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Quizzes

Quiz: What Brilliant “Beach Read” Should You Pick Up This Summer?

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Anne Mai Yee Jansen

Contributor

Anne Mai Yee Jansen is a literature and ethnic studies professor and a lifelong story addict. She exists on a steady diet of books and hot chocolate, with a heaping side of travel whenever possible. Originally hailing from the sun and sandstone of southern California, she currently resides with her partner, offspring, and feline companion in the sleepy mountains of western North Carolina.

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Beach reads are often considered light, quick reads. In fact, sometimes they’re considered so “light” as to be devoid of any serious content whatsoever. This is, of course, ridiculous. But the fact remains that beach reads have a reputation for easy consumability and definitively un-serious content.

For a deeper dive into how beach reads got this reputation and some of their most common characteristics, take a peek at this essay on what makes a book a beach read. Generally speaking, beach reads are books that are considered good, fast fodder for that summer trip to the shore. Compelling? Sure. Unputdownable? Absolutely! But cerebral? Serious? Thought-provoking? Usually not.

Happily, that doesn’t have to be the case. There are so many incredible new releases that you might take with you to the beach (or wherever you find yourself when you’re looking for your next book to devour) that have some serious ideas at their core.

This quiz is designed to gauge your bookish appetite in this moment. Are you feeling peckish for a bit of romance? Hankering for a little magic? Craving a murder or two? Whatever your literary mood happens to be, take this quiz and you’ll get a recommendation for a beach read with some substance.

Quiz Results

In case you’d like to read ’em all, here’s a list of each of the books featured in the quiz:

Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson

Homicide and Halo-Halo by Mia P. Manansala

Olga Dies Dreaming by Xochitl Gonzalez

Siren Queen by Nghi Vo

This Way Out by Tufayel Ahmed

Yerba Buena by Nina Lacour

Yinka, Where is Your Huzband? by Lizzie Damilola Blackburn

If you’re looking for some conventionally light summer reads, check out this list of “feel-good” books. Conversely, if you want a dense, lengthy tome to dedicate some serious time to, check out this post on anti-beach reads. And just in case you happened upon this page because you were hoping for some books that actually feature beaches in them, take a look at this list of books that will transport you to the beach.