Summer Roundup 2026: A Reading List
“September is the time to begin again...
In the country, when I could smell the wood-smoke in the forest,
and the curtains could be drawn when the tea came in,
on the first autumn evening,
I always felt that my season of good luck had come...”
~ Eleanor Perenyi, in Simple Abundance
The tips of the maple trees are starting to turn red here in the mountains of western Maine. My potato patch hit its 100-day mark this week, so I pulled them all up and brought them inside. The tomatoes, squash, and zucchinis are nearly all done and dusted. And the weather has suddenly turned, which has had me snuggled into sweaters nearly every day since Sunday and craving a good cup of tea in the afternoons. It’s time for the summer roundup.
Here’s our Book Club reading list from spring & summer 2026 ⤵
ALL ABOUT THE BOOKS
GOING A LITTLE DEEPER
NATURE/TRAVEL/ADVENTURE
Here’s what I’m reading right now ⤵
WHAT’S ON MY NIGHT STAND
Fall feelings make me crave dark, creepy reads. So I’m currently trying to decide between re-reading The Witches of Bone Hill by Ava Morgan (a book I loved this time of year back in 2024), The Haunting of Room 904 by Erika T. Wurth (something I picked up earlier this year on a whim), and House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas (a big, chunky fantasy novel I’ve been saving for a rainy day).
WHAT’S IN MY EARBUDS
I’m loving The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid, and also finished Ann Patchett’s The Dutch House this week too, thanks to some much-needed encouragement from a Book Club reader’s response to last week’s email (you were right, Sabrina ~ totally worth finishing!).
WHAT’S IN MY MORNING BASKET
I’m nearing the end of Austin Kleon’s Show Your Work, finding myself with a strong temptation to start the whole series over again Why not, hey?
WHAT’S ON MY WEEKEND TBR LIST
Something else I love to do when fall temperatures arrive is read my old journals — a pastime that’s become a lot more enjoyable and inspirational since I started customizing my own Hand Book watercolor journals in 2024 (details here) and then upgraded my daily journaling practice with a mini photo printer this past March (details here). Every single time I come away even more convinced that the most important books in our lives are the ones we are writing ourselves. (More about getting started with journaling here.)
What about you? Read any good books lately?
I’d love to know :) Send me a message!
✌🏼️💓 📚
Celeste
did AI write this? nope, this lady did ⤴ always