9 Dream Summer Reading Spots and the Books That Go With Them
Get inspired by these inspiring outdoor spaces to create your own reading spot — and a new reading list
Summer is a great time to escape the everyday — whether that means traveling away from home or being transported to another place or time through an incredible story. In honor of lazy vacation days, here are nine beautiful spots around the world that are perfect for curling up with a good book. Perhaps they’ll inspire you to create your own outdoor reading zone and a book list to go with it.
1. Seattle. This covered balcony just off the master bedroom of a Seattle home has views of Lake Washington and sculpted chairs that support your body in a semi-reclined position. This balcony would be a great place to read about Amazon — the company, not the river or the rain forest — by cracking open The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon by Brad Stone. Whether you’re a fan or a detractor, there’s no denying that the online giant, founded in Seattle in 1994, has changed the face of retail.
2. Málaga, Spain. This peaceful balcony features a mostly white palette, allowing the bright blue of the sky and sea to command all the attention. Speaking of blue, Málaga was the birthplace in 1881 of Pablo Picasso, whose Blue Period — in which he painted primarily in blues and blue-greens — lasted from 1901 to 1904. That latter year also marked the start of his love affair with Fernande Olivier. This balcony would be the ideal spot to dig into their turbulent relationship by reading Loving Picasso: The Private Journal of Fernande Olivier.
3. Bald Head Island, North Carolina. This dock-front balcony on an island off North Carolina has a lovely view of boats passing below and a cushioned love seat to snuggle into with a book. You could crack open a summer beach read set on Belle Island, a fictional locale that’s based on Bald Head. The Weekenders by Mary Kay Andrews contains a little mystery, a little murder and some family secrets to uncover.
Browse outdoor sofas
Browse outdoor sofas
4. Phuket, Thailand. You might not want to do much more than watch the sea or the sunset from this lovely spot in Thailand’s Phuket province. But if the reading spirit strikes, you could try Sightseeing, a collection of short stories by Thai American writer Rattawut Lapcharoensap. Set in contemporary Thailand, they depict the daily lives of local people in a country increasingly confronted by the influence of tourists.
5. Belongil Beach, Byron Bay, Australia. This outdoor nook on the eastern coast of Australia features walls that offer privacy as well as protection from the winds, setting up the perfect reading conditions. Here you might try A Devious Mind by Brigid George (pen name of J.B. Rowley), a murder mystery that takes place in the very same Byron Bay, Australia’s well-known beach community.
Find more wicker and rattan outdoor chairs
Find more wicker and rattan outdoor chairs
6. Indianapolis. This covered pier in Indiana features multiple outdoor chairs in which to dive into The Fault in Our Stars, the New York Times bestseller by John Green about two kids with cancer who meet at a support group and fall in love. Indianapolis locations show up throughout the novel. Have your Kleenex handy.
7. Gibson Island, Maryland. This spare, lovely balcony on a renovated waterfront home would be a great place to disappear into a book. One good pick would be the sci-fi novel Kindred by Octavia E. Butler, which follows a young African-American woman who in 1976 time-travels to 1815 Maryland and saves a young white boy from drowning. The protagonist quickly figures out that the boy is one of her ancestors — and that she must keep him alive to preserve herself.
8. London. Whether you choose the bench seat and back cushion or the foldout beach chair in the foreground, this London patio makes for a restful reading spot, offering both sunlight and shade. London is a heavily populated, ever-changing city, making this patio a great place to read White Teeth by Zadie Smith. Published in 2001, the novel explores the lives of immigrants in London, a relevant topic amid the many immigration conflicts playing out across the globe today.
9. Los Angeles. This beautiful spot is a lovely place to read or catch the Southern California sunset. You might dive into L.A. Noir: The Struggle for the Soul of America’s Most Seductive City by John Buntin. The book explores the epic battle of wills between gangster Mickey Cohen and Police Chief William Parker, both of whom sought to control this city in the mid-20th century.
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