Flyby’s Top Picks for Books to Read for Fun

Summer is coming, and soon you will be left on your own without a professor to tell you what books are worth reading. But the literary grind never stops! Select the heading that most describes your emotional needs after this semester from hell and find the perfect reading experience for you, selected by me, an English concentrator who has an inflated sense of taste.

Oh God I’m So Alone (Romance)

Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston — A transatlantic gay romance, complete with political escapism, Texas, and maybe the most obnoxious Gov concentrator of all time.

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins — Live out your covid-killed high school fantasies in this saccharine Parisian rom-com.

The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood — This one’s for all the STEM concentrators who wish they could pay someone to date them. Also for all the Reylos (don’t google it).

There is Not Enough Stress In My Life Already (Mystery-thriller)

Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé — This thriller-mystery that follows the only Black students at an elite private school will definitely spike your blood pressure.

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie — There’s a reason everybody talks about this being the classic whodunnit.

The Secret History by Donna Tartt — Dark academia reigns in this satire of all of the tiny liberal arts colleges you decided you were too good for in your senior year.

This Semester Has Me In Dire Need of Catharsis (Lit fic)

On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong — This semi-autobiographical coming-of-age of a Vietnamese-American gay man is basically just a long poem that will make you cry.

The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro — A butler is REALLY into butlering, until he isn’t, and then you cry again.

Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin — Man goes to Paris to find himself, realizes he already is himself, hates himself. But so well-written.

I Need to Feel Smart For the First Time In Months (Nonfiction)

The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green — John Green (you may remember him from the videos you watched to pass your AP classes) reviews the human experience.

Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls — A yuppie journalist’s memoir of her unconventional Appalachian childhood.

Minor Feelings by Cathy Park Hong — Incredibly well-written essays on one woman’s experience being Asian-American.

Please Can I Look At Some Pictures (Graphic novels)

Heartstopper by Alice Oseman — Read this rom-com that inspired Netflix’s new show!

Persepolis by Mariane Satrapi — A young girl grows up in Iran in the 70s-80s.

The Impending Blindness of Billie Scott by Zoe Thorogood — An artist must make her final work before she goes blind.