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Humanities Texas is excited to bring back our annual summer reading issue! This year, we asked independent booksellers across Texas to recommend titles that have recently captured their attention. As trusted guides to the literary landscape, their suggestions comprise a thoughtful selection of fiction and nonfiction, including new releases, hidden gems, and enduring classics. We hope their picks will inspire your own summer reading and help you to discover something new, unexpected, or unforgettable.

For more reading recommendations . . .

Revisit these summer reading features from years past:
The Year of Our Founding: Summer Reading 2023
What We Watched: Summer Viewing 2021
A Midsummer Night's Read: Summer Reading 2019
From Coast to Coast: Summer Reading 2018
Must-Reads from Outstanding Teachers: Summer Reading 2017
From Your Local Librarian: Summer Reading 2016
What Texas Writers Read: Summer Reading 2015
What the Pros Recommend: Summer Reading 2014

"Take along a book" poster by Magnus Norstad, c. 1910s. Prints and Photographs Divison, Library of Congress.
ABILENE

Seven and One Books, Arlene Kasselman, Owner

The Story She Left Behind: A Novel by Patti Callahan Henry

After reading The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry, I decided to read whatever she wrote next! The Story She Left Behind came out on March 18, 2025, and I read it in a few days. She is such a gifted storyteller, and it doesn't take long before you are fully immersed in the world she creates.

The characters are relatable and multifaceted, the storylines are intriguing and compelling, and the wisdom she imparts along the way is profound without being preachy. If you enjoy a novel that scratches the travel itch, delves into relational and family complications, has a little mystery and even a smidge of romance, this is a great choice for summer reading.

Patti Callahan Henry tackles some hard things in her books, but she does not trauma dump or sensationalize the crises. She allows the difficult life circumstance to stand on its own merit and carves out a story around the difficulty with grace and hope grounded in a familiar reality that makes her work resonate with everyday readers. Pack this one for your summer travel, or better yet, take both!

ABILENE

Texas Star Trading Company, Glenn Dromgoole, Co-Owner

A New Beginning by Charles Lynn Russell

A New Beginning is the eleventh novel by retired school superintendent Charlie Russell. It is set in two time periods—1879 and 1929—and revolves around a ranching couple. They leave New Mexico during the Lincoln County Wars, involving Billy the Kid, and settle on a small ranch in Texas. One of their sons moves to New York to seek his fortune. When the stock market crashes in 1929, the son and his family have nowhere else to turn but his parents' ranch in Texas. It's quite an adjustment for all of them. Charlie's novels stress the various ups and downs of ranching, family life, faith, and fortitude. They are positive stories without being saccharine or sentimental.

ALPINE

Front Street Books, Julia Green, Manager

The Trail to Kanjiroba: Rediscovering Earth in an Age of Loss by William deBuys

In The Trail to Kanjiroba: Rediscovering Earth in an Age of Loss, William deBuys recounts his journeys through northwestern Nepal in 2016 and 2018, hiking into remote areas carrying and transporting by yak all the necessary supplies for "pop-up" medicine. DeBuys envelops us so thoroughly with the lives, stories, and histories of Nepal that we feel as if we have joined him along the way. This book sits in the back of your brain waiting for you to learn the lesson that you're supposed to.

AMARILLO / CANYON

Burrowing Owl Books, Dallas Bell, Owner

Everything Sad is Untrue: (a true story) by Daniel Nayeri

"If you listen, I'll tell you a story. We can know and be known to each other, and then we're not enemies anymore."

A West Texan town on the High Plains, Amarillo is home to many refugees from around the world. As a local bookseller with a heart for our community, I knew Everything Sad is Untrue by Daniel Nayeri was golden and relevant to my community. I have recommended, sold, gifted, and praised this memoir for several years. Book clubs devoured this delightful and profound account of Nayeri's early years as a refugee in Edmond, Oklahoma.

"What you believe about the future will change how you live in the present."

Initially, I struggled to follow the winding path of the seemingly disjointed stories presented. Finally, I listened. I downloaded the book to libro.fm (our audiobook service) and fell in love with a child struggling to acclimate and accept his place in a world where the context has suddenly changed. Thus is the world of the refugee.

". . . I speak funny. I am poor. My clothes are used and my food smells bad. . . . I don't know the jokes and stories you like, or the rules to the games. I don't know what anybody wants from me. But like you, I was made carefully, by a God who loved what He saw. Like you, I want a friend."

Daniel Nayeri is a natural-born storyteller weaving together Persian fables from his homeland and personal stories into the memoir of his own life. As a middle-school refugee, his stories consistently reveal the deep love for his mother, a sentiment common to us all. This mesmerizing memoir is an engaging story of life and resilience.

