If you're looking for inspiration about the books that you should be picking up around the pool this summer, I can almost guarantee you'll spy someone reading these08:06, 09 Aug 2026Popular summer books 2026It's National Book Lovers Day (August 9), and it's also the National Year of Reading. To celebrate, I'm predicting the books that are going to be appearing a lot at holiday locations across the world this summer.‌Whether you're just popping down to your local cafe for an iced coffee and a read, or are jetting off across the world to lie around on a sunlounger and have a stunning weekend in the sun, I bet you'll see several people reading these amazing books.‌They've captured hearts up and down the country, and the reviews of them on Goodreads are so good that you're almost guaranteed to have a good time while you read them.‌Yes, they may not be your typical 'beach reads,' with some quite hefty books, and others taking on tricky subject matters. But they're well worth popping in your beach bag and getting stuck in, as they'll transport you to a whole new world.1. A Real Animal by Emeline Atwood‌Wow, this book is truly phenomenal. Definitely not your 'standard' beach read in the sense that it certainly isn't fluffy, and you'll want to check trigger warnings before picking it up in the airport.But it was an absolutely phenomenal read that I thoroughly enjoyed and could not put down - not even for a second. Reading it felt like a fever dream."In this unforgettable debut, a moment of metaphysical transformation launches a woman’s beautiful and terrifying journey through her twenties, through loneliness and complicated love that takes her from the depths of the Pacific Ocean to the plains of Texas," Goodreads shares.‌2. Any book in the Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. MaasWhether it's book one or book five, there's guaranteed to be someone around the pool reading a book in the Throne of Glass series. And if you see them, give them a pat on the back, because they're some seriously chunky books. And if they're reading the final book, Kingdom of Ash, you'll probably need to hand them some tissues.With ACOTAR six and seven coming out at the end of 2026 and the start of 2027, many Sarah J. Maas fans who haven't already indulged in the whole Maas-verse are desperately trying to finish everything else she's ever written before October 27, 2026. It's completely understandable, because then you know which one of the worlds is your favourite, and they all interlink, too!‌3. Wild Summers by Cassie StewardWild Summers is one of the most immersive novels I’ve read in a long time - I really felt as though I was living vicariously through the main character, Joan, throughout the summer of 1969.You don’t have to have been born anywhere near the 60s to feel the emotions this book will evoke. Joan is a good girl, an unsuspecting teen, unlike her sister Nancy, whom she feels is constantly compared to, and Joan never comes out favourably in these comparisons.‌However, when she gets into a crowd which would be described by some as ‘the wrong crowd’ at Eel Pie Island, the tides soon turn for her, and she begins to have the most fun she’s ever had. However, sometimes the fun she’s having isn’t strictly legal, and this may land her in a lot of trouble…The teen becomes submerged in the underground community of artists and anarchists who inhabit its crumbling hotel on Eel Pie Island, and she worries about what her parents might think of who she is becoming.But what goes up must come down, and Joan faces difficult decisions about her future and who she really wants to be. A truly amazing book that needs to be in everyone's tote this summer!Article continues belowSo what is your top read for the summer? Don't forget to leave us your thoughts in the comments section below.