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Any book worth reading once is worth reading again, or so the saying goes. We’ve had weather perfect for lazy days spent lying in the sun this week, so why not take advantage and root out any of these three books to read while enjoying the unseasonable (well, it is Ireland) warmth. Some are relatively new, and others not so much but either way, they transport you to another place and are most definitely worth reading at least once (or twice) more.
To Kill a Mockingbird is one of the greatest novels of the 20th century and truly is one of the most enduring literary classics ever written. It was an almost instant success upon publication in the 1960s, and its beautiful prose deserves to be read at least twice. ?The story details the racial troubles of the American Deep South and centres around dignified lawyer Atticus Finch and his young daughter, Scout, who serves as the first-person narrator throughout the book. Some of the books’ most memorable words are still with me (see below) and each time open the book, I’m taken back to the balmy days when I first discovered it. An essential summer re-read.
Paulina & Fran was recommended to me by a friend who knows of my love for Lena Dunham and new book obsession The Girls. I read this in one sitting, and though the novel goes into the?well-worn territory of love, sex, female friendship (and curly hair), the writing feels fresh, and it’s extremely visual and witty. The title characters Paulina, and Fran (neither hugely likeable) are two American art students who form a brief friendship that defines their early life. You’ll find yourself enticed into their world.
This brilliant memoir was just released in April this year, but I’ve read it three times already. Author Emma Beddington lived what is my dream life: she discovered French Elle at 16 and knew one thing only – that she needed to be French. ?And she goes full hog to achieve this with a French exchange, studying French history at university, and holidays spent in France (with her French boyfriend, of course). ?Eventually, she finds herself living in Paris, but does the fantasy match reality? It’s frank, warm and witty and tells the reader both sides of what it’s like to chase and live out your dreams.