"We don't owe anyone our sadness, but the sharing of it is what friends do. It makes the sadness less."

Finally, I listened.

AUSTIN

Alienated Majesty Books, Melynda Nuss, Owner

Chuco Punk: Sonic Insurgency in El Paso by Tara López

Las Cruces native Tara López explores the rowdy, irreverent punk scene that developed in El Paso and Juárez between the late 1970s and the early 2000s. Using interviews, photos, flyers, and zines, López paints a vivid picture of the scene: backyard shows interrupted by police helicopters, amplifiers powered by extension cords to the house, skateboarding on the middle school roof. In the process, she shows how El Paso punx created a scene that was uniquely international, Southwestern, Chicanx, working-class, and intimately connected to the history and politics of the region. She shows special love for the women and queer punx who powered the scene, from big-time promoter Bobbie Welch to the moms who made the punx breakfast before they headed out on the road. The band names and zine photos alone are worth the price of admission. A story of friendship, survival, and rasquache—the Chicano practice of making art out of humble things—Chuco Punk will have you rooting for the underdog.

BASTROP

The Painted Porch Bookshop, Staff

The Annotated Great Gatsby: 100th Anniversary Deluxe Edition by F. Scott Fitzgerald (author) and James L. W. West III (editor)

It's really a beautiful book that is wonderfully re-done. All the asides are fascinating and provide a ton of context. If you haven't read Gatsby, read this one. If you have, read it again with this new one. You'll love it.

BELTON

Blackbird Books & Spirits, Kris Snyder, Owner

Dungeon Crawler Carl: A Novel by Matt Dinniman

Dungeon Crawler Carl is hands-down one of the most entertaining and inventive LitRPG (literary role-playing game) series out there. Matt Dinniman masterfully blends dark humor, action, satire, and heart into a story that is as unpredictable as it is immersive. From page one, you're thrown into a world that's equal parts bizarre and brilliant, and it never lets up.

Carl, an ordinary guy turned reluctant hero, is refreshingly human—snarky, resourceful, and constantly in over his head. His feline companion, Princess Donut (yes, a talking, diva-like cat), steals every scene she's in and provides some of the sharpest and funniest dialogue I've read in the genre.

The dungeon itself is a character all its own: a deadly, corporate-sponsored nightmare filled with traps, monsters, game-show-style antics, and brutal challenges. The worldbuilding is top-tier, with layers of satire aimed at capitalism, reality TV, and MMORPG (massive multiplayer online role-playing game) culture that hit the mark without ever slowing the pace.

But what really sets this book apart is its emotional core. Beneath the absurdity and gore, there's a real sense of camaraderie, loyalty, and growth. Carl and Donut's evolving friendship is both touching and hilarious, and the stakes feel genuinely high.

If you're looking for a series that's equal parts thrilling and laugh-out-loud funny, Dungeon Crawler Carl is a must-read. It's unlike anything else in the LitRPG or fantasy space—and that's a very good thing.

BROWNSVILLE

Búho, Gilbert Hernandez, Founder

The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

This is a fabulous children's fantasy that celebrates math and language! It follows Milo, an unassuming young boy who finds everything boring until he randomly finds an electric toy car and a mysterious tollbooth in his room. He drives through the tollbooth and is transported to the Kingdom of Wisdom, where the Land of Numbers and the Land of Words are fighting for supremacy in a civil war. With the friends he meets along the way, he must restore order to the Kingdom.

I can best describe The Phantom Tollbooth as Alice in Wonderland for nerds. The whimsical and creative characters feel like Lewis Carroll meets your favorite elementary school teacher. It is BEST for kids and children-at-heart who are starting to become curious and appreciative about the wonders of math and linguistics.

BROWNWOOD

Intermission Bookshop, Kim Bruton, Owner-Operator

Theo of Golden: A Novel by Allen Levi

I finished Theo of Golden just over a month ago and immediately reached out and ordered one hundred signed copies for our bookshop. It has quickly become our bestselling book of this year! It's about love and loss and hope and imperfections and grace. It's about slowing down and noticing one another. It's about being intentionally kind to those around us and the amazing difference that makes. I think about Theo and the other characters in this beautifully written work of literary fiction daily and am inspired to be a better human being as a result.

COLLEGE STATION

Hyperbole Bookstore, Kathy Miller, Co-Owner

I See You've Called in Dead: A Novel by John Kenney

I'm always looking for those perfect "gem of a book" releases— both for my own reading and for recommending to others. What is a "gem of a book"? For me, that rare beast is a not-too-long book that delivers on a message but also has memorable writing. Oh, and a great title never hurts!

