Essential Additions to Your Summer Reading
I’m no fool. I know that lists are not the most intellectually rigorous form of book criticism but I also know they get lots of clicks. And given that I spend a great deal of time in this column griping about AI and the publishing industry and media in general, I want to talk about great books. You know, the reason why we’re all here.
We’re halfway through 2026, and this year, much like in years past, great books have somehow managed to come into the world despite so many obstacles including low wages for (most) writers and corporate consolidation (I will call myself out by saying that three out of the six books on this list are published by imprints of Penguin Random House, and that’s really not great). My goal for the latter part of the year is to read more diversely by publisher. But in the meantime here are my favorites so far from 2026.
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Night Night Fawn, Jordy Rosenberg
