Top 10 Summer Reads to Savour in the Sun
When summer settles in, the pace slows and the urge to lose oneself in a good story comes naturally. In the shade of a tree, by the water, or curled up on the sofa, books make the perfect companions for sunny days. To celebrate the season, we invite you to discover our top 10 summer reads, carefully selected by Lysanne Pariseau, a resident of Les Jardins Millen!
A Moveable Feast – Ernest Hemingway (1964)
Genre: Autobiography
Country: United States
Summary: In 1920s Paris, Ernest Hemingway recounts his early days as a writer, his wanderings through cafés, his literary friendships and his loves. Then the city becomes a refuge, a playground and a school of life.
Published posthumously, this book has become a timeless classic. It saw a notable resurgence of interest following the fire at Notre-Dame Cathedral in 2019. We recommend it for its spare prose and its ability to transform nostalgia into creative energy. With this book, you don’t need to board a plane to visit Paris – you’re already there!
Kuessipan – Naomi Fontaine (2011)
Genre: Poetic Innu novel
Country: Canada (Uashat – Quebec)
Summary: Through a series of short, sensitive vignettes, Naomi Fontaine describes the daily life of an Innu community on the North Shore: nomadic hunters, fatalistic fishermen, children growing up, and above all women – the true guardians of collective memory. Free of all artifice, the narrative moves at the rhythm of landscapes, silences and hardships, offering a work that is deeply human and utterly authentic.
Kuessipan (meaning “To you” in the Innu language) is a landmark of contemporary Indigenous literature. Naomi Fontaine asserts her origins with pride, far from any note of complaint, in a style that invites reflection. This is one of those summer reads that leaves a lasting impression.
The Anomaly – Hervé Le Tellier (2020)
Original Title: L’Anomalie
Genre: Speculative fiction
Country: France
Summary: It’s June 2021. A Paris–New York flight is approaching JFK Airport after crossing the Atlantic. It is diverted, however, to McGuire Air Force Base, where it’s met by the authorities.
The problem? This same plane already landed a few months earlier, with the same 243 passengers on board. This inexplicable event shatters all assumptions about time and forces each passenger to confront their own existence.
Winner of the 2020 Prix Goncourt, The Anomaly captivates with its narrative boldness and playful intelligence. We recommend it for its blend of suspense, humour and philosophical reflection – perfect for sharpening the mind on a long summer day.
We Were the Salt of the Sea – Roxanne Bouchard (2022)
Original Title: Nous étions le sel de la mer
Genre: Crime novel
Country: Canada (Quebec)
Summary: In Caplan, a small village in the Gaspésie region, the discovery of Marie Garant’s body, hauled up in a fisherman’s net, sends shockwaves through the community. A free-spirited and unconventional woman, her death stirs up memories and tensions within a village that appears close-knit, but only on the surface.
Assigned to the case, Joaquim Moralès – a police officer from Longueuil of Mexican origin – arrives at a pivotal moment in his own life. As the investigation unfolds, the cracks beneath the village’s surface and the invisible ties binding its residents slowly come to light.
The suspense of this thriller builds at a pace that is as controlled as it is compelling. With her precise and sensory prose, Roxanne Bouchard draws us deep into a tense and immersive maritime world; a quality that earned the novel a nomination for the Prix Babelio for best crime novel of the past 20 years in 2024!
Your Absence Is Darkness – Jón Kalman Stefánsson (2022)
Original Title: Fjarvera þín er myrkur (Ton absence n’est que ténèbres)
Genre: Novel, family saga
Country: Iceland
Summary: In an isolated Icelandic fjord, a man wakes with no memory in a small church. To understand how he came to be there, he sets out to meet the local residents.
They open up to him readily, sharing their stories. He becomes the scribe of a vast family chronicle spanning five generations, weaving together impossible loves, grief, secrets and poetry.
If family sagas appeal to you, this novel deserves your full attention. Winner of the France Inter–Le Point Foreign Book Prize, it impresses with its scope and lyricism. It is a true Icelandic enchantment, carried by a remarkable translation, that touches the heart long after the last page.