This year, one of those books that seems to be flying under the book community's radar is I See You've Called in Dead by John Kenney. With sharp writing and dark humor, this book takes us into the world of an obituary writer who accidentally publishes an account of his own demise. Not surprisingly, the newspaper that employs him is not pleased, and we then travel with our hero as he awaits HR's decision about the future of his career.

This book has moments of laugh-out-loud humor as well as poignancy that summons tears to your eyes. Kenney brings to his compact story lessons for all of us about grief and joy, about the value of friendship, and about paying attention to what really matters. In short, I See You've Called in Dead is an absurd and charming book, and you'll keep thinking about it well after you've read the final page.

DALLAS

Deep Vellum, Riley Rennhack, Director / Book Buyer

Juvenilia by Hera Lindsay Bird

I am so excited about this wonderful and high-spirited poetry collection! It is poetry for people who like poetry and for people who think they don't like (or "get') poetry. It's the kind of work that gets stuck in your head, that you snort while reading, that you want to text pictures of to your ex.

"You might think this book is ironic / But to me, it is deeply sentimental," Bird writes, "To be alive / Is the greatest sentimentality there is / And I live to be sentimental / And I love to be alive / Always weeping at the end of a movie." Hera Lindsay Bird is sweet, funny, sincere, and sharp—everything I want in a poet!

This New Zealander's work is available in the USA for the first time, and it is my hope that this collection gets into as many hands and onto as many bookshelves as possible. It gets sweeter: this edition is riddled with perfect little illustrations by Gino Dal Cin, a Dallas-famous illustrator and artist. It's a lovely little book, and I can't wait until it hits the shelves this summer.

DALLAS

Interabang Books, Lori Feathers, Co-Owner / Buyer

The City Changes Its Face by Eimear McBride

It's hard to exaggerate the satisfaction of reading a new novel by Eimear McBride. Not only is McBride a talented stylist—her alchemy with the English language is rivaled only by Ali Smith—but she has the piercing perception and precision of a miniaturist, like Rachel Cusk, in describing nuances of feeling. The City That Changes Its Face is the story of a struggling romance, of Eily's and Stephen's inability to share their own insecurities and resolve misunderstandings. It is a beautiful reflection on modern love and, moreover, a book that once you start, you will not be able to put down.

DALLAS

Pan-African Connection Bookstore and Resource Center, Adjwoa Tyehimba, Co-Owner

Black-Owned: The Revolutionary Life of the Black Bookstore by Char Adams

We're incredibly excited about the upcoming release of Black-Owned: The Revolutionary Life of the Black Bookstore by Char Adams—one of our most anticipated books of the summer. As a journalist and researcher, Adams traveled across the country to capture the stories of Black-owned bookstores and their vital place in our history and future. Her work beautifully reflects the revolutionary spirit of these spaces—how they've served as hubs for learning, resistance, cultural pride, and political thought. At a time when community-centered spaces are needed more than ever, this book reminds us of the power and legacy of Black bookstores. We can't wait to share it with our readers and celebrate the truth-tellers, educators, and visionaries who keep these sacred spaces alive.

DALLAS

Whose Books, Claudia Vega, Owner

Malinalli: A Novel by Veronica Chapa

Veronica Chapa transports readers back in time in Malinalli, inviting them to reimagine one of history's most contested figures—Malinche. The writing is lyrical, and Mexican mythology flourishes throughout the pages.

DALLAS

The Wild Detectives, Vicky Sanz, Book Buyer

No Straight Road Takes You There: Essays for Uneven Terrain by Rebecca Solnit

I'm beyond excited about this book. I think it's exactly what I needed, right here and right now. I just received an advanced reading copy, and I'm savoring it slowly, reflecting on every paragraph. Perhaps it's because the idea of changing our stories to empower ourselves—even when that change isn't immediate, obvious, or dramatic—is as enticing as it is difficult to grasp. Solnit's call to recognize smallness as a form of power and uncertainty as a space where hope can live is what I want to hold onto as we move through this wild and unpredictable world. As I make my way through her essays, I find comfort—like the trees that become a violin—and a quiet mandate to remember how things once were, so we can begin to dream of what they might become again.

DENTON

Patchouli Joe's Books & Indulgences, Stephanie Forester, Co-Owner

The Bright Years: A Novel by Sarah Damoff

The Bright Years is the debut bestselling novel from North Texas author Sarah Damoff. It tells story of four generations of the Bright family, told while examining the impact addiction has on the family members' lives.

