4 Atypical Books to Read This Summer

By Anne Gerlach

The annual back-to-school report: “What did you do on your summer vacation?”

Typical answers include the ocean, a hotel stay, festive dining or an amusement park. You probably did those things. But … did your ocean experience include tracking plastic waste while aboard an ocean raft made of junk? Were you chased by dinosaurs at that theme park? Did your hotel offer trips to the past, causing ripples in the time stream? Did your dinner guests include George Washington right before a history-making battle? Probably not. So, this article turns that typical “summer vacation” question on its head with atypical reads.

The Course of History: Ten Meals that Changed the World
By Struan Stevenson

Stevenson’s gripping writing style leads me to quote his Introduction for this summary: “There is a famous Spanish proverb that says, ‘The belly rules the mind.’ This is a clinically proven fact. Food is the original mind-controlling drug … This is why executives … combine business meetings with meals, why lobbyists invite politicians to … receptions … and why major state occasions … involve an elaborate banquet …This book will take you on a journey to discover how food has … been used … to persuade, coax and cajole … historical figures into epoch-changing decisions.” Ten examples include Bonnie Prince Charlie’s banquet on the eve of Culloden in 1746 to the Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty Dinner in 1979. Organized chronologically, each event has its chapter, opening with the date, place and guests. My favorite feature is the menus with recipes so readers can truly “digest” the experience. Want seconds? There are well-organized endnotes to further enjoy.

The Paradox Hotel
By Rob Hart

A blend of sci-fi, gritty who-done-it and an LGBTQ love story in a hotel with government-issue time travel abilities that go horribly, chaotically wrong.

Jurassic Park
By Michael Crichton

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein comes back to life in the form of dino DNA. Think T-Rexs are popular? The T should stand for “terror”!

Junk Raft
By Marcus Eriksen

Learn the history and politics behind the plastics industry and the scientific results Marcus Eriksen discovered in his firsthand account while on this junk raft.