What I read at the beach

because the beach is for reading.

We went to the beach for spring break. It was our first beach trip in many, many years and I purposefully rented a condo and cabana so that the only thing I had to carry out every morning was a book. My careful planning worked because I read four books while we were at Redington Beach!

Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh

My life cannot implement in action the demands of all the people to whom my heart responds.

Recommended to me several times over, I’m so glad I finally brought this gem along on this trip. My kids are older and more than capable of entertaining themselves so I could enjoy every single word of this book without distraction. Written over 70 years ago from her vacation home in Captiva Island, Lindbergh’s reflections feel shockingly modern or - more likely - timelessly wise. I loved every word of this book, in particular her reflections on the changing phases of marriage (how she was able to come to such insight considering who she was married to was the real accomplishment!).

This is a book I plan to read again and again.

Squeeze Me by Carl Hiaasen

In a place like South Florida, such heart-bound faith in the justice system could best be described as quaint.

When I’m traveling, I like to read on a theme - books set in my destination, authors from my destination, you get the idea. Luckily, this post on Modern Mrs. Darcy was full of great suggestions. I’d always wanted to read Hiaasen and this seemed like the perfect opportunity. This book was a hoot! Quippy, fast-paced, and full of barely disguised Trumpian characters, I read this baby in a day and enjoyed every page. No one is addressing difficult themes here but it felt like Hiaasen was laughing with Florida - not at Florida - which I enjoyed. (He was definitely laughing at Trump, which was just a bonus!)

The Displacements: A Novel by Bruce Holsinger

In the face of adversity, it is our resilience that defines us.

We host an incredible book club on our Pantsuit Politics Premium community and our book club picks for the summer were selected by our listeners. (You should join and get one of the awesome book club boxes from Lisa at The Bookshelf!) The Displacements was one of the picks and it was fantastic. It’s not what I would call a light beach read since the premise is what if two major American cities were wiped off the map by hurricanes butttt it’s so incredibly good. It’s well-paced and the characters are developed and engaging and the overall hypothesis is gripping. I can’t wait to talk about it in with the author himself who is joining us for the book club this summer!

The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen

While it is better to be loved than hated, it is also far better to be hated than ignored.

So, this book wasn’t on theme but it is the next selection in my book club with my dear friends Mike and Smith. The novel begins with the fall of Saigon. The anonymous narrator is acting as a mole for the North Vietnamese even as he immigrates to America as a South Vietnamese military official. He is also half-French, half-Vietnamese himself and all these dueling identities are expertly manipulated by Nguyen, which is why this book was widely praised and won the Pulitzer Prizer. My favorite part of the novel is when the narrator serves as a consultant on a Hollywood film about the war (widely believed to be Apocalypse Now) which he expertly notes is the first time the history of a war is being written by the losers. I feel like this book would be an excellent companion to The Women by Kristin Hannah, which I will read if I ever get off the waitlist at the library!

Last Train to Paradise: Henry Flagler and the Spectacular Rise and Fall of the Railroad that Crossed an Ocean by Les Standiford

One worker housed in Camp No. 10 on Key Vaca was overheard to say, “Building this railroad has become a regular marathon.” The remark struck a chord in his fellow workers, who dubbed their camp “Marathon,” the name by which the nearby town, the second-largest in the Keys, is known today.

BONUS! I brought themed reading for my family as well! When I saw this book on the same Modern Mrs. Darcy list, I knew Nicholas would love it.

Here’s his review: It was a great quick read about the development of Florida, one man’s single-minded pursuit of a railway to southernmost Florida, and the tragedy that ensued when it was struck by a massive storm. Really interesting insight into Flagler as well as fascinating passages about the engineering feat that was the railway to Key West.

Now I want to know what all of you read over Spring Break!?

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