Beach Novel – Arnaud Cathrine (2025)
Original Title: Roman de plages
Genre: Novel
Country: France
Summary: Anna leaves Raphaël after 20 years together, while their daughter heads off to university. Shaken and heartbroken, Raphaël hits the road with no clear destination, following the French coastline wherever it leads. He reflects, meets people and slowly rebuilds himself. Each beach becomes an intimate stopping point, marked by new memories.
This introspective novel lives up to its name: it explores shorelines and swells, but speaks above all of inner renewal. A man in his fifties opens up with emotional honesty, in a story that also pays subtle tribute to the restorative power of reading – ideal company for the holidays.
Eyes Closed – Philippe Yong (2025)
Original Title: Les Yeux clos
Genre: Novel
Country: Canada (Quebec)
Summary: Alex, a Parisian journalist at a news agency, covers the relentless flow of current events. One day, at an opening at the Musée d’Orsay, a painting by Odilon Redon stops him in his tracks: he suddenly realizes he needs a break to find meaning in his life. He leaves his wife and his job to set out on a road trip, seeking out the subjects of his long-form stories rather than churning out hollow news briefs.
This novel questions our relationship with progress and information. We recommend it for the author’s clear-eyed view of today’s world and his measured tone, which invites you to slow down. You’ll see – it’s a one-sitting read!
The Very Catastrophic Zoo Visit – Joël Dicker (2025)
Original Title: La Très Catastrophique Visite du Zoo
Genre: Mystery novel for all ages (including young readers)
Country: Switzerland
Summary: Joséphine attends a specialized school with five other “special” children like herself. When a flood forces them to transfer to a mainstream school, they quickly become targets of ridicule. And as one disaster rarely comes alone, a school trip to the zoo soon turns to chaos. Determined to understand what happened, Joséphine rallies her classmates into an unexpected investigation.
With this new book, Joël Dicker tries something different without losing his gift for storytelling and suspense. Aimed at readers from 7 to 120, the novel has won hearts everywhere and stands out as an ideal summer read – easy to slip into a suitcase!
Finding Yourself – Lily Gaudreault (2026)
Original Title: Partir vers soi
Genre: Romance
Country: Canada (Quebec)
Summary: Newly retired, Vincent hits the road in an RV to fulfill the dream of his late partner Dominique, who left too soon. Long carried by his wife’s energy and drive, he now finds himself alone at the wheel of a journey that was meant for two. This departure becomes an opportunity to reconnect with his adult children – people he realizes he barely knows – and to open himself, mile by mile, to encounters as unexpected as they are meaningful.
The third novel by this Bromont author, Finding Yourself explores with subtlety the themes of aging, grief and the slow road to rebuilding. Carried by a contemporary and engaging style, the story moves readers with its honesty and humanity, resonating especially with those searching for meaning.
The Jumpsuit Girl – Marie-Renée Lavoie (2026)
Original Title: La fille au jumpsuit
Genre: Comic fiction
Country: Canada (Quebec)
Summary: Sylvaine, a thirty-something with a well-ordered life, sees her world turned upside down by a seemingly innocent purchase: a jumpsuit. One thing leads to another, and this single decision sets off a chain of unexpected and comical situations that shake her certainties to the core. One thing is for sure, however: her life will never be the same again.
Marie-Renée Lavoie delivers a novel of warm humour, centred on a sharp and endearing heroine in the midst of a personal reckoning. Beneath the apparent lightness, deeper questions bubble up to the surface. It’s a bright, funny and perceptive story – the perfect way to close out a summer of reading.
A heartfelt thank you, Madame Pariseau, for this wonderful selection. You’ve reminded us just how much a book can open the mind, spark curiosity and move the heart. We also want to thank you for your deep involvement in the Les Jardins Millen Book Club, and in particular for the detailed summaries you write after each meeting – which are then shared on Théia, allowing the entire residence to discover delightful new works.
In keeping with that spirit of sharing, we also invite readers, residents and book lovers alike to browse our other curated reading lists tailored to the highlights of the year: spine-tinglers for Halloween, cozy stories for the holiday season. All the more reasons to keep turning pages, whatever the season!