Beach reading?

[merchimerch]

I am taking a vacation, a whole 5 days that are going to be just about me eating nice food, drinking nice drinks, and plopping myself on the beach to read and occasionally cool off in the ocean.

It is the first time in my life that I've planned a vacation just for myself, not visiting family, not going somewhere with a partner whose needs/whims I will have to consider (my Bosnian may join me for a couple days, but he knows that this is MY vacation--luckily we seem to be pretty compatible in terms of activities).

I'm really excited to have time to relax and recharge. The only thing missing right now is a delicious reading list.

So tell me, flist, what should I read?

I usually favor science fiction (especially Orson Scott Card, Isaac Asimov, and Octavia Butler), historical fiction, women's fiction, and biography/memoirs, but feel free to suggest something out of left field if you think I'd enjoy it.

Comments

[sps.livejournal.com]

Tepper, Cherryh, Connie Willis [The Doomsday Book is heavy but excellent], LeGuin [Always Coming Home, of course], yes?

[sps.livejournal.com]

Whups, and Janet Kagan's [who I just learned died this year, sniff] Mirabile, of course, assuming you can find a copy.

[kethryvis.livejournal.com]

LeGuin's The Telling is wonderful as well as short. It's a great anthropological novel, really. (no surprise coming from her)

[merchimerch.livejournal.com]

I'm in the middle of a LeGuin novel now, the one with ambiguous gender on the planet "Winter." I only read it at the Bosnian's so it's slow going, but very good so far. The Telling sounds interesting indeed.

[kethryvis.livejournal.com]

Oooo The Left Hand of Darkness... that is a *great* book.

I love LeGuin because of the anthropological/ethnographical nooks and crannies she fits into her work (considering her father was Alfred Kroeber that's no surprise!). Have you read much of her stuff? I think I love every single thing of hers I've ever read. I started with the Earthsea cycle and haven't looked back! I think The Telling, tho, is my favourite so far.

[hitchhiker.livejournal.com]

Read "To Say Nothing of the Dog" if you haven't yet - it's the sequel to Doomsday Book, and in my opinion much better (not that Doomsday Book wasn't a brilliant novel, but Dog was simply scintillating)