The original version of this newsletter was sent out on Tuesday, July 7.
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Hello, fellow bookworms!
I hope everyone has been enjoying their summer so far and has had lots of time to read! I’ve got lots more interesting books to share in upcoming newsletters (I finally got around to reading Caro Claire Burke’s much-talked-about Yesteryear), but today, our incredible Arts & Culture Editor Leslie Dinaberg is sharing what she’s been reading this summer, from fairy-tale retellings to celebrity memoirs.
Happy reading!
—Tessa, allbooked@independent.com
While you can, of course, read any book at any time of the year, I think the best summer reads are a little bit lighter, both literally (you don’t want to weigh down your beach bag or suitcase too much, and we all know how important it is to hydrate, so you better leave room for a beverage) and figuratively (humor and a bit of lightheartedness go down better in the sunshine). I can also appreciate an uncomplicated plot more than ever this time of the year, when there are ample distractions all around. With that in mind, here are a few of my recent recommendations.
Lady Tremaine by Rachel Hochhauser
I was mildly intrigued when I first read about the premise of Lady Tremaine, a reimagining of the classic Cinderella story told from the perspective of her stepmother. But Rachel Hochhauser’s fierce, feminist, and twisty take on the classic fairy-tale villain pulled me in from from the opening lines: ”I’ve been warned to be wary of strangers in the woods since I was a little girl. A person, alone, unfamiliar, hidden in the dappled darkness, is not to be trusted.”
Strangers can’t be trusted, and neither can the Disneyfied stories we are told since girlhood, as Hochhauser continually reminds in this beautifully sharp and surprisingly funny tale. The way Lady Tremaine picks at our understanding of good and evil and the myths of motherhood and marriage as the secrets to happiness is fascinating. And seeing Hochhauser, who grew up in Santa Barbara, speak at Godmothers bookstore in June, I am even more intrigued to see what this talented young writer does next.
The Marriage Sabbatical by Lian Dolan
Speaking of marriage, what if you could take a vacation from yours? When empty-nesters Jason and Nicole have very different fantasies about what a dream sabbatical looks like — she wants to go to an artist colony in Santa Fe and he wants to do a nine-month long motorcycle trip through South America — they decide that rather than come to a compromise, they’ll take a break from each other and each do what they want.
Lian Dolan’s The Marriage Sabbatical adds another spicy layer to this confection when the couple decides on “the 500-mile rule,” where they can each do whatever they want, with whoever they want, when they’re temporarily apart. Dolan, whose previous books include Helen of Pasadena, Lost and Found in Paris, The Sweeney Sisters, and Abigail and Alexa Save the Wedding — all of which I’ve read and laughed at over the years — has a deft way of combining humor with insights into modern life. I’d recommend all of her books, especially for the lazy days of summer.
The Shippers by Katherine Center
Another witty romance from a reliably entertaining author, The Shippers is a solid tale about a woman who leaves her soon-to-be husband at the altar for the boy next door, but it takes a while for her to realize he’s her happily ever after.
Her sister’s cruise ship destination wedding is in the mix, with all of the accompanying sunburns and silliness and romance themes galore, including the forced proximity trope and a believable friends-to-lovers journey. It’s not Tolstoy and it’s not trying to be anything but what it is, which is a highly entertaining work of fiction that pairs well with a margarita.
Famesick by Lena Dunham
I’m not a huge nonfiction reader, but I’m a fan of Dunham from her Girls TV series and was curious to check out her memoir. It’s a solid story about her early career and related health problems and, as always, she’s a reliably engaging storyteller. But the thing that struck me the most about Famesick is the same thing that struck me the most about Girls, which is both how different and how universal our two generations of (admittedly white, well educated, and relatively cushy) women’s experiences are.
If you connect with that sentiment at all, then I think you’ll enjoy this book. And if you have no idea what I’m talking about, that’s okay too.
—Leslie Dinaberg
FROM OUR PAGES
We’ve had some great author visits and interviews recently, so don’t miss out. Here is some of our book-related coverage from the last two weeks! Read all this and more at Independent.com.
“Dipping Into the 2026 Santa Barbara Writers Conference” by Leslie Dinaberg
UPCOMING BOOK EVENTS
Below, you will find a few bookish events coming up in Santa Barbara. If you are hosting a bookish event in Santa Barbara, be sure to submit the event to our online events calendar.
Blue Whale Reading Series
Wednesday, July 8, 5:30 p.m. | Unity of Santa Barbara
Chaucer’s Book Talk and Signing: NT McQueen: Hide from the Devil
Wednesday, Jul 8, 6 p.m. | Chaucer’s Books
SBMM Book Club
Thursday, July 9, 10 a.m. | S.B. Maritime Museum
Between the Lines: Adult Literacy Book Club
Friday, July 10, noon | S.B. Central Library
Storytime at the Sea Center
Saturday, July 11, 10:30 a.m. | S.B. Museum of Natural History Sea Center
Godmothers Gather: Jessica Knoll, Helpless
Saturday, July 11, 6 p.m. | Godmothers
Lunch with an Author Literary Series (Ojai): Kerri Maher
Wednesday, July 15, noon | Magic Hour
Godmothers Gather: Jeffrey Hoelle, Cultivated: Plants, Hair, and the Aesthetic of Control
Wednesday, July 15, 6 p.m. | Godmothers
Lunch with an Author Literary Series (Santa Barbara): Kerri Maher
Thursday, July 16, noon | University Club
Paw Patrol Day Storytime
Saturday, July 18, 10 a.m. | S.B. Central Library
Storytime at the Sea Center
Saturday, July 18, 10:30 a.m. | S.B. Museum of Natural History Sea Center
Storytime at the Sea Center
Sunday, July 19, 10:30 a.m. | S.B. Museum of Natural History Sea Center
Godmothers Gather: Kathryn Stockett, The Calamity Club
Sunday, July 19, 6 p.m. | Godmothers
Author Talk: Paul Skokowski, Sensing Qualia: Solving the Hard Problem of Consciousness
Tuesday, July 21, 6 p.m. | Chaucer’s Books
Godmothers Gather: Jess Janz, The Table Where We Meet
Tuesday, July 21, 6 p.m. | Godmothers
S.B. SPOTLIGHT
We at the Independent get many books sent to us by area authors, sometimes too many! It’s practically impossible for us to read and review them all, but just because we are busy bees does not mean that they aren’t worth the attention. In an attempt to not completely drop the ball, we have compiled a list of books here that are either written by a Santa Barbara author, feature someone in our community, or have another tie to Santa Barbara. I urge you to look through this list. Perhaps you will find your new favorite read!
The following are the most recent titles that have been sent to us.
American Made: A Nation in Turmoil by Cliff Branch
Tin Can Coast: A History of Industry, Greed, and FIshing in the Golden State by Joseph Ogilvy
The Great Game by Arvind Ethan David
If you are a local author and would like us to feature your book in this section, please email allbooked@independent.com with the subject line “S.B. Spotlight.”
Book Reviews Courtesy of CALIFORNIA REVIEW OF BOOKS*
Thanks to the generous contributions of David Starkey, Brian Tanguay and their team of reviewers at California Review of Books, we are able to provide a steady stream of book reviews via our content partnership. Recent reviews at Independent.com include:
White River Crossing by Ian McGuire; review by David Starkey
Agnes Lives! by Hallie Elizabeth Newton; review by Brian Tanguay
*At the present time, all of the Independent’s book reviews are provided in collaboration with California Review of Books (calirb.com).
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