Summer Reading Guide: Fill Your Beach Tote With These Books by Greater Cincinnati Authors

Beach Read and Happy Place by Emily Henry

If you’re looking for quintessential beach reads, you won’t go wrong with any of Emily Henry’s romance books. Based in Greater Cincinnati, Henry is known for her witty, banter-filled dialogue and relatable characters, who are often found on adventures. A New York Times Best Seller, Henry has authored Beach Read, People We Meet on Vacation, Happy Place and Book Lovers.  If you’re packing for a beach vacation and want to get meta with your reading choice, Beach Read is for you — and you can read it ahead of the movie. In April, Deadline announced the book would be adapted by 20th Century Studios with director/screenwriter Yulin Kuang at the helm. Adaptations of Henry’s The People We Meet on Vacation and Book Lovers are also in the works.  If you prefer the latest, Henry’s Happy Place was released just this May. Fans of the “pretend relationship” trope, take note: This one’s for you. Happy Place follows a broken-up couple who pretend to still be together during their annual vacation with their best friends, all of whom met in college and have traveled to the same cottage in Maine for years. This year also marks the group’s last in the now-for-sale cottage, hence the secrecy. Can they keep the facade up without fracturing the group’s, ahem, happy place?

The Speaking Stone: Stories Cemeteries Tell by Michael Griffith

No matter if the weather is rainy, overcast or sunny, there’s nothing quite like a stroll in a cemetery. It’s a feeling Michael Griffith knows well. A professor of English at UC, his 2021 nonfiction novel The Speaking Stone is described as a “literary love letter to the joys of wandering graveyards.” Cincinnati has some beautiful graveyards perfect for strolling, the crown jewel being the expansive Spring Grove and Arboretum. Established in 1845, and sprawling over 700 acres, Spring Grove is the third-largest cemetery in the U.S. Griffith took almost daily walks in the cemetery and followed up on whatever piqued his interest, which led to this collection of essays uncovering the histories behind any given headstone. Want to take more hot girl graveyard walks this summer? Let The Speaking Stone serve as inspiration.

Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld

It’s Pride and Prejudice but set in modern-day Cincinnati. What more could a hopeless romantic Cincinnatian ask for? Sittenfeld’s 2016 novel was part of the Austen Project, a series that paired six contemporary authors with a Jane Austen classic. Read Eligible and then use it as an excuse to rewatch Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen in the 2005 film adaptation –– as if you need a reason.

Lark Ascending by Silas House

Silas House is Kentucky’s current poet laureate, an honor that came on the heels of a big 2022: House was the recipient of the Duggins Prize, the largest award for an LGBTQ writer in the country, and named Appalachian of the Year. A dystopian tale of found family, Lark Ascending marks his seventh novel. Set in the near future, it sees America in flames (literally) and in the grip of religious nationalism. The book –– winner of the 2023 Southern Book and Nautilus Book prizes –– follows Lark and his family as they attempt to escape America for Ireland, which may not be the safe haven he thought it’d be.

Bowlfuls of Blue by Alexandra McIntosh

What better time of year to ponder nature’s wonder than summer? Bowlfuls of Blue marks Kentucky native Alexandra McIntosh’s first collection of poems. In it, McIntosh weaves together meditations and reflections not only on core moments from her personal life but on nature itself, from the Kentucky and Ohio River Valley to the cosmos above.

The Parting Present by Manuel Iris

Lo Que Se Irá, or The Parting Present, is a bilingual collection of poetry from Manuel Iris, a Mexican poet now residing in Cincinnati. The collection was the Readers’ Choice selection for the 2022 Ohioana Book Awards, the second oldest state literary prize in the nation. A recognition from Ohioana places Iris among some of the state’s most renowned writers, including the late, great Toni Morrison. Iris served as the poet laureate emeritus of Cincinnati from 2018-2020 and is the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County’s writer-in-residence.

The Shape of Thunder by Jasmine Warga

Also recognized in the Ohioana Awards was Jasmine Warga for her middle grades book The Shape of Thunder, which tackles tough topics with grace. The book follows Cora and Quinn, best friends and next-door neighbors who haven’t spoken in a year; they’re both navigating grief in the aftermath of a school shooting. But when the pair come together to try to turn back time, they might just re-find friendship. Though Warga now lives in Chicago, the author shouts out the Queen City in the bio on her website: “Like all other people from Cincinnati, I am inordinately proud of my little Midwestern city and think that Graeter’s black raspberry chip ice cream is the most delicious food in the whole world.” We agree, Jasmine!

I Always Carry My Bones by Felicia Zamora

Make your summer a Cincinnati-Ohioana triple threat with Felicia Zamora’s I Always Carry My Bones, another collection of poetry. Zamora is an assistant professor of poetry at the University of Cincinnati and associate poetry editor for Colorado Review.

Grave Things Like Love by Sara Bennett Wealer

Ready for summer to die and spooky season to take over? Get a dose of autumn (and, yes, Halloween) with the young adult novel Grave Things Like Love, which follows Elaine, a teenager who grew up in her family’s funeral home, as she navigates changing friendships, possible paranormal activity, post-high-school decisions and romance.

Cincinnati Scavenger by Kathryn Witt

Looking for staycation inspiration? Let Cincinnati Scavenger serve as your guide. Published in 2022, this interactive book lays out 300 riddles spread across 19 of Cincinnati’s 52 neighborhoods. A travel writer who grew up in the Queen City, Witt also penned Secret Cincinnati, which bills itself as a guide to the city’s weird, wonderful and obscure attractions.