100 books to read this summer
The Brewers may not win on the day you go to Miller Park. You might not have enough money for the ice-cream truck. It might rain for hours on your picnic.
But a book is always ready to take you on an adventure. Don’t take my word for it. Listen to Neal Stephenson, who’s written a bunch of them: “There's no real limit to what you can conjure up in the reader's imagination . . . . The book is irreplaceable.”
Today we offer 100 suggestions of new and newish books for pleasure reading this summer, including mysteries, histories, stories with a Wisconsin slant and books that are fun to look at. Our suggestions include books for children, too.
Most books recommended here can be found in both e-book and printed forms, and many can already be found in your local library.
Speaking of libraries, the Milwaukee Public Library encourages your children to join its Super Reader program for children 12 and younger, and its teen reader program for youth ages 13 through 18.
If you live in a different community, check with your local library. It probably has a summer reading program, too.
A tip of the cap my colleague Chris Foran, who contributed the pop culture and baseball sections, and to freelance contributors Carole E. Barrowman, Christi Clancy, Mike Fischer, Jon M. Gilbertson, Cathy Jakicic and Laurie Loewenstein, whose reviews we tapped for some of our choices.