DISCOVER: MPMG Summer Beach Reads of 2024
Summer is in full swing, and there is no better way to enjoy a sunny beach day than with a good book in hand. The MPMG team has compiled our favorite beach reads to share with you. Dive into the list and find your perfect beach escape. Happy reading!
Laura Murray, Founding Partner:
All Fours by Miranda July
This was a wild ride of a read and a much needed gift for women in their 40’s, in particular. It was a refreshingly frank yet funny and, at times, uncomfortable page turner that delves into the emotional hurdles and awakenings of perimenopause and menopause with unfiltered starkness. Incorporating a stalled road trip, unexpected seduction via a sexless love affair, a heavy dose of steamy sex, and a disenchanted marriage, All Fours follows the story of our 45 year old narrator who immerses herself on a highly entertaining and bewildering voyage of self discovery and reinvention.
Brian Paterson, Partner:
Bad Cree by Jessica Johns
When I was far too young for it, I spent childhood summers reading Stephen King at campsites. Ever since, beach reads for me have always had a supernatural element. Bad Cree by Jessica Johns hit the mark beautifully this summer, with a spooky story of sisterhood that draws deep on First Nations history and mythology. We start in Vancouver, where a young woman wakes up clutching a pine bough that appeared in her nightmare. The suspense slowly spools out from here, building to a spectacular final battle in the backwoods of Alberta.
Angela Poon, Communications Manager:
This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub
I’m a sucker for a time travel story, and This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub is a satisfying ride. We first meet Alice, who’s taking stock of her unremarkable life on the eve of her 40th birthday. But when she magically wakes up the next morning as her 16-year-old self, we’re taken on a tender ride of self-discovery and nostalgia as she relives some of her most pivotal moments. Perhaps it’s because I read this book in my 40th year, or perhaps it’s because it’s always fun to daydream about a life in NYC even if you’re at the beach, but I found this book to be a heartfelt and hopeful meditation on appreciating all the little things that make up one’s life.
Sijia Cheng, Digital Marketing Coordinator:
The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood
In this poetic reimagining of the Odyssey, we hear the whisper of Penelope, long silent behind the echo of Odysseus’ adventures. Through Atwood’s lyrical prose, this book gives voice to Penelope and the twelve maids who, in Homer’s account, were mere footnotes, their stories untold. Penelope narrates from the Underworld, reflecting on her life’s tales of fidelity and the injustices meted to her maids. In a narrative rich with myth and irony, Atwood cleverly shifts perspectives, exploring themes of loyalty, betrayal, the echoing voices of women long overshadowed by heroic tales, and the quiet strength and resilience of the women within.
Categories: MPMG