Summer vacation means more time for reading, and Rock Hill Library is here to help you create the ultimate summer reading list! Whether you’re at the beach, lounging by the pool, or chilling at home, our recommendations will keep you entertained throughout the sweltering St. Louis summer.
Susan’s Picks
Close Enough to Touch by Colleen Oakley
Jubilee Jenkins has a rare allergy to human touch, but an encounter with a patron at her library encourages her to take a risk and change her life. An eccentric, touching
love story, Close Enough is a complex tale that effortlessly intertwines humor and heart-wrenching emotion.
love story, Close Enough is a complex tale that effortlessly intertwines humor and heart-wrenching emotion.
Available at these MLC Libraries: Brentwood, Ferguson,
Maplewood, Rock Hill, University City, Webster Groves
Chemistry by Weike Wang
Charming and insightful, Wang’s novel is a relatable take on questioning and exploring oneself. The unnamed narrator in Chemistry is a confused twenty-something stumbling
through life. After dealing with a string of failures in her academic and personal pursuits, she takes the plunge to figure out the age-old question: What do I really want?
Available at these MLC Libraries: Brentwood, Kirkwood,
Maplewood, University City, Webster Groves
See What I Have Done by Sarah Schmidt
Who doesn’t love historical fiction? Schmidt’s debut novel retells the infamous Lizzie Borden case. Through Schmidt’s passionate storytelling, readers get a sense of the volatility
within the Borden household leading up to the murders of Lizzie’s father and stepmother. Shifting through multiple perspectives, See What I Have Done illustrates a fuller
picture of the events of that fateful day.
Available at these MLC Libraries: Ferguson, Kirkwood,
University City, Webster Groves
Deb’s Picks
The Last Cruise by Kate Christensen
A vintage cruise ship sets sail for its last voyage in Christensen’s newest work. Old friends Christine and Valerie, among other fleshed out characters, face mystery, crisis, and an
ultimate test of their characters as they journey from LA to Hawaii. Filled with fascination and high-end trappings, this vacation book is a perfect summer read.
Available at these MLC Libraries: Ferguson, Kirkwood,
Maplewood, Rock Hill, University City, Webster Groves
Mrs. Fletcher by Tom Perrotta
Eve Fletcher is a mess. As a recent divorcee struggling to adjust to her empty nest, she finds herself fixating on her new online life that threatens to upend her quiet suburban
life. Her son’s own anxieties about identity mirror his mother’s as they both become entwined in morally questionable situations. Raunchy, gritty, and ironic, Perrotta is at his
best as he magnifies suburban angst, parenthood, sexual awakenings, and identity.
Available at these MLC Libraries: Brentwood, Ferguson,
Kirkwood, Maplewood, Richmond Heights, Rock Hill,
University City, Webster Groves
Kayla’s Picks
Gun Love by Jennifer Clement
Available at these MLC Libraries: Brentwood, Kirkwood,
Available at these MLC Libraries: Brentwood, Kirkwood,
Gun Love by Jennifer Clement
Hypnotic and quirky, Clement’s story follows fourteen-year-old Pearl France and her mother Margot while they live in their car on the outskirts of a Florida trailer park.
Amused by the strange things she finds in the park, Pearl leads a relatively happy life until an act of senseless violence annihilates everything she knows and loves. The
forgettable minutiae of everyday life is given new meaning through Clement’s observant, strong young narrator.
Available at these MLC Libraries: Brentwood, Kirkwood,
University City, Webster Groves
Mrs. Everything by Jennifer Weiner
Weiner’s brand new novel presents the collective voice of American women as it asks the question: How should a woman be in the world? Mrs. Everything tackles a whole host
of social issues while following two sisters from the 1950s to the present.
Available at these MLC Libraries: Brentwood, Ferguson,
Kirkwood, Maplewood, Richmond Heights, Rock Hill,
University City, Webster Groves
The Unlikely Adventures of the Shergill Sisters by Balli Kaur Jaswal
The Shergill sisters—Rajni, Jezmeen, and Shirina—embark on a pilgrimage to their mother’s homeland to honor her memory. Through beautiful imagery and storytelling, this
heartfelt story illuminates the bonds of family and heritage while reminding readers about what is important in life.
heartfelt story illuminates the bonds of family and heritage while reminding readers about what is important in life.
Available at these MLC Libraries: Brentwood, Kirkwood,
Maplewood, Richmond Heights, University City, Webster
Groves
Meredith’s Picks
Meredith’s Picks
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
Gyasi’s novel spans time, continents, and a cast of characters as she recounts the vastly different directions two sides of one family take. Homegoing captures the
African American experience while taking readers from British colonization to the American Civil War to the jazz clubs of 20th century Harlem. Gyasi’s first novel is a shockingly
African American experience while taking readers from British colonization to the American Civil War to the jazz clubs of 20th century Harlem. Gyasi’s first novel is a shockingly
good epic family saga packed into only a few short pages that will be sure to entertain.
Available at these MLC Libraries: Brentwood, Ferguson,
Kirkwood, Maplewood, Richmond Heights, University City,
Webster Groves
Jen’s Picks
American War by Omar El Akkad
Available at these MLC Libraries: Brentwood, Ferguson,
Jen’s Picks
American War by Omar El Akkad
Set in the near future, El Akkad’s powerful debut novel follows a family caught in the middle of the Second American Civil War. Partisan politics, a devastating plague, and the
author’s bold storytelling come together to emphasize drastic consequences of war on everyday citizens.
Available at these MLC Libraries: Brentwood, Kirkwood,
Maplewood, Richmond Heights, Rock Hill, University
City, Webster Groves
Calypso by David Sedaris
Sedaris’s collection of semi-autobiographical essays focuses on middle age and mortality. Cynical, raw, and darkly humorous, Calypso delivers relatable commentary on both
lighthearted and serious topics that all people approaching middle age have grappled with.
Available at these MLC Libraries: Brentwood, Ferguson,
Kirkwood, Richmond Heights, Rock Hill, University City,
Webster Groves
My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh
My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh
Moshfegh’s unnamed protagonist embarks on a drug-induced year of rest in this sharply written novel. Her brilliantly crafted turn of phrase keeps readers engaged as
the narrator attempts to get her life back on track, but is interrupted in her endeavors by best friend Reva and on-again, off-again boyfriend Trevor.
the narrator attempts to get her life back on track, but is interrupted in her endeavors by best friend Reva and on-again, off-again boyfriend Trevor.
Available at these MLC Libraries: Brentwood, Ferguson,
Kirkwood, Maplewood, Richmond Heights, Rock Hill,
University City, Webster Groves
Happy reading!
