10 Books To Read Instead of Taking a Vacation This Summer

Call Me by Your Name, by André Aciman
Not only is this tender love story a pure delight in terms of character and storytelling, reading it is also almost as good as an actual trip to the Italian Riviera. In-between acting on their burgeoning attraction, 17-year old Elio and 24-year old Oliver lounge around the sort of gorgeous Italian countryside and charming villas that are the stuff travel agents’ dreams are made of. If you can read this beautiful, brief novel and somehow not want to travel to the Mediterranean to drink wine and read books, we can only conclude you have no soul. That, or you already live there.

Shantaram, by Gregory David Roberts
India is big. Like, really, really big. Saying you want to “go to India” is sort of like saying you want to go to Europe, or the Moon—you really need to be more specific. That being said, despite the often grimy subject matter, Roberts’ controversial biography-as-novel introduces to an India that is equal parts overwhelming and exciting, overcrowded, hot, and beautiful, as seen through the eyes of an escaped convict on the run. You might not want to follow in the author’s supposed footsteps exactly, but reading this book is like getting off a plane in India without any money or a current passport and just diving into the country.

Wedding Night, by Sophie Kinsella
Underneath the farcical, bubbling story of a woman who gets fed up with a boyfriend who won’t as her to tie the knot and immediately accepts the proposal of an old flame, running off to a luxury resort in Greece to get married while her sister works behind the scenes for an annulment is a love letter to the gorgeous Greek Islands on which the story is set. Anyone who’s seen Mama Mia probably entertains a daily fantasy of moving to such a place; this book is almost as good as heading there for your own 5-star destination wedding.

Ulysses, by James Joyce
Yes, yes—this is an intimidating postmodern novel that scares the pants off seasoned academics and literature experts. It’s also a funny, salty tour of Dublin—granted, it’s Dublin on June 16, 1904, but you can still recognize the old bones of the city Joyce is making love to on every one of these many, many pages. Reading this classic might be more work than most books, but the end result will likely be a burning desire to visit Ireland and walk the streets that Leopold Bloom and company traversed in Joyce’s mind all those years ago.

The Black Book, by Orhan Pamuk
This unconventional and unexpected mystery doubles as a testament to just how awesome it is to live in Istanbul. As Galip searches for his missing wife and accidentally assumes the identity of the man he suspects she ran off with, Pamuk layers on stories about life in the ancient city, painting a picture of a beautiful, mysterious place that is equal parts modern and traditional. If you can’t get to Istanbul yourself (with or without the fraught mystery and confusing sense of reality), this book will definitely make you feel like you and the city are old friends, well met.

Chasing the Sun, by Natalia Sylvester
Set in Lima, Peru, this story of violence and kidnapping may not initially seem like much of an advertisement for a vacation—but once you realize that Sylvester set the story during a period of chaos and trouble that is long in the past, you can see the beauty and passion of the country peeking out around the edges. As a desperate husband works with a professional negotiator to try and get his kidnapped wife back from terrorists, Lima emerges as the sort of gorgeous spot anyone would want to explore over the course of a few lazy weeks, just taking in the lush Latin vibes. Minus the kidnapping, of course.

Sag Harbor, by Colson Whitehead
Not every amazing vacation spot is overseas, but not every New Yorker (or every American) can just jet out to the Hamptons every summer. If you are one of the many who can’t, check out Whitehead’s brilliant 2009 novel, which explores deep issues of race, culture, and capitalism while also introducing you to an intimate view of high-rolling Long Island you might not get anywhere else. You might not be able to afford the summer-long vacation the kids in this novel experience (without parental supervision, too), but you’ll definitely want to move the Hamptons up on your must-see list.

The Hundred Foot Journey, by Richard C. Morais
You might not need much motivation to visit the Occitanie region of France (or, you know, France), but this delightful book, focused on the rivalry between two restaurants in the region, will make you pine for a place you’ve likely never been. Many people think France is Paris, and vice versa, but France is a big place, composed of several regions that were once independent countries, and thus have their own flavor and cultural je ne sais quoi. This book will put Occitanie on your list.

A Year in Provence, by Peter Mayle
Can’t spend a year in the south of France whipping an old villa into shape and sampling the local wines and cheeses? Well, that’s rotten luck. The good news is that this novel-like memoir is sort of like going there and doing just that. What’s great about the book is how Mayle treats the region and its people as a real, tangible place, with frustrations and problems as well as beauty and incredible food. That being said, you can’t read this and not want to head off immediately, job and responsibilities be damned.

The Hairdresser of Harare, by Tendai Huchu
Finally, it’s easy to get lost in African literature and come away with the idea that the continent is dangerous, unsettled place to visit. But even more so than India, Africa is a land of many different nations and even climates. Huchu’s brilliant novel presents one of them to you all its messy glory. It is set in Zimbabwe, and follows the surprising and ultimately tragic relationship between hairdressers Vimbai and Dumisani, while making country seem like the sort of place smart, adventurous people might visit.
What books take you where you wish you could go?