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Book Lists, Personal Reading Lists · May 22, 2023

15+ Books I Plan to Read This Summer

Summer reading season is the best time of my reading year. The slower paced summer season encourages me to savor books. It’s also when I read the most non-middle-grade fiction. If you’re building your list of summer books for 2023, this list has some great options.

Everyone defines vacation reads differently. For some people, it’s a book set on the beach or at least in the summer. For others, it’s anything propulsive they can speed through on a plane, by the sea or in late night binge read session. Whatever your flavor, there’s something for you on this list!

📚 Disclaimer in the books: Just so you know, Reading Middle Grade uses affiliate links. This means that when you shop via the links in our posts, we may earn a cent or two at no extra cost to you. Thanks for adding to our book buying fund.


Fun Summer Reads for 2023

Here are 15+ great summer books for 2023:

The Mona Lisa Vanishes

The Mona Lisa Vanishes: A Legendary Painter, a Shocking Heist, and the Birth of a Global Celebrity

Buy on Amazon

This is a fun middle grade non-fiction book about the history of the Mona Lisa and how it became a celebrity after a failed heist. I’m about 20% into this already and it’s super intriguing. History and art lovers will enjoy this one.


Hello Beautiful

Hello Beautiful (Oprah's Book Club): A Novel

Buy on Amazon

If you haven’t seen this book yet, you might be living under a rock! This Oprah’s Book Club pick is reminiscent of Little Women and chronicles four sisters’ lives and their relationship with William, a young man who comes into their lives. I’ve heard it’s a tearjerker!


Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club

Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club: A Novel

Buy on Amazon

I’ve never read anything by this author but I love food books and he seems to do them very well. I have his debut novel waiting on audio and I’m excited to dig into this one over the summer. It’s a saga following a couple from two restaurant families and how they get through the ups and downs of life.


There Goes the Neighborhood

There Goes the Neighborhood

Buy on Amazon

This debut young adult novel is about a girl who, worried about her neighborhood’s gentrification, starts a pretend gang with her friends. But the plan goes south when their pretense leads to fatality.


The Happy Traveler

The Happy Traveler: Unpacking the Secrets of Better Vacations

Buy on Amazon

Besides reading, one of my other hobbies is traveling! My husband and I are taking a long-ish trip this summer, so when I saw this book I was intrigued. I’m already a few pages in and it’s an interesting psychology-based look at why vacations may be unsatisfying for some people and what they can do about it.


Hidden Truths

Hidden Truths

Buy on Amazon

I read every book Elly Swartz writes (Smart Cookie, Finding Perfect, and Dear Student) but this one seems like her best yet. It’s a dual perspective story about two friends and the summer/lie/accident that changes everything between them.


Paper Names

Paper Names: A Novel

Buy on Amazon

I started this one today and I’m enjoying it! It’s a story following three Asian Americans — a man, his daughter, and a lawyer who lives in the building where the man is a doorman — and an event that causes their life paths to intersect. So far, it’s very character-driven but still engaging.


When the Vibe Is Right

When the Vibe Is Right

Buy on Amazon

I LOVED Sarah Dass’s debut YA novel (especially on audio) so I’m looking forward to this enemies-to-lovers novel also set in her hometown of Trinidad and Tobago. It seems to also be more lighthearted than her debut which had a light grief theme.


Happiness Falls

Happiness Falls: A Novel

Buy on Amazon

When a father goes missing after an outing with his mute son (who returns unscathed), a family is thrown into chaos. I’m so excited about this family-mystery release.


Make a Move, Sunny Park!

Make a Move, Sunny Park!

Buy on Amazon

This is another sophomore release from Jessica Kim, whose debut I loved. It’s about a socially anxious girl stepping out on her own from a frenemy/toxic friendship and finding belonging in dance and K-Pop fandom.