What seems at first to be the beginning of a classic romance setup quickly turns dark as the love story between two flawed people unfolds. Ryan and Lillian Bright fall deeply in love, marry, and become parents to a baby girl, Georgette. But Lillian has a son she hasn't told Ryan about, and Ryan has an alcohol addiction he hasn’t told Lillian about. Georgette comes of age watching her parents' marriage rise and fall. When a shocking blow scatters their fragile trio, Georgette tries to distance herself from reminders of her parents.

Years later, Lillian's son comes searching for his birth family, so Georgette must return to her roots, unearth her family's history, and decide whether she can open up to love for them—or herself—while there's still time.

Set in Fort Worth and told from three intimate points of view, The Bright Years is a tender, true-to-life debut that explores the impact of each generation in a family torn apart by tragedy but, over time, restored by the power of grace and love.

The details of the Fort Worth setting are reminiscent of and inspired by Betty Smith's A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and add texture and depth to the riveting story. Sarah's background as a social worker provides her with an up-close perspective on family dynamics, particularly how they respond to trauma. This perspective, and the resultant empathy, allow her to reveal the heaviest family secrets with compassion, devoid of judgment.

The only bit of caution we would offer is to encourage you to bring tissues. You won't make it through Sarah Damoff's The Bright Years without tears.

FORT WORTH

Monkey and Dog Books, Shelley Lowe, Owner

When the Cranes Fly South: A Novel by Lisa Ridzén

I was asked to read this early last summer and have SO long been excited to get to sell this title! When the Cranes Fly South is a must-read for anyone who has ever said goodbye. Swedish author Lisa Ridzén's debut is poignantly painted with memories, conversations, and log entries. Though a quick read, this book will remain in your heart forever.

GEORGETOWN

Lark & Owl Booksellers, Nadi Hinojosa, Book Buyer

Make Your Way Home: Stories by Carrie R. Moore

I mean it when I say this book inflated life into me. Each story is a contemporary, slow-burning tale set in the South, unbraiding the past with self-discovery and realization. Every character is faced with their histories, some powerful, some mundane, but they all unlock pieces of themselves right before the reader's eye. This collection is tied together with crisp prose and honest storytelling. It feels as if Moore has stamped cutouts of life and laid them on the pages for readers to experience an exact replica of these burdened realities.

GRANBURY

Arts & Letters Bookstore, Brandy Herr, Business Manager

Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell

This is one of the most beautiful books I have read in a long time. Though intended for children, this will speak to readers of every age. Filled with characters that you can't help but immediately fall in love with, this is a story that will push you through the full range of emotions, from laughter to tears and back again. This whimsical treasure introduces readers to a whole new fantasy world that feels so real you'll be ready to start planning your trip. The ending was so deep and so powerful—after I turned the last page, I could do nothing but simply lie there and absorb it. This is sure to delight any reader fortunate enough to be able to discover it for the first time. A great read for parents to share with their children!

HOUSTON

Blue Willow Bookshop, Valerie Koehler, Owner

Don't Trust Fish by Neil Sharpson (author) and Dan Santat (illustrator)

Picture books are intended to delight both the reader and the child. Sharpson's hilarious prose and Santat's spot-on illustrations beg for this to be read over and over to a smart child.

PFLUGERVILLE

The Book Burrow, Kelsey Black, Owner / Founder

The Stray Spirit by R. K. Ashwick

I enjoyed The Stray Spirit by R. K. Ashwick because of its engaging blend of cozy fantasy, heartfelt character dynamics, and immersive worldbuilding.

The story follows Emry Karic, a struggling bard aiming to join the prestigious Auric Guild, who unexpectedly becomes entangled with Aspen, a talkative forest spirit inhabiting his lute. Their quest to investigate a mysterious surge of magic leads them to reconnect with Emry's ex-girlfriend, Cal Breslin, a brilliant scholar. Together, they uncover an ancient threat tied to forgotten folklore.

I love this book because of its relatable characters, particularly Emry's endearing blend of self-doubt and determination, and Aspen's childlike wonder. The evolving relationship between Emry and Cal adds emotional depth, with their second-chance romance unfolding in a natural and heartwarming manner.

The world of Vidanya is richly crafted, featuring unique elements like underground river systems and a blend of familiar and fantastical settings. The narrative's pacing and worldbuilding are noted for their balance, providing enough detail to enrich the story without overwhelming the reader.

The book's charm lies in its cozy yet adventurous tone, relatable characters, and a world that feels both magical and lived-in.

