Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish, featuring a different top 10 theme each week.
This week’s theme is Top Ten Beach Reads. When I hear the words “beach reads”, I picture a blanket, a sun umbrella, some palm trees, white sand, gently rolling waves… Bliss!
What makes a good beach read? Nothing too heavy or sad — no tears allowed at the beach! It should be engrossing enough to hold your attention despite all the beach-y distractions — but nothing that you couldn’t put down at a moment’s notice in order to run back into the surf or go get another piña colada. Extra points for a summery setting, maybe an island getaway or a beach town, a cottage on the dunes, or even a barbecue or two.
As usual, the big challenge was in limiting myself to just ten… so here is my top 10 list containing slightly more than ten books:
1) Firefly Beach by Luanne Rice — or really, pretty much anything by Luanne Rice. This author specializes in stories of sisters and families, usually in beach town settings, somewhere with a coast or a harbor. You can practically feel the sea spray and hear the waves crashing when you read these books.
2) The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares. This story of four friends, one pair of jeans, and and an unforgettable summer strikes just the right balance of ups and downs, with plenty of self-discovery and girl power.
3) Another sisterhood book: Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells. Southern fiction at its best! Mothers, daughters, friends, secrets — just emotional and involving enough to enjoy on the beach, maybe with a mint julep to help move things along.
4) What’s beach reading without a good family saga or two? Something that spans generations, sweeping in scope — enough to keep you from nodding off in the sun. A few “classic” family sagas perfect for the beach would be Evergreen by Belva Plain, The Immigrants by Howard Fast, or The Bastard by John Jakes.
5) An afternoon at the beach is the perfect time to sink your teeth (ha!) into the first volume of a good, juicy urban fantasy series. I’d go with Dead Until Dark (Sookie Stackhouse, #1) by Charlaine Harris, Tempest Rising (Jane True, #1) by Nicole Peeler, or Soulless (The Parasol Protectorate, #1) by Gail Carriger. Nothing says summer like vampires, werewolves, and selkies!
6) How about something utterly silly? The island setting makes this one a beach read for me: Island of the Sequined Love Nun by Christopher Moore. Almost all of my top 10 lists include a Christopher Moore book. Why stop now?
7) If this is a serious beach vacation — we’re talking a week in Maui, not just a couple of hours at the local strip of sand — then a big chunky book with lots of plot will keep you going for days (or weeks) at a time. I’d pick A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin or Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. Not the sunniest subject matter, but you won’t lose interest and you won’t run out of reading material.
8) For that New England summer feel, there’s Seating Arrangements by Maggie Shipstead, a story of a WASP wedding weekend in which nothing goes as planned.
9) I think I need to mention a young adult favorite of mine: Sea Change by Aimee Friedman, about a city girl forced to spend a summer on a remote island with big secrets. There’s love, there’s a mystery, and there are beautiful beaches! I have the impression that not that many people have read Sea Change, which is a shame. It’s lovely and romantic, yet with a lead female character who stands up for herself and makes some healthy choices.
10) And my final selection is one that I took on vacation a few years ago, and which worked out perfectly for me as a beach read: My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me: Forty New Fairy Tales by Kate Bernheimer (editor). This collection includes stories by some truly amazing writers (Neil Gaiman, Kelly Link, Karen Joy Fowler, and more). Each story is captivating, but you can easily toss the book aside in between stories for a quick dip in the water or a game of beach volleyball.
Ah, summer…
What will you be reading on the beach this year?
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Bookshelf Fantasies 
I’m not familiar with Firefly Beach but it sounds great, it ticks all my boxes. Will check it out on GR. A Game of Thrones is on my reading list for over the summer.
BookishTrish @ Between the Lines
Ooh, enjoy A Game of Thrones! Re Firefly Beach — the author has a lot of books with beach/family themes, so they’re all good choices for a light summer read. Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Oh, what a great list, and would it be OK if I came with you to Maui?
Thanks for stopping by my TTT post earlier.
Happy reading, Lisa 🙂
Let’s have a book blogger convention on Maui! I’m ready, any time!
oh man! Yes, let’s do it 🙂 *ponders if it is worth it to play the lottery* I’m ready, too!
Divine Secrets is a brilliant book – one that I always put on my ‘don’t forget about me!’ lists. And agree, Seating Arrangements is a perfect beach read.
Every time I think about Seating Arrangements, all I can think is “lobsters” and “whale”. 🙂
Great list! Love Game of Thrones:)
My TTT:
http://evelinesbooks.blogspot.nl/2013/06/top-ten-tuesday-3.html
Thanks! Me too. 🙂 Thanks for visiting!
Yay for Game of Thrones! And you’re the second person who’s mentioned Seating Arrangements–it’s a definite sign from the book blogging forces that I need to read this soon 😉
My TTT
For sure — I’m a big believer in bookish signs. 🙂 Seating Arrangements would definitely be fun to read on a beach, preferably right before heading off for a BBQ or lobster fest.
Great list! Can’t wait to be sitting on the beach with a fun, light read!
Here is my list-http://turnthepagereviews.com
Sitting on the beach… can’t happen soon enough! I need some sun, some time to relax, a fruity drink or two, and plenty of time to read! 🙂 Thanks for stopping by.
I love Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood. Great reads!
I wonder how many other great books with “Sisterhood” in the title are out there? 🙂
I’m happy to see I’m not the only person who included Dead Until Dark in this week’s TTT! I really think the series has gotten too drawn out but the first, like, seven books of the series were FANTASTIC! And I’m a super big fan of Game of Thrones (the TV show) despite the fact that I find the books somewhat intimidating. They’re a little loaded for me to consider reading on the beach, but I might be able to get down with the audio version instead.
I agree about the Sookie books (I wrote about it when I reviewed the last book recently) — they were great up through about #7 or 8, but downhill after that. When you have a chance, give the GOT books a chance. They’re huge, I know, but so hard to put down once you start! I read #2 on vacation right after the 1st season aired on HBO — and then couldn’t stop till I’d read straight through til the end of book 5. So addictive!
Great list Lisa 😀 I really like the sound of My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me: Forty New Fairy Tales!
I love both of these Sisterhood series. I need to pick up the My Mother she Killed Me. I’ve read a couple of stories out of it, but need to finish the rest. I love short story collections in the summer. Great list! Thanks for stopping by mine!
Natflix&Books’ TTT
Yay for Game of Thrones and Outlander!! Definitely not your average beach read but you for sure won’t run out of reading material. lol Great picks. 🙂
I had a hard time coming up with truly beach-y books, but I know what I like on vacation — and big huge books like GOT definitely work for me! Thanks for stopping by!
I like your ambitious beach picks! I LOVE the GoT TV show, but I haven’t read the books yet. I plan to start in the next few months.
Thanks for visiting!
My TTT
Oh, I hope you give the GOT books a try! They’re so worth it — even if they feel like you’re carrying around a bag full of bricks sometimes! 🙂
You have so many good choices! I’m glad I’m not the only who included Soulless, and now I feel like re-reading the Sookie Stackhouse books!
Soulless is one of those books that makes it onto at least 50% of my top 10 lists! I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of it. Thanks for stopping by!
YAY for Outlander and Game of Thrones! I wish I had some more room to include Game of Thrones on my list. 🙂 I see a bunch of them on there that I’ve still got to read.
Thanks for stopping by my Top 10 Tuesday Post this week 🙂
–Kimberly @ Turning the Pages
THe Sookie Stackhouse series and The Parasol Protectorate series would both be great for summer! 🙂
Right? Total fun!