Deb Elise Will Get Sand In Any Spine

Making WavesI’ve got to be honest — I don’t get the whole “beach read” thing.

By that I don’t mean that I won’t take a book to the beach.  On the contrary, I will ALWAYS take a book to the beach… or to the movies (time before the movie starts), or to the supermarket (checkout lines!), or anywhere and everywhere else I go.

What I don’t get is why any book would be more “beach worthy” than another.  My most recent “beach reads” were Stephen King’s On Writing, Stephen King’s Under the Dome, and Gretchen Rubin’s The Happiness Project (all of which accompanied me to Hawaii back in April); as well as our own Tawna Fenske’s fantastic Making Waves (which just accompanied me to Disneyland and Palm Springs).  I didn’t bring those books because they were any more or less fun than others (although Tawna’s book was insanely fun — more on that during her debut week), I brought them because they were what I was reading at the time.  When I was reading The Battle for America 2008 by Dan Balz and Hayes Johnson, I brought that to the beach.  Same when I was reading Cultural Amnesia by Clive James.  Whatever I’m reading, light or heavy, it comes with me to the beach, and I’m thrilled to have it there.

Are you with me on this?  Are you happy to bring any book you’re reading to the beach, or do you prefer a specific genre to keep you entertained as you bask in the sun?  Pass the sunscreen, then let me know!

~ Deb Elise

18 Replies to “Deb Elise Will Get Sand In Any Spine”

  1. I’m with you on this one! I still like whatever I like, no matter where I happen to be. I know there are books which are more relaxing than others, but personally I’d prefer to tackle the more difficult ones when I have nothing to do BUT read and sunbathe, actually.

    1. Excellent point, Meghan! Far better to take on a dense book when you can give it your full, relaxed attention!

  2. Nah. I read by mood, and the beach always puts me in the mood for something light, funny, and a little bit naughty. MAKING WAVES is perfect for that! 🙂

  3. I don’t think I actually would take a book to the beach. For one, I’m not a huge fan of the beach. At all. I’d rather be in the mountains. If I had a book at the beach I’d be telling everyone “Don’t kick that sand over here! Splash away from me!” and within minutes I’d no doubt run back to the hotel (or wherever) to read in peace and air conditioning.

    1. Oh, I torture my books — with love, of course. They come everywhere, so they get bent, folded, spindled, and mutilated. I tried to take care of Tawna’s ARC, of course, but it’s not the pristine creature it was when it came to me, I’m afraid.

  4. I’m the same way -I’ll read anything, anywhere. I’ve actually found the beach to be a great place to do research reading and note-taking.

    I think the idea of ‘beach reads’ came from the association with the beach and summer and hedonism. But I don’t think it has to be that way – we can do required reading in pleasant places and non-required reading in unpleasant places.

    Mmm…now I want to go to the beach!

  5. Interesting point! Though I used to try to load up my vacation suitcase with fluffier, lighter reading material, I started to realize that vacation is precisely the time I have the brainwaves to get through meatier stuff.

    And I can’t tell you how much I love that pic of MAKING WAVES sitting poolside. Too fun!

    Tawna

    1. Making waves has been everywhere! Disneyland, Palm Springs… it even did a brief stint at the Emergency Room, though all is well now. It’s the perfect vacation accessory!

  6. Reading at the beach? I’d rather settle into my cozy “reading” chair and enjoy whatever I want. However publishers definitely tend to release lighter (in substance) books during the summer. Wonder how much of that marketing is successful?

    As for Making Wave, it’s already been on the NYC subway! 🙂

    1. That book gets around! (the joke would be to say “just like its main character”; or the better joke, “just like its author”, but neither are true, so I’ll refrain. However, I think Tawna would be aghast if I didn’t at least point out the Insert Joke Here spot).

  7. Unless alone on the beach (in other words, if my kids are with me) I couldn’t read the back of a suntan lotion bottle let alone an actual book. But if I could…. whatever I happened to be reading at the time would be just lovely. K

    1. Yeah, readi g with kids comes in cribs and drabs. I got very lucky on our vacation – miss m had friends and they played close, so I could peek up from Making Waves and make sure all was well.

  8. Tawna, I hear ya on the beach read front. I’ve decided to take it as a compliment, though, when someone says they think my book is a good beach read. I think it means: it’s digestible (non-boring), easy to get lost in (interesting), and takes them away to an interesting place (fun). Can’t argue with that! xo

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