The Summer of ‘26 Reading List
Summertime is that special time of year when most of us can relax, absorb some rays, and catch up on our reading wish list. Below you’ll find four books Pop read this past year and figures you’d enjoy them, too.
The Yestertime Series
I love science fiction especially time travel books. The Yestertime Series consists of four books: The Yestertime, The Yestertime Effect, The Yestertime Warning, and The Yestertime Shift . Since this series by Andrew Cunningham is a dynamic series, the writer continues his story in four books concluding the series with The Yestertime Shift. It’s best to read the books in order for greater understanding and appreciation. I’ll only report on book one.
Book One- The Yestertime: A Novel of Time Travel
Journalist Ray Burton visits the Arizona ghost town of Hollow Rock to disburse his friend’s ashes. When a storm unexpectedly arrives, he takes shelter in a cave outside of town and discovers a dusty trunk untouched for 150 years. Inside he finds a disturbing mystery: a digital camera.
The camera shows pictures of missing actress Natalie O’Brian. and with intense research Ray soon realizes that the missing actress was transported back to the 1870s through the cave’s time portal. After exhausting all ideas to rescue her, he decides to go through the one-way portal himself, thus beginning his 5-year voyage through time.
Author Andrew Cunningham introduces readers to a carefully constructed time-travel premise that feels both imaginative and believable. Time travel is possible, but limited, regulated, and dangerous. The author favors quiet tension and moral complexity. His characters are believable people facing extraordinary circumstances.
Yestertime: A Novel of Time Travel by Andrew Cunningham
Kindle Edition: $5.99
Paperback: $15.15
Length: 307 pages
Amazon Rating: 4.3
Koolura and the Mystery at Camp Saddleback
I wrote this novel years ago to motivate my 12-year-old daughter to read, which she eventually read and loved. Recently, I taught it to a student and while doing so created questi
Koolura has the ability to teleport, levitate, heal, and even fly. But at Camp Saddleback she wakes up drained and powerless. Who or what has stolen her psychic powers?
As Koolura searches for the truth about her power loss, she and the Chumash Girls must deal with pranksters ruining their cabin and destroying their summer. Campers plan revenge but problems escalate as lives are threatened. Will Koolura and the Chumash Girls solve the mystery at Camp Saddleback?
(This series was written so that you don’t have to read the books in sequential order.)
The Mystery at Camp Saddleback (Book 2 of the Koolura Series) by Michael Thal
Kindle Edition: $3.99
Paperback: $9.95
Length: 138 pages
Amazon Rating: 4.6
I started writing his book when I was 27 years old. It didn’t get published until I was near 70. Perseverance always helps. I re-read this book last fall with a student and created questions for each chapter.
Joshua Bloom is not your everyday teen. Clever and resourceful he takes the reader on a brilliant intergalactic journey. His point of view and knowledge compared what he experiences with his Hebrew Culture. This makes the read relatable.
It is a clever, fast paced, and fascinating read. The depth and growth of the main character felt real enough to touch. My favorite intergalactic creatures were in a planet with a fascinating underwater culture. There is an intricate diversity in settings and otherworldly creatures. The plot makes sense and is well developed, a most recommended read. – Reviewed by Catalina
The Abduction of Joshua Bloom by Michael Thal
Kindle: $2.99
Paperback: $11.95
Length: 250 pages
Amazon Rating: 4.7
I read many books each year, but only a few stay with me for the long run. In March, on a flight from Atlanta to Los Angeles, I read Twice, by Mitch Albom, and couldn’t put it down.
The novel starts off when 8-year-old Alfie Logan discovers he has a superpower—the ability to get second chances. He can undo any moment in time he has lived and undo it and live it again. However, he must accept the consequences of his second try, no matter what. Twice invites readers to reflect on regret, redemption, and the possibility of starting over.
The novel leans into emotional nuance. Readers are placed in the position of confronting past mistakes, repairing broken relationships, and focus on the moments that truly define a life.
Albom does a superb job making Twice accessible while delivering moments of profound insight. He distills complex emotional truths into quiet, powerful scenes. Readers may find themselves re-thinking their lives and what choices they could have made differently.
Twice is a heartfelt novel encouraging readers to examine their own lives with this powerful question: If you had the chance to relive a moment in your life again, would you choose differently?
Twice is not just a story—it’s a gentle push toward living more intentionally. Enjoy! I sure did.
Twice by Mitch Albom
Kindle: $2.99
Paperback: $23.99
Length: 320 pages
Amazon Rating: 4.5
I enjoyed a good laugh while reading this one:
Gary Thorn is a legal aid in London, England. His best relationships are with Grace, an old woman neighbor and a squirrel who he refers simply as, “mate”; and who is more of a therapist to Gary than a friend.
Gary’s daily routine is precise, small, and safe until he meets Emily in a local pub. When she vanishes, he becomes entangled in a web of gangsters, and secrets—all orbiting around a dongle given to him by a colleague gone missing and presumed dead.
Author Bob Mortimer’s voice is distinctly British with slightly absurd dry English humor. The comedy grows out of Gary’s internal monologue. His hysterical conversations with his squirrel mate are a good example. The dialogue crackles with unstated wit causing the criminals to feel more eccentric than menacing.
Beneath the humor of The Satsuma Complex is a crime story that Gary reluctantly solves. He isn’t a swaggering detective, but an anxious man stumbling into an adventure against his will. That vulnerability gives the novel its heart.
If you’re looking for a high-stakes thriller, The Satsuma Complex isn’t it. The author is invested in exploring character and atmosphere. The novel offers us a view of an ordinary life that takes a sharp turn—and bravery is stepping outside your routine. Mortimer’s novel is a quirky warm-hearted crime novel wrapped up in a character study with a mystery to solve.
The Satsuma Complex by Bob Mortimer
Kindle: $9.99
Paperback: $14.50
Length: 299 pages
Amazon Rating: 4.2
Yes, summertime is a great time of year to kickback, relax, and read a good book. Enjoy.
I read Koolura and the Mystery at Camp Saddleback and The Abduction of Joshua Bloom and they are really great novels.