Summer isn’t what it used to be, is it? I neither giddily await its arrival nor lament its passing. Whereas summer once meant travel and sunburned feet and a continuously-lit drinking lamp, it now only holds one promising possibility – the chance to get caught up on some reading. I read numerous lists about the best books to read this summer and I had high hopes, but alas, summer was not the reading extravaganza I had hoped for … still, it was not without its well-read moments.

Reader, Come Home: The Fate of the Reading Brain in a Digital World by Maryanne Wolf … I don’t recommend you read this, it’s too wordy and too technical and that makes it a pain in the ass but her theory is a sound one. Wolf is a brain scientist and she is worried that the parts of the brain that get developed and nurtured through “deep reading”, that is, reading books, won’t get developed in people (mostly young people) who now only read a computer or phone screen. She kinda thinks that this brain corrosion will lead to the breakdown of a civilized society.

I can see her point. The one thing that comes with deep reading is a level of contemplation and consideration – of other people, other ideas, other points of view. This “contemplation” is a big part of our democracy and a big factor in being able to get along with others. It’s quite possible that generations of people, since they never read a book, may never develop this contemplative part of their brains … that would be bad.

There are a couple of quotes the author uses that nicely frame our potential reality:

“Digital media trains us to be high-bandwidth consumers rather than meditative thinkers. We download or stream a song, article, book or movie instantly, get through it (if we’re not waylaid by the infinite inventory also offered) and advance to the next immaterial thing.” (Teddy Wayne, New York Times)

“Does the ethos of acceleration prized by the Internet diminish our capacity for deliberation and enfeeble our capacity for genuine reflection? Does the daily avalanche of information banish the space needed for actual wisdom? . . . Readers know . . . in their bones something we forget at our peril: that without books—indeed without literacy—the good society vanishes and barbarism triumphs.” (Steve Wasserman, Truthdig)

I took one for the team here wading through this science project (you’re welcome!) Buy your kids books!

Unfortunately, I didn’t read any five-star books this summer but did encounter a few four-star near misses.

Lincoln’s Last Trial: The Murder Case That Propelled Him to the Presidency by Dan Abrams … This is first-rate historical non-fiction. We tend to think of Lincoln the statesman, the emancipator, this book stands out because it provides a compelling look at Lincoln the lawyer, Lincoln the actor and Lincoln as a master communicator … Lincoln spent many more years lawyering than anything else and his accomplishments, style and reputation in this arena are a revelation … But the best thing about this book (aside from showcasing the lesser-known sides of Lincoln) is that it is told from the perspective of the court stenographer and this provides a wonderful effect that not only illuminates another side of Lincoln but gives the reader a very interesting snapshot of the U.S. legal system circa 1859. Fun Fact: Abe was involved in over 3,000 cases, including more than twenty-five murder trials during his twenty years as a lawyer.

The Unknowns: The Untold Story of America’s Unknown Soldier and WWI’s Most Decorated Heroes Who Brought Him Home by Patrick K. O’Donnell … A satisfying, patriotic story that enlightens about both the legend of the Unknown Soldier and the American valor displayed during World War I. Fun Fact: In the narrow crypt that holds the Unknown Soldier the floor contains a layer of dirt, soil brought from France one hundred years ago with the body of the Unknown Soldier for whom it was written “… earth from the country where his death blood was poured out on a stricken field that it might remain free soil … and forever this American who died for France will rest on French soil here in his own home earth.”

Unbeaten: Rocky Marciano’s Fight for Perfection in a Crooked World by Mike Stanton … There are a lot of crappy sports books out there, here’s one that’s worth your time. It’s a classic, nostalgic story of a commoner rising to royalty … like the fighter, the story is written in a nuts-and-bolts, brown-paper-bag style, yet it still celebrates a time and a place and an era in sports that can never happen again. When you hear the name Rocky, in virtually any context, you see the face of Marciano and it shall forever stand for blue-collar ethics, a right hook named Suzie Q and “champion.” Fun Fact: Sportswriter Jimmy Cannon said, “Rocky Marciano stood out in a boxing ring like a rose in a garbage dump.”

Photo credit: Me in ME on VisualHunt.com/ CC BY