A beach reading list in April

Mark Twain once famously said words to the effect that someone who doesn’t read good books has no advantage over someone who can’t read them.

Americans still read books … mostly. I use the qualifier “still” because some research suggests we’ve fallen prey to social media, swapping out our library cards for avatars and Twitter (X) handles. The demise of page turners may be premature and hyperbolic, however.

According to public data firm YouGov, over half of us (54%) read at least one book last year. Whether those millions of tomes fit Twain’s categorization of “good” is unknown. 

What we do know from the survey of 29,000 is that mystery, crime, history, historical fiction and biographies are our favorites among a list of 21 genres. Poetry was last on that list, although another survey, from the National Endowment for the Arts, indicated that even though from 2012 to 2022 we read fewer novels, short stories, poems and plays — from 45.2% to 37.6% — since 2022, poetry reading is increasing.

There’s more: Women read more books than men, we read more physical books than ebooks and about 20% of us read a book a month.

In the spirit of full disclosure, and as an avid reader of books who has waxed philosophically about the joys of a long stretch of time and a book in one’s hands, I have taken to reading ebooks on my iPad. I read at bedtime, so the well-lit screen and ability to enlarge the font is a good fit for the age of my eyes. If you’re keeping score at home, research warns us that reading on a device at that time can disrupt sleep.

None of which moves the needle toward what is a good book. Nor do I have much insight into the elements that would confer goodness on any volume. That’s why book recommendations are always tricky, as in one reader’s treasure is another’s tripe.

That said, into the breach I tread, offering the following recommendations, too early perhaps for a beach reading list and lacking the imprimatur of Twain’s Good Books … or any critical assessment for that matter. 

Nevertheless, perhaps you can find one that will keep us above the 50% mark or, even better, make 2024 the year when Nebraskans and Americans went from 54% to 55% or maybe even 60%.

“The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory,” by Tim Alberta: The author, a lifelong Christian raised in the home of a Christian minister, documents the history and players in the evangelical Christian movement into politics and its influence there. His thesis questions whether the foray into the political world has come at the expense of the Gospel’s teachings and church unity. Meticulously researched, the book covers nearly 60 years of evangelical activism.

“Stolen Focus: Why You Can’t Pay Attention” by Johann Hari: I wrote in depth about “Stolen Focus” in this space some time ago. Hari argues that the digitization of our world has not only reduced our attention spans, it has significantly changed how we think and behave. He tracks his own journey into a summer without devices, including withdrawal and re-entry, and he travels the world to get expert insight from neuroscientists, social scientists and medical researchers. Required reading if you depend on a device. (Hint: All of us.)

On to the fiction universe. 

“Lessons in Chemistry” by Bonnie Garmus: A delight by any measure as a dedicated and determined chemist traverses a minefield of toxic masculinity in white lab coats and bad attitudes. An untimely death followed by a chance gig as host on a television cooking show rockets her to stardom. “Lessons in Chemistry” was also a TV series, so if you saw it there, no need for a spoiler alert. A fierce woman finally finds a semblance of happiness in a world that, for her, had too many sharp edges. (I preferred the book.)

“The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store” by James McBride: More fiction in this mesmerizing mystery, which opens with a body in a well, ends in complete satisfaction and, in between, weaves a marvelous tale of life’s most memorable moments in Pottstown, Pennsylvania’s Chicken Hill neighborhood, populated with an array of unforgettable characters. The novel opens in 1972, but most of the story takes place in the 1920s and 1930s, as a variety of immigrants from Europe and transplants from the American South forge unlikely bonds.  

Two for the road. Check them out:

“The Librarian of Burned Books” by Brianna Labuskes (historical fiction).

“Nothing to See Here” by Kevin Wilson (fiction, fantasy).