The best books for spring reading

Birds are tweeting, flowers are blooming, and people are starting to believe that life is worth living again. Whenever there’s any trace of the sun, a lack of strong winds or heavy rainfall, people will go outside with a book under their arm, looking for a clean patch of grass to lay down on and read. However, sometimes it can be hard to find books that fit the ‘spring vibes’ we crave and so, to counter the misery of looking up ‘what to read in spring’ for hours, this article will provide an – albeit short – list of books that are fit for spring.

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett may be the first book that comes to mind for many people when talking about books to read in spring. It encompasses the story of the newly orphaned, spoiled, and unhealthy child, Mary, who comes to live in the moors of Yorkshire with her reclusive uncle and sickly cousin. Soon enough, Mary finds a door to a secret garden, neglected and hidden for years. She then decides to restore the garden in secret, and the story transforms into a heartwarming journey of restoring much more than just a garden. In my opinion, the hope characterised in this novel is what makes it a spring essential, and it being a classic which is very simple to read should not be overlooked either.

[Butter is] an extraordinary amalgamation of yearning and isolation of adolescence, garnished by undulating memories

A more contemporary work of fiction, Open, Heaven by Seán Hewitt might suit you better. Set in a remote village, the story unfolds over the course of a year in which two 16-year-old boys meet and transform each other’s lives. When I read it last spring, I felt that it was an extraordinary amalgamation of yearning and isolation of adolescence, garnished by undulating memories. If you’re looking for a more poetic representation of spring with undertones of yearning and reminiscence, this might be the book for you. At just over 200 pages, this is a short yet very immersive experience.

The next recommendation is a bit controversial for a spring read, filled with crime and delicious food. I picked it up last week, while desperately walking around bookstores, trying to find a book that I could read sprawled under the sun. Inspired by the real case of The Konkatsu Killer, Butter by Asako Yuzuki follows the developing relationship of a Tokyo journalist who starts interviewing a woman accused of tricking and killing men by seducing them with her cooking. It draws connections in a vivid, unsettling way to explore the concepts of misogyny, obsession, romance, and the transgressive pleasures of food in Japan.

If classics, contemporary fiction, and crime feel too long and dragged out for you, and you would rather a more visual experience when reading, you might prefer the manga of Horimiya by Hero. A classic romance story set in high school, Kyouko Hori is known for being smart, attractive, and popular; the opposite of her boring, gloomy classmate Izumi Miyamura. However, after a sudden and unexpected encounter, the two similarly dissimilar teenagers discover that there are multiple sides to every person, slowly getting used to each other’s company.

With that said, if your aim this spring is to be more immersed in nature, a non-fiction book that highlights the vitality of the fungi kingdom might make you want to check out Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds & Shape Our Futures by Merlin Sheldrake. Neither plant nor animal, fungi are found throughout the earth, the air, and our bodies. They can be microscopic, or become the largest organisms ever recorded, living for millennia. So, if your interest is in eukaryotic marvels, or you simply want to know more about how our world functions, this book is a must.

[Last Night in Brooklyn is said to be] an exploration of the consuming effects of money and the ‘American Dream’, besetting everything money can buy, and the destruction of what it can’t

Personally, I don’t like recommending books that I have not read yet, but sometimes an exception must be made. I am well aware that some people like having something to look forward to, waiting for a book to be published and then running to the bookstore to get it the very same day it’s released. For those people, Last Night in Brooklyn by Xóchitl González might be the perfect fit. Set in the spring of 2007, this work of contemporary literary fiction is said to be an exploration of the consuming effects of money and the ‘American Dream’, besetting everything money can buy, and the destruction of what it can’t. Sitting at a moderate 256 pages, it appears to be a fast-paced, engulfing story about a young woman whose life becomes ensnared in her glamorous neighbour’s secret past.

All in all, spring is a wonderful opportunity for many readers to either finish the book they started last autumn or start anew with a book that piques the interest. That said, I believe that with the rising temperatures and the spring break upon us, picking up a book to read under the sun (or looking out the window, for those unfortunate enough to be stuck in rainy areas) is one of the best ways to spend time over the Easter break.