Today is the first day of Summer (and Father’s Day, Happy FD to all the Dads out there!), so I come to you bearing lists. Ann and I already gave you our Summer picks on the last podcast, and of course, we’ll continue to recommend books throughout the Summer. Several sites around the internet have posted their picks for warm weather reading. Here are a few that have lists and more:

NPR – In addition to recommendations from Independent Booksellers, NPR critic Alan Cheuse and uber-librarian Nancy Pearl, you can also vote for the Best Beach Books ever. There’s even a printable list of all of the titles from all the lists.

The Washington Post – The Post asked several authors which fictional character they’d most like to hang out with on the beach. Of course we get timeless answers like Captain Ahab, Scout Finch and Mr. Darcy, but Geraldine Brooks picked Almondine, the dog from The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. So who would I pick? Without thinking too long or hard about it, I’d have to say Logan Mountstuart, from William Boyd’s Any Human Heart. He lived such an interesting life, there would be so much to talk about!

Oprah – Love her or not, she gets people reading books and talking about them, and that’s good in my opinion. The current issue of her magazine has a lot of book recommendations, as does her website (I’m not sure if the lists overlap or are different). A diverse selection of titles is ensured by such categories as 25 Books You Can’t Put Down, 5 You Must Read at Least Once, and 20 Tantalizing Beach Reads (which includes The Good Thief by Hannah Tinti, one of my faves from last year). There’s also a section where you can submit questions for some of the authors on the lists.

Have you found a great list of Summer reads, either online or in print? Share it with us in the comments section below!

photo credit: blhphotography
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