The Secret Book of Flora Lea

The Secret Book of Flora Lea: A Novel

Buy on Amazon

I saw this on the Modern Mrs. Darcy summer reading guide and was intrigued! It’s about a woman who receives a book with personal connections only her dead sister knew about.


You Could Make This Place Beautiful

You Could Make This Place Beautiful: A Memoir

Buy on Amazon

This memoir has received rave reviews from my network of readers. I couldn’t get into it on audio so I’ve gotten a hard copy and I’m looking forward to cozying up with it this summer.


Pineapple Street

Pineapple Street: A Novel

Buy on Amazon

This is another family drama (do you see a theme?) about a wealthy family in Brooklyn. I’ve heard it’s fun, lighthearted and sometimes far-removed from the lives of the everyday people? I can’t wait to find out.


You Bet Your Heart

You Bet Your Heart (Joy Revolution)

Buy on Amazon

This is another debut YA title — romance this time — about two competing overachievers, fighting for the title of high school valedictorian. It’s out May 30, but I have an ARC and I’m hoping to read it soon.


I Have Some Questions for You

I Have Some Questions for You: A Novel

Buy on Amazon

Here’s another buzzy title that I’m hoping to get to this summer. It’s a murder mystery and coming of age story whose synopsis reminds me a bit of A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, but for adults.


Bomb (The Graphic Novel)

Bomb (Graphic Novel): The Race to Build--and Steal--the World's Most Dangerous Weapon

buy on amazon

I started reading this graphic novel adaptation, about how the first bomb was built, a few weeks ago, but got distracted during summer reading guide season. I’m hoping to return to it soon.


The Swifts: A Dictionary of Scoundrels

The Swifts: A Dictionary of Scoundrels

buy on amazon

I’ve heard great things about this middle grade mystery for Knives Out! fans.


Sunshine Nails

Sunshine Nails: A Novel

buy on amazon

This book is another family drama about a Vietnamese-Canadian family and their battle to protect their nail salon when a new high-end option opens up. Of course, there are plenty of family secrets to go around too. I started this last week and so far, it’s funny and insightful.


Hope in the Valley

Hope in the Valley

buy on amazon

Mitali Perkins is a popular YA author so I was excited to see her middle grade debut. I would’ve loved to feature this book in the Summer Reading Guide, but only got approved for the ARC this weekend. It’s about gentrification, friendship, and growing up.


There they are: 15+ of the best vacation reads for 2023! Which of these books have you read? Which ones are you hoping to read? I’d love to know!

More Summer Book Lists

  • 2023 summer reading guide for middle schoolers
  • 5 books with senior protagonists
  • Great graphic novel adaptations for kids and adults

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books to read in summer 2023

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Afoma
✨lifetime favorite✨ I’m not a big re-reader ✨lifetime favorite✨

I’m not a big re-reader but if I had to re-read favorite middle grade titles, this would be at the top of my list! Clea is a highly motivated middle schooler who’s finding it harder and harder to keep up with school work. Her thoughts keep jumping around and the only time she can really focus is when she’s playing chess. Soon, she’s diagnosed with ADHD and has to find ways to work with the way her brain functions.

I love the way this book deflates stereotypes about the condition and shows just how much effort people with ADHD have to exert to function in a neurotypical world. With an unforgettable voice and strong themes of friendship, family, and crossing over from childhood to teenage years, Focused is a memorable read. 

I would strongly recommend this one for anyone curious about ADHD, chess lovers, and anyone who’s ever squabbled with a best friend.

Have you read this book? What did you think?

#adhd #bookstagram #mglit
✨how ‘bout a little virtual reality?✨

☀️ Addie has reluctantly moved across the country with her dad for his summer job in the virtual reality industry. He's working on research to use VR for therapeutic purposes, such as helping people cultivate empathy. Addie is not into VR, but that starts to change when she meets Matteo another kid on campus, and tries out VR on her own. Eventually, the two find a helpful use for VR that helps other people.

