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Pick up one of these summery picks for a quiet read on the beach in some exotic place or just a low-key day at the pool. These books will take you away to other places and wrap you in the lives of people who are now strangers, but soon to be friends.

BEACH NOVELS

Beach House
By Jane Green
Plume, 2009

Once you’ve met these characters in their home on Nantucket, you won’t to stop reading. The story unfolds when eccentric Nan Powell learns that the money that has sustained her since her husband’s death is almost gone. To salvage the life she has always known in Nantucket and to save her beautiful home, Nan decides to take in summer boarding guests.

Pleased with herself, Nan watches as the summer and the island works its magic on these strangers, who end the summer with so much more than when they arrived. You will laugh and cry with these new friends and wish that Jane Green would invite us back to the beach next summer to check in with her characters.

What Would Jane Austen Do?
By Laurie Brown
Sourcebooks, 2009

Fans of Austen, this is for you. Eleanor Pottinger asks herself that very question as she finds herself traveling back in time with ghosts Mina and Deidre. They take her to Austen-era England, hoping she can help alter circumstances that have them trapped. The journey surrounds our heroine with the period’s parties, décor, and ambiance of Austen’s time, and adds in a little romance and mystery to boot.

Afterwards, Eleanor returns to the present, but things are different. Will she be able to regain normalcy after meeting her beloved Jane Austen and perhaps leaving her true love behind forever? A trip back in time mixed with intrigue and romance is a summer adventure indeed, even if you never leave your favorite reading spot.

Driftwood Summer
By Patti Callahan Henry
New American Library, 2009

The three Sheffield Sisters begrudgingly reunite in Palmetto Beach for their mother’s birthday celebration and to save the family’s bookstore. Riley, the oldest, is a single mom and runs the bookstore with her Mom. Maisy, a flirt and vivacious spirit, was destined for something outside of Palmetto Beach. She could not resist throwing herself at Riley’s best friend, Mack Logan. Adalee, the youngest is just interested in fun and enjoying her carefree life. She arrives at home with the latest boyfriend in tow.

The reunion of the three sisters is anything but warm; it takes time to forgive, forget and band together for the good of their mother and the bookstore. Through a series of events and projects, though, the hurt is washed away and replaced with an alliance. Along the way, each sister blossoms and finds herself right in Palmetto Beach.

Turn the page to books on exercise, eco-design, table top and a reflective selection as well.

NONFICTION

Hooping
A Revolutionary Fitness Program
By Christabel Zamor with Ariane Conrad
Workman, 2009

Head to the basement, attic or garage and pull out that dusty hula hoop, ’cause you’ll need it for this workout. HoopGirl Christabel Zamor shares 50 moves in this book and accompanying DVD.

Zamor insists hula-hooping is the perfect way to lose weight and feel centered. She has built on the hula moves we knew as kids and added new techniques that are targeted to specific target areas of the body. There is the “Warrior” for your arms; "Booty Blitz" for your core and “Horizontal Whisper” for your legs. Plus, simple equipment means it’s easy to take on vacation, invite the girls over for a party or get the whole family off the couch and active with a hoop workout.

1000 New Eco Designs
By Rebecca Proctor
Lawrence King, 2009

Trend consultant, interior decorator and writer Rebecca Proctor brings together green designs for all your home’s rooms. She marks her picks with icons so you’ll know the eco benefits at a glance, whether it’s biodegradable, fair trade, nontoxic or recycled.

The book covers everything from lighting and textiles to outdoor furniture and kids’ rooms. A personal fave: the wood-shell bioplastic computer born out of a collaboration between Fijitsu and Monacca on page 281. Get inspired by her finds-she’ll even tell you where you can find ’em.

Running the Numbers
An American Self Portrait
By Chris Jordan
Prestel, 2009

Digitally enhanced pictures create the voice of photographer’s Chris Jordan’s message to each of us regarding waste and consumption in ways that statistics alone cannot depict. Jordan takes everyday items-plastic beverage bottles, brown paper supermarket bags, prison uniforms, toothpicks, cigarette packs and plastic cups-and crafts them into startling images that he pairs with a statistic.

In one image, Jordan has utilized 32,000 Barbies in the shape of a woman’s torso to reflect the number of elective breast augmentation surgeries performed monthly in the United States in 2006. In another, he shows one hundred million toothpicks-equal to the number of trees cut in the US to make the paper for junk mail. His collection is haunting and thought-provoking.

Grave Expectations
By Carmen Flowers & Sue Bailey
Cider Mill Press, 2009

While this is a workbook to assist with the planning your funeral, the tone is both witty and reflective. From the table of contents on, you won’t be able to hold back the chuckles. Beyond the humor, though, it’s a potentially useful planner for people interested in removing some of the pressure and uncertainty your loved ones might feel when it comes to planning a memorial.

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* The Good Reads Girl was drawn by Denise Simon, a Chicago-based freelance illustrator.
Check out her work at deniseannsimon.com.

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