Summer Reads From LVC Faculty and Staff

Whether you're reading on the deck, jet-setting on a fabulous vacation, or lounging by the pool, our Lebanon Valley College faculty and staff are sharing some of their latest reads for your summer entertainment.

The Astral Library by Kate Quinn

"What a magical thing a book was, when you stopped to think about it: whole worlds springing to life from nothing more than squiggles on a page."

This book is perfect for anyone who has ever experienced the magic of reading. It's a fantasy story about a magical library where people can find refuge inside their favorite books. With the library's existence in danger, a young woman finds herself on an adventure to protect it. It's a true book-lover's dream.

Shared by Christina Miles, Associate Director of Digital Marketing

Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Historical fiction novel set during the 1980s Space Shuttle era. It follows Joan Goodwin, a physics professor who is selected to join NASA's astronaut training program. As she pursues her dream of spaceflight, she forms deep relationships with her fellow astronauts and faces personal and professional challenges against the backdrop of America's growing space program.

The novel blends themes of ambition, love, friendship, identity, and sacrifice, while building toward a high-stakes space mission that tests the characters both in orbit and on Earth. Like many of Reid's novels, it combines an intimate character-driven story with a richly researched historical setting.

Shared by Stacy Jones, Advancement Database Coordinator

Beautiful Ugly by Alice Feeney

If you are a fan of psychological thrillers, this novel is for you! A year ago, Grady Green, a bestselling novelist, lost his wife, Abby, when she suddenly disappeared. He can't write or sleep since this traumatic event. What happened to her? Is she dead or alive? His literary agent sends him to cabin located on a remote Scottish island to try to write another bestselling novel when strange things start to happen to him. Did Grady Green just see someone on the island that looks like his missing wife or is he losing his mind?

Shared by Lori Nyce, Head of Collections and Technical Services, Bishop Library

The God of the Woods by Liz Moore

Do long, hot summer days bring back memories of sleepaway camp? If you have never read Liz Moore before, prepare to be transported to whatever setting she has created; the worlds she creates are so vivid that they become characters in their own right.

In The God of the Woods, she takes you to Camp Emerson, a summer camp in the Adirondack Woods during the summer of 1975. One August night, Barbara Van Laar, daughter of the wealthy owners of the camp, disappeared from her bunk. This is every family's nightmare. What is worse is that exactly fourteen years earlier, her brother "Bear" Van Laar also went missing from camp and was never found. As the story unfolds, you'll travel through time with the Van Laars to Bear's disappearance in 1961, and further back to the 1950s to understand the factors that set this family's tragedies in motion. Moore's writing is haunting, atmospheric, and beautiful. This story will stay with you long after you read the last page. Better yet, Netflix is currently filming a limited series adaptation, so now is the perfect time to go to summer camp.

Shared by Dr. Kathy Richardson, Assistant Professor, Clinical Mental Health Counseling

A Marriage at Sea by Sophie Elmhirst

A Marriage at Sea recounts the extraordinary true ordeal of Maralyn and Maurice Bailey before, during, and after their small yacht sinks in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. The heart of the book is its detailed and often excruciating account of their 118 days adrift in a life raft. Elmhirst portrays their humanity with compassion, capturing both their resilience and their vulnerabilities as they depend on one another for survival.

What came as a surprise, at least to me, was what happened after their rescue. Their return to land became a media whirlwind. At one point Maurice escapes to the beach (of course) in search of some solitude. On page 216, Elmhirst writes:

"Maurice realised that this was the first time in his life he'd sat still on a beach. […] He had never just sat on one and done nothing. Until now, sunbathing had been one of many human behaviours he'd found perplexing. Relaxation, to Maurice, was close to moral degradation."

If you disagree with Maurice and consider relaxation a virtue rather than a moral failing, pack A Marriage at Sea in your beach bag this summer. Better yet, listen to Marisa Calin's wonderful audiobook narration, which captures the British wit and restraint of this remarkable story.

Shared by Dr. Kathleen Tacelosky, Professor of Spanish

The Only Woman in the Room by Marie Benedict

What do Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and GPS have in common? All these innovations are built upon ideas developed, in part, by Hollywood actress and inventor Hedy Lamarr. While Lamarr might be best-known for her acting career, in The Only Woman in the Room, Marie Benedict tells the remarkable story of the woman behind the glamor. During Lamarr's often-times brutal marriage to Austrian arms dealer Friedrich Mandl, Lamarr found herself listening to conversations about weapons and military strategy that few outsiders to the Third Reich ever heard. After escaping to Hollywood, Lamarr, with composer George Antheil, put that knowledge to work, developing a frequency-hopping communication system designed to protect Allied torpedoes. If you're looking for a compelling historical novel about courage, resilience, and scientific innovation, The Only Woman in the Room might be your perfect summer read.

Shared by Dr. Stephanie Blanda, Associate Professor of Mathematical Sciences

Strange Pictures by Uketsu

Uketsu is best known as a masked YouTuber whose true identity is known by only 30 people. In this bestselling Japanese thriller, drawings contain clues which unravel interconnected mystery stories of trauma and murder. If you are in the mood for a quick mystery blending a puzzle-like structure, graphic elements, Japanese horror, and some social commentary, this might be your next summer read.

Shared by Maureen Bentz, Bishop Library Director

This Book Made Me Think of You by Libby Page

I haven't stopped thinking about this book since I read it, and I've even given it to others to read who feel the same. This Book Made Me Think of You by Libby Page is about Tilly, who after her husband dies, discovers that he arranged for her to receive a carefully chosen book each month for a year. Each book encourages her to take a new step toward finding happiness again. The books lead her on literary-inspired adventures and introduce her to new people.

Shared by Jasmine Bucher, Senior Director of the Breen Center for Career and Professional Development