Top Ten Tuesday: May 31, 2016

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and The Bookish.

This Week's Topic:  Beach Reads!  Ten Great Beach Reads

Jaws by Peter Benchley.  No summer beach read is complete without the book that kicked off the summer blockbuster movie (which is phenomenal, by the way.)  I'll admit that I prefer the movie over the book but the book is still excellent reading and will make you debate whether or not you want to take your toes outside the sand.

Hollywood Car Wash by Lori Culwell.  This book is to die for - - gossipy snark at its finest.  It's a loosely based account of the infamous TomKat romance/fauxmance and Ms. Culwell delivers in the most delicious manner possible.  Should be required beach reading.

Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi.  No, this book isn't a light read by any stretch but imagine yourself in Los Angeles in the sweltering hot summer of 1969, when Charles Manson and his murderous followers wreaked havoc for two terrible nights.  There's a very good and deserved reason this is considered the granddaddy of true crime. 

Flowers in the Attic Series/Heaven Series by V. C. Andrews.  Yes, V. C. Andrews makes another list of mine.  She may not have been the most gifted writer but her stories were and are addicting.  More than thirty years on and these series still stick with me, especially Flowers.  They are a great way to get lost over the summer. 

Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg.  Oh, how I loved this book (and movie.)  This is a case where despite the excellence of the movie, the book stands alongside and even surpasses.  Grab yourself a glass of sweet tea, some fried green tomatoes or grits and curl up with a group of characters you will never forget down home in Whistle Stop, Alabama.  More fun than a barrel of monkeys.

The Violets of March by Sarah Jio.  This was my first book by Sarah Jio and I looooooved it.  This book alternates between the past and present day and it's done so well, you won't want to put it down. I read this book when my own relationship fell apart and the book gave me comfort.  It will definitely help you while away the hours on the beach or indoors on a rainy afternoon. 

Mariana by Susanna Kearsley/ The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley.  Time travel fanatics rejoice!  These books cover it all - - seventeenth century England, eighteenth century Scotland, forbidden love, old cottages, ancestral lineages and history.  What more could you ask for?  

Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie.  My favorite Christie book and Christie movie.  I love the 1930s backdrop, the view into high society of that time, the paddle boat on the Nile and Egyptian locale.  The mystery is pretty yummy too.

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen/Bridget Jones' Diary by Helen Fielding.  Well, duh!  Of course I'm going to have the amazing Ms. Austen on my list.  Pride and Prejudice continues to be one of the wittiest and yet romantic tellings out there.  If classic doesn't ping your summer radar, pick up Ms. Fielding's more up to date, present version.  You cannot go wrong with either.

Rebecca by Daphne DuMaurier.  Another classic that is always worth a read, Rebecca has one of the most infamous first lines in literary history and comes complete with a moody man, a moody housekeeper, a moody estate in England, a scared young girl and the fabulous, irrepressible Rebecca.






Bonus books:

Stories I Only Tell My Friends by Rob Lowe and Coreyography by Corey Feldman.   For celebrity tell-alls, Messrs. Lowe and Feldman's books tick different boxes.  For a more light hearted tell-all, without any backstabbing or grudging, Mr. Lowe's book is a hilarious recounting of his Hollywood years.  For a heavier read, complete with addictions, abuse and the dark truth of children being pandered to adults, Mr. Feldman's book is an honest look at the darker side of Hollywood.

I, Fatty by Jerry Stahl and The Biograph Girl by William J. Mann.  If you're obsessed with classic Hollywood like I am, both books are a delight.  In I, Fatty, Mr. Staub gives a fictionalized recounting of the tragedy that befell silent film star Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle.  In The Biograph Girl, Mr. Mann imagines the possibility of Florence Lawrence, the Biograph Girl and first movie star, faking her death in 1938 and living to be over 100.

What do you think?  What books are on your "beach reads" list?