Thursday 18 August 2016

6 Cool Books for the Heatwave

Obviously, this particular list is targeted at my readers in countries that actually HAVE heatwaves. We had two here in the UK, each lasted about two days. Currently writing this in the office with a rain storm fully raging. It's August! I always feel that if things are going badly that tucking your nose into a book will help. Here's a list of books that take place in Summer that might warm the place up a bit.

The English Patient
The quintessential desert book. Its less about the heat and more about everything else of course, but I think of the sand sticking to your sweat in the desert and cutting your skin and the burn scars. It's a brilliant story and the setting keeps me thinking about the sun.

To Kill A Mocking Bird
I cannot get the description of the scene with the rabid dog out of my head. To me it captures the heat of the book so perfectly, the view of the dog at the end of the street, behind the screen of the heat as it rises off the road. Atticus Finch's sweaty hands. The glasses that slip from his nose.. - Brilliant.

The Famous Five Series
If lashings of lemonade and boiled eggs doesnt make you want to go for a summer adventure then you have not read this series. A highly enterprising bunch of teenagers get involved in the most jolly scrapes. What I really liked about these books is right at the beginning of each one there is a good reason why they are all together. in the similar way that a rainy day keeps the Narnia children inside one afternoon. There is always a reason why they have to stay with an uncle or go to the seaside or what ever. It's a real summer and the books are just part of their rich an colourful lives at school etc.

I Capture the Castle
Coming of age some time soon? This is definitely one to pick up. Over the summer two girls figure themselves out. It definitely takes you on a journey that could lead to you sorting out your own life this summer

After The Flood
One of the most difficult to read books I have ever read. I have a review of it here. The tension of the book is driven by the heat of the summer and the descriptions of the sun and the bleached washed out and mounting danger is a brilliant technique by the author, Sarah Perry. Saying that, it was difficult to read because it is very verbose text.

The Poisonwood bible
Set in Africa this true story sticks with me with its descriptions of what it is like to have malaria fever while in Africa. The image of the sisters wilting in the heat stays with me. I really enjoyed the book in general but it fell down in that because it's a true story, there is no real ending and it went on too long into the lives of the characters after the climax of the story. Still it makes me think of being too hot!


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