ROCKDALE

Main Street Bookshop, Meggins Scheel, Owner

Broken Country: A Novel by Clare Leslie Hall

Broken Country has all of the things I love in a great read: mystery, coming of age, deeply felt historical fiction with a great plot, and a love story with angst and pain and resolution. Switching backward and forward in time creates a dramatic finish, and I realized that it wasn't just a mystery or a romance, but the development of a very deep love story that is scarred and almost broken but holds so strongly and tenderly in the end.

SAN ANGELO

Old Town Books, Douglas Powell, Manager

Beasts of the Earth: A Novel by James Wade

James Wade is an author who takes total command of landscape and language. His writing evokes every sense the reader has, drawing on a trove of subconscious memories—both primal and modern. Out of all of his works, Beasts of the Earth is the one that sticks with me the most. Using mirrored narratives, Wade guides the reader through the past and present of East Texas, allowing us not only to bear witness to the Southern Gothic horrors that hide in small Texan pleasantries and towns but also to feel the beauty of the state and its flawed inhabitants. Very excited for the next work from this incredibly gifted author.

SAN ANTONIO

The Twig Book Shop, Genevieve Lillibridge, Sideline / Gift Buyer

My Friends: A Novel by Fredrik Backman

In My Friends, Fredrik Backman breaks your heart, then puts it back together. One. Piece. At. A. Time. This book catapulted into my list of top ten books ever read. At the heart of this book are friendships. Old friendships. Lost friendships. New and unexpected friendships. I fell in love with Louisa and Ted and the unlikely friendship that develops between them because of one painting that connects them. I laughed out loud, sobbed, and sometimes did both at the same time. My Friends is heartwarming, funny, and achingly beautiful. It is a story about art, friendship, and the lengths one will go to save both.

SEGUIN

Pecantown Books & Brews, Tess Coody-Anders, Owner

The Antidote: A Novel by Karen Russell

Karen Russell's latest novel blends speculative and historical fiction in this Dust Bowl epic set in a fictional Nebraska town grappling with the fallout of a historic dust storm and the weight of the town's violent history.

The story opens on Black Sunday, as a historic dust storm ravages the fictional town of Uz, Nebraska. But Uz is already collapsing—not just under the weight of the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl drought, but beneath its own violent histories. The Antidote follows a "prairie witch," whose body serves as a bank vault for peoples' memories and secrets: a Polish wheat farmer who learns how quickly a hoarded blessing can become a curse; his orphan niece, a basketball star and witch's apprentice in furious flight from her grief; a voluble scarecrow; and a New Deal photographer whose time-traveling camera threatens to reveal both the town's secrets and its fate.

Russell does weird Americana better than anyone, along with an unflinching evocation of our national tendency to forget the darker parts of our history.

TAYLOR

Curio Mrvosa Books and More, Alyse Mervosh, Owner

The Unkillable Frank Lightning by Josh Rountree

We've been fans of Josh Rountree since reading his first novel, The Legend of Charlie Fish—a weird western–Creature from the Black Lagoon mashup set during the Galveston hurricane of 1900. We were thrilled to learn that his new release shares a character and the fantastical Texas setting, this time with a nod to Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (a favorite of our shop, right along with the classic Universal Monster).

The Unkillable Frank Lightning is a trip back and forth through time, from the "bloody frontier" of 1879 to Fort Worth and the "wild heart of Texas" in 1905. Told from the perspective of Dr. Catherine Coldbridge, the woman responsible for using magick to bring her husband back from the dead, we meet gun-toting hotheads, loyal friends, and lovable performers of a Wild West revue, all of whom are trying to make sense of life and death in a brutal, unforgiving landscape.

Rountree has a knack for bringing found family together and touching on the truths that folks on the margins often seek and the myths that we create.

THE WOODLANDS

Village Books, Teresa Kenney, Owner

Orbital: A Novel by Samantha Harvey

These past few weeks, the book I've been recommending again and again is the Booker Prize-winning novel Orbital by Samantha Harvey.

Set over the course of a single day aboard the International Space Station, Orbital doesn't follow a conventional plot. Instead, each chapter represents another orbit around the Earth and offers a new, meditative perspective on the human condition.

Samantha Harvey's writing is absolutely stunning. Every word seems carefully weighted, the end result being prose that reads like poetry. There is no dramatic arc, no crisis to solve. Instead, it is a glimpse of the universe that most of us aren't privileged to experience and a reflection on life that some of us don't slow down to consider.

If you're drawn to beautiful writing, to self-reflection, or simply want an escape to a world of wonder that just so happens to be our world, Orbital is a rare and remarkable work.