What makes a perfect summer read? We think it’s a combination of great story, idyllic setting, and that mysterious extra something that makes a book impossible to put down.
So spread out a blanket in the shade and relax with one of these trusty companions…
1. Life of Pi by Yann Martel - A dreamlike fable about an Indian boy and a ferocious tiger cast adrift on a lifeboat on the Pacific Ocean. The story means different things to different people but it rarely fails to enchant.
2. Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh - A classic coming-of-age tale about friendship, love and loyalty, centred around an English stately home in the 1920s. A perfect dose of nostalgia for a summer’s day.
3. The Beach by Alex Garland - A backpacker in Thailand sets out to track down a secret island where, it’s rumoured, a group of travellers live in perfect harmony. But beware of anything that sounds too good to be true…
4. Capta in Corelli’s Mandolin by Louis de Bernières - The novel that launched a thousand trips (to a little-known Greek island). Set on Cephallonia during the Second World War, a bittersweet romance unfolds between an Italian army captain and a local girl.
5. The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith - In this classic 50s thriller, everything is fine and dandy for spoiled American Dickie Greenleaf as he idles around Sicily. That is, until petty con artist Tom Ripley murders him and steals his identity.
New Book Releases for 2015
Keep an eye out for these hotly-anticipated summer 2015 releases:
1. Go Set a Wat chman by Harper Lee – After a 55 year wait, Lee’s first novel since To Kill a Mockingbird is released in July.
2. The Dust that Falls from Dreams by Louis de Bernières – The Captain Corelli’s Mandolin author explores the impact of World War I on a group of childhood friends.
3. The Festiva l of Insignificance by Milan Kundera – Kundera’s first novel in fifteen years follows the daily lives of four friends in Paris.
4. Three Moments of an Explosion by China Miéville – More strange tales from one of Britain’s most imaginative authors.
5. In the Unlikely Event by Judy Blume – Blume’s first book for adults since 1999 is based on experiences from her childhood.
An extract from the latest issue of Elite Insight