city and his own first year as the father of infant twins while for anyone who finds the prospect of a trip to Venice enticing, Jan Morris’s wonderful classic ‘Venice’ or Predrag Matvejevic’s superbly atmospheric ‘The Other Venice’ are the perfect preparation for a future visit, or else the ideal books to read while there.

Two new books: ‘Wild Swimming’ by Daniel Start, a guide to ideal sites for outdoor swimming and ‘Britain and Ireland’s Best Wild Places’ by Christopher Somerville, could provide some superb ideas for a summer to be spent nearer home.

Orange prize-winning novel ‘The Road Home’ by Rose Tremain, or shortlisted ‘Lullabies for Little Criminals’, by Heather O’Neill would be great beach-reading, as would Australian Tim Winton’s latest book, ‘Breath’ – a stunningly-written novel about surfing—or, for short story readers, William Trevor’s ‘Cheating At Canasta’.
Two very different but equally fascinating biographies, are the intriguing, ‘In Search of Robert Millar’ by Richard Moore, a fascinating account of the successful career and subsequently mysterious life of the Tour de France cyclist Millar and Julie Kavanagh’s ‘Rudolf Nureyev-The Life.’

Someone I’ve found to be a great travelling companion is the American humourist David Sedaris— I expect his new book ‘When You Are Engulfed in Flames’ to be as funnily, oddly poignant as all his others.

Two new hardbacks, the highly recommended novel ‘The Redemption of Alexander Seaton’ by Shona MacLean and ‘China-A History’ by John Keay, would be a perfect summer choice for those of us who are staying at home.

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