MARKETING COORDINATOR SEQUOIA ETTI'S HOLIDAY READS

by Sequoia Etti

The excitement of planning a summer holiday is often filled with pinning destinations, curating an insta-worthy wardrobe, and finding the most aesthetically pleasing accommodation to feed your interior desires. For me, the realisation that you’ll finally have time to tear through that long list of MUST-READ BOOKS waiting patiently in your iPhone notes, is the beginning of holiday mode. Between bikinis and a sizeable stack of books my luggage tends to tip the scales. Thankfully we don’t have a limit on how many books we can transport between the living room and the bedroom. Here I’ve selected a few of my favourite holiday reads that I got lost in last summer somewhere between Italy and the Algarve. These titles are just as good to read at home on the couch as they are on the beach. If you’ve been looking for a new book to dive into, consider it found in the list below.

A young female model reading a novel while on holidays

I devoured this book in a few days, so easy to get in to and hard to put down! Starting out as a murder mystery the novel jumps between two timelines unfolding into a coming of age story. Centred around a young girl named Kya who’s been living in isolation for most of her life, she finds solace and safety in her natural surroundings of the marshlands and the creatures that inhabit it. A painfully beautiful story, Kya’s loss and betrayal reminds me of Sue Monk Kidd’s The Secret Life Of Bees. Start this book and I can guarantee it will have you wanting more with every page turned.
 
Emotional, vivid, and beautifully written. Lisa Taddeo documents an honest account of the sexual lives of three different women living in seperate regions of America. Three Women unveils the emotional trauma many women experience at every age in the face of sexuality, desire, and a longing to be loved. A gripping piece of literature, this is a must-read in any season.
 
I was recommended this book by a friend and was lucky enough to spot it tucked on the shelves of a tiny secondhand bookstore in Casares, Portugal. The author is also host to one of my favourite podcasts listed in our Staying In With Sommer article. The story is centred around a dinner party with an open invite to hidden obsessions, betrayal and secrecy. This is the type of book you want to savour, but can’t put down. An irresistibly witty thriller that keeps you second guessing from start to finish. Read this if you liked The Talented Mr. Ripley or The Great Gatsby.
 

One of 2019’s bestsellers and undoubtedly my favourite summer read. Normal people is essentially a quirky millennial love story that rips open the curtains on love, friendship, social class, and growing up. The story is built around two characters illuminating their life-changing bond as teenagers that follows them through high school to university and beyond. Rooney’s writing style is so simple yet beautiful and complex, some critics have defined it as purely poetic.

 

A necessary read that will resonate with women of all ages. Everything I Know About Love is the guide you wished you had to navigate the wild ride that is your 20's. The dazzling Dolly Alderton has crafted a hilariously honest, raw, and intimate recount of her 20’s from early to late, wrapped up into bite sized chapters, that read like conversations between your closest girlfriends. Whether you’re laughing at her experiences or nodding with familiarity, this very special autobiography will have you hooked and re-reading with Post-It Notes the second and third time round.