The Perfect Form

A summer reading list for the literarily impaired

By JENNIFER CACICIO

del.ico.us | digg it! | reddit!

print | email | 1 Comments

Summer has long been the heyday for commercial fiction, and beach reading has become synonymous with thick murder mysteries, lame coming-of-age tales, and, of course, chick lit. We understand if you're not up to conquering Dostoevsky during your weekend getaway, but warm weather doesn't have to warrant an empty brain, either. How about settling for a happy medium? (Pun quite intended.) The short story is underrated, entertaining and a casual literary commitment—the perfect form for summer. Hence, here are seven new collections slated for publication this summer.

THE MOST OF IT by Mary Ruefle

June 1: Wave Books

Seattle-based poetry press Wave Books releases its first book of fiction with this quirky collection of 31 super-short stories that will delight the likes of Miranda July fans. This is a first for Ruefle as well, who after 10 acclaimed books of poetry, has turned her pen to prose, producing what the publisher calls "delectable fables with questionable morals—sweet and sharp and over too soon."

BROCCOLI AND OTHER TALES OF FOOD AND LOVE by Lara Vapnyar

June 3: Pantheon

Vapnyar left Russia for New York in the mid-'90s, and in her second collection of stories, this talented writer continues her fascination with the Eastern European émigré. The added twist here is that each tale is thematically linked by food as well. With titles such as "Borscht" and "Puffed Rice and Meatballs," this combination of charming characters, witty prose and recipes is guaranteed to please readers, writers and foodies alike.

SAY YOU'RE ONE OF THEM by Uwem Akpan

June 5: Little, Brown, and Company

The Nigerian Akpan made a big splash with his fiction debut in The New Yorker back in 2005 and that story is included in this much-awaited book. Say You're One of Them contains five long stories that take place in Africa, each one narrated by a child in crisis, though seemingly without the sentimentality one might expect. Gritty subject matter, moving prose and a vivid window into the current state of Africa.

YOUNG IRELANDERS by Gerard Donovan

July 3: Overlook Press

Donovan has been known as a New York novelist for years, but in this book of interrelated tales, the seasoned storyteller turns back to his homeland. With the usual elegant prose, he sheds light on the current state of affairs in Ireland, exploring timely issues such as immigration and national identity through a bright literary lens.

THE ANT KING AND OTHER STORIES by Benjamin Rosenbaum

August 1: Small Beer Press

McSweeney's addicts should track down this release from the tiny and, ahem, local, press based in Northampton, Mass. Rosenbaum's first official book promises to be a "dazzling, postmodern debut collection of pulp and surreal fictions." Prepare for pure fun as women turn into gumballs and delightful oddities abound.

ASK FOR A CONVERTIBLE by Danit Brown

August 5: Pantheon

Brown's literary debut has already called comparisons to female fiction heavyweights such as Amy Hempel, Lorrie Moore and Gish Jen, and it isn't even out for three more months. It's safe to say that these linked stories about an Israeli-American girl and her relationship with her family will be a great read and a hit.

VISIT ME IN CALIFORNIA by Cooley Windsor

August 13: Northwestern University Press

Another debut, this time from a California College of the Arts professor, turns old Bible stories and tired myths on their heads with a creative flourish. The mostly scholarly press releasing it sounds almost as excited as I: "Deftly moving between the comic and the tragic, the sacred and the profane, this collection of short stories is populated by modern children, ancient poets, dying men, and your basic, mundane Greek gods." Yes, please.