Gennifer Birnbach Reading for pleasure while soaking in the sun might be one of the most luxurious and leisurely parts of summer! To honor this seasonal treat, we decided to gather our staff’s favorite books and share them with you. Here is our curated list of our favorite books that we always recommend.
Yael, President: I recommended my daughter to read The Island by Victoria Hislop so I read it again parallel to her. I just love stories about people and relationships that have some history in them. Good stories about people keep me connected to true feelings that I want in my life and open my heart wide. The history in it helps me zoom out and see the timeline of events, how things evolve, family dynamics, our emotional inheritance, and maybe I can zoom out on my own life and see where I am on my own timeline. A great opportunity to reflect.
Fatima, Director of Sales: I’m currently nose deep in the 3rd book of Outlander called Voyager by Diana Gabaldon. I always love time period stories with some true history baked in. And I personally love the Highlands. It was truly a happy place for me when I visited so reading this action filled love story based there is delicious!
Alin, Marketing: Just Like You by Nick Hornby I like this book because its light and human on one hand, and touches the smaller trouths of our lives on the other.
Gennifer, Copywriter: One of my favorite books, Tender at the Bone by Ruth Reichl (food writer, editor at NY Times, LA Times and Editor-in-Chief of Gourmet Mag among many other accomplishments), first came out in 1998 and I could not put it down and it continues to be my top recommendation. Born + raised in NY and the child of a German-Jewish refugee father and an American-Jewish manic depressive mother, Ruth set out on a path of discovering the world through food and taste. It’s such a beautiful story and includes some very surprising and funny moments.
Taryn, Graphic Design: I recommend Bluets by Maggie Nelson. The book is structured into short pieces, all inspired by the author’s love for the color blue. It’s poetic, unexpected and inspiring- about love, loss, relationships, art and more. It’s moody and witty. I’ve read Bluets twice and look forward to reading it again- which says a lot!
Claire, Merchandising Assistant: The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides.I can guarantee this being a perfect summer book because I read it just last summer and couldn’t put it down. It’s set in the early 80s and is about three friends who are involved in a love triangle during their senior year at Brown University and subsequent first year post-graduation. I’m a total sucker for young adult fiction/coming-of-age stories, the 1980s and any sort of romantic drama/slow burn, so this was right up my alley. Maybe yours too!
Anca, Receivables: Beyond this Harbor by Rose Styron, a co-founder of Amnesty International. I do not read many biographies, but I got attracted to this one because of who the author is, because she is 95, because she is a listener (like I am) and because of whom she met and what she’s seen are so outside my world.
Lola, Customer Service / Stylist: My summer book recommendation is going to be The Hobbit, by J.R.R Toilken, of course. The reason I love this book and would recommend it for the summer is because it continually opens my mind to a more creative and imaginative outlook, and reminds us of the lessons we face everyday… well minus the fantasy and magic of course haha. It provides beautiful imagery that truly captures what I want to be reading during the summer months!
Let us know what you’re reading #alembikawomen in our Alembika Women Facebook Group!
