AUTHOR LOIS WINSTON'S SUMMER READING LIST

We’re heading into the hot, hazy, and humid days of summer. As a kid, I grew up in a cramped city apartment that was no picnic at any time of the year but downright beastly in the summer. Back then, kids were kicked out of the house first thing in the morning to fend for themselves much of the day. Summer camp was only for the rich suburban kids and community centers with organized activities didn’t exist yet.

So I spent as much time as possible hanging out in cool places—that’s cool, as in temperature—not “cool” as in the street corners where the “cool” kids hung out. As the class nerd, I was the furthest thing imaginable from a “cool” kid. Still, I liked to stay cool. So I spent my days at the library where I first tackled the mandatory summer reading list, then ducked into the adult section, grabbed whatever book caught my fancy, and found a secluded corner away from the prying eyes of the librarians to lose myself in fiction. (Marjorie Morningstar was my introduction to sex!)

Life has changed greatly since them. I’m still not considered a “cool” kid, but nowadays air-conditioning is everywhere. Even though I don’t have to camp out at the library to keep cool, I still try to make a sizable dent in my TBR pile over the summer months. So I thought I’d share with you some of the books I plan to read this summer.

First up on my list is Lighthouse Beach by New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Shelley Noble. The book is described as “a heartrending and uplifting novel about friendship, love, and what we’re willing to sacrifice for our dreams.” I’ve chosen this as my first summer read because it takes place along the shores of Maine, and if you’ve been following the blog recently, you know I recently spent some time along the Maine coast.

Lighthouse Beach

What was supposed to be an idyllic wedding leads to an unexpected journey of self-discovery… 

When Lillo Gray pulls up to Kennebunkport’s most exclusive hotel wearing a borrowed dress and driving a borrowed VW van, she knows she’s made a big mistake. She’s not even sure why Jessica Parker invited her to her posh wedding. They haven’t seen each other since they were unhappy fourteen-year-old girls at fat camp. And now they’re from two completely different worlds. There’s no way Lillo fits in the rarefied circles Jessica travels in. 

Jess isn’t sure she’s ready to go through with this wedding, but she’s been too busy making everyone else happy to think about what she wants. But when she and her two closest friends, Allie and Diana, along with Lillo, discover her fiancé with his pants down in the hotel parking lot, she’s humiliated…and slightly relieved. In a rush to escape her crumbling life, Jess, Allie, and Diana pile into Lillo’s beat-up old van and head up the coast to Lighthouse Island. Once there, she hopes to figure out the next chapter in her life. 

Nursing broken hearts and broken dreams, four lost women embark on a journey to find their way back into happiness with new love, friendship, and the healing power of Lighthouse Beach.

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