🥽 I loved the illustration style in this one and while I found the VR setting a bit disorienting, I appreciated the unique lens of the story. The graphic novel format works brilliantly for helping readers appreciate the power of VR. I think with text, it would have just been too much “world-building.” This is more engaging and exciting for kids.

🐢 Lo and Behold is a clever middle grade graphic novel about virtual reality, grief, and parental addiction. Readers who enjoy VR will love this one, but as the Author's Note mentions, it will also be a fantastic introduction for those who, like me, aren't familiar with it. A fun summer read with hints of serious themes.

#mglit #middlegrade #bookstagram
✨surprisingly heartwarming middle grade✨ 🗺 ✨surprisingly heartwarming middle grade✨

🗺️ Ginny’s summer is thrown off when her dad gets a surprise redeployment in the middle of their family’s moving to another city. Then, her geography camp gets canceled. Her sister seems to be making new friends, but no one appears to like Ginny–even when she starts her own geography camp. 

❤️ I loved this book way more than I thought I would (from the synopsis). Ginny has such a great voice and she isn’t always the most likable character but she’s always real. I loved watching her grow throughout the story.

📍This sweet, unique young middle grade book made my heart grow and ache for Ginny and her family as they navigated a season of change. Features illustrations and a new geography fact in each chapter.

#amreading #mglit #middlegrade
My current adult reads! HAPPY TRAVELER is a non- My current adult reads! 

HAPPY TRAVELER is a non-fiction title about making travel work for you and creating enjoyable, memorable experiences. So far, I’m enjoying the author’s musings on travel.

HELLO BEAUTIFUL is a bookstagram darling (need I say more?) and I already know I’ll be reading it for a while. It’s one of those books that really forces you to slow down. The writing is so tender; it feels like the author loves her characters ❤️

#bookstagram #amreading #readersofinstagram
✨growing up is full of bumps on the way✨ 🤓 ✨growing up is full of bumps on the way✨

🤓 Sixth grade is off to a rocky start for Rex. His district moved most of his elementary school to another middle school, his best friend ditches him for the popular crew, and his blurry vision means he has to get clunky new glasses–the only kind his family can afford. 

❤️ This sweet graphic novel for fans of Telgemeier is an ode to middle school, family, and finding your people.

#graphicnovel #middleschoolbooks #kidlit
Do you like to hop on the “buzz train”? I find Do you like to hop on the “buzz train”? I find that buzzy books are often worth the hype. Even the few people who dislike them tend to have STRONG feelings about them 👀 which to me is a sign that the story got to you somehow. Of course, not every book is for every reader — hype or not. I share my tip for finding a hyped book that matches your reading tastes.

Which hyped books did you love? And which ones missed the mark for you?

#reader #bookstagram #unpopularopinions
✨a different kind of sunshine✨ I loved this g ✨a different kind of sunshine✨

I loved this graphic memoir about the author’s time as a counselor at a camp for kids with cancer. It was my first time reading anything by this author and I totally get the appeal.

This one didn’t end up being as sad as I thought it would be but it was very moving, especially because Krosoczka shares newspaper clippings and pictures of one the families with whom he forged a particularly close relationship even until his college years.

If you’re looking for an engaging graphic memoir for older kids ages 11+ this is a great choice.

#graphicnovel #kidlit #yareader
✨a devastating debut✨ This book! Brilliantly ✨a devastating debut✨

This book! Brilliantly written, impressive characterization, and a plot so unexpected. It left me physically shaken (it's not feel-good), but it feels so necessary, so timely. A solid debut about the search for the great American Dream, familial sacrifices, and confronting our ugly inner selves -- all in less than 300 pages. 

You'll like this if you like:

Multiple perspectives (3 perspectives, 3rd person POV)
Character-driven stories
Time-jumping plots
Devastating endings

If you prefer straightforward, plot-rich, fast-paced stories, you might struggle a bit with this one at the start. But it's worth it!

#bookstagram #amreading #fiction
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