Diet & Fitness

As much as summer provides an ideal time to have fun in the sun, it is also a great time for summer reading.

I don't know what it is about this time of year that always inspires us to put our noses in a book. Maybe it is the fact that we usually take time off from work and need to find something to read on an airplane or at the beach. Or perhaps it dates back to our days in grade school, when teachers sent students off on vacation with a summer recommended reading list.

Whatever it is, this week I thought I would take a break from dieting and fitness and share some of our favorite summer reads. If you are looking for a good book to read this summer, you are bound to find something that appeals to you on the list below!

OK, I'll go first. I am just finishing Nature Girl by Carl Hiaasen. I'm not usually a big novel reader, but I have read just about everything published by this author. In his latest misadventure, the impassioned and quite possibly bi-polar Honey Santana attempts to teach sleazy telemarketer Boyd Shreave a lesson. She leads him into the barren wilderness of Florida's Ten Thousand Islands, where they quite unexpectedly run into Seminole Indian Sammy Tigertail, a familiar character to Hiaasen readers. As usual, Hiaasen combines depraved humor with the larger theme of environmentalism. I can't wait to finish this novel, so I can read Carl's new book about golf.

From Shawn McKee, staff writer:

Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer. I picked up it up while perusing books at a local retailer. I couldn’t put it back down. I was 2 chapters into it before I even left the store, and finished it two days later. It’s a true story about a young man who, shortly after graduating college, gives his $25,000 savings account to charity, burns his wallet and leaves everything he can’t carry to travel across the country and find himself. The young man’s greatest adventure into the Alaskan wilderness ends up being his last and, although everyone knows how the story will end, it’s a compelling, mysterious tale of self discovery and adventure. If you’ve ever had that feeling that you’re searching for something, but don’t quite know what “it” is, you can relate to this powerful, heartrending story.

From Kathleen Berzon, director of public relations:

Anything by David Sedaris makes for good summer reading, i.e. Naked, Me Talk Pretty One Day, etc.

From Giselle Gerber, content manager:

I’m currently reading Good in Bed by Jennifer Weiner. She also wrote Little Earthquakes, Goodnight Nobody and In Her Shoes (which was made into a movie with Cameron Diaz, Toni Collette and Shirley MacLaine).

Good in Bed is the perfect summer beach book. It’s funny, a quick read and deals with the reality of living in such a body-conscious world. I’m planning on taking it with me on my upcoming vacation.

Giselle's honorable mention:

Celebutantes by Amanda Goldberg and Ruthana Hopper: If you’re a fan of all things celebrity, you’ll love this book. You’ll get a glimpse of what it’s like in the crazy, beautiful Hollywood scene, with fashion and A-list name dropping galore. It’s hilarious – you won’t believe some of the things that go down the week before the Oscars.

From Dorian Wagner, senior copy editor:

I Was Told There’d Be Cake by Sloane Crosley. I’m not one to laugh out loud at books. Maybe a little chuckle or snicker, but seriously, I caught myself actually guffawing more than a few times (and I don’t use that term lightly; I’ve never, ever said guffaw in my life). I was initially drawn to this book for a simple reason: I have a deep fondness for cake. But, after reading the description and diving in, I was hooked. Crosley’s book is a collection of essays about some real-life events and times in her life I can actually relate to – and she writes about them so honestly and comically, that you can’t help but laugh. With chapter like “The Pony Problem,” where she confesses her love for plastic ponies, to “Bring-Your-Machete-to-Work Day” (you remember playing Oregon Trail, right?) and “One-Night Bounce,” a hilarious look at what she once naively thought one-night stands were, I was glued from start to finish. And not just because I ruled at Oregon Trail!

Dorian's honorable mentions:

Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea by Chelsea Handler:
A riot! She’s a comedian and the best thing she ever did for us was put
what’s in her head on paper.

Love Walked In by Marisa de los Santos: I think I read this one in two days. A heartfelt story you want to be a part of. In fact, it’s so good, Paramount bought the rights to it and Sarah Jessica Parker is set to star in it!

Bitter is the New Black by Jen Lancaster: She had
me at the subtitle: “Confessions of a Condescending, Egomaniacal,
Self-Centered Smart-Ass, or Why You Should Never Carry a
Prada Bag to the Unemployment Office.”

Want to share your own recommendation? Please feel free to chime in by commenting below! Happy reading!

Labels: fun, holidays