I’ve mentioned before that I am incredibly indecisive. So when Thursday morning came around and I still hadn’t picked a book, I turned to the ever-trusty Jessi to pick from a bunch of links on my wish list. I needed something relatively quick, though I had quite a lovely and generous long weekend that lent itself to plenty of reading opportunity.
It was a good book to read this week, as much of the story revolves around an importance placed on the last moments of summer. Nadine pointed this out last year at this time and it placed a description on a feeling I’ve probably subconsciously had forever: though it’s inarguably the dead of summer, with unyielding 90-plus degree days, there’s a certain post-Independence Day feeling of a beginning of an end. Things move quickly after July 4. The characters in The Vacationers grasp at the last vestiges of summer and while it’s ending more rapidly for them than it is for us, I can relate to the feeling that September (historically my most emotionally confusing month, if anyone else has one of those) is right around the corner. It’s not quite September scaries, or at least not yet, but the seeds are already being planted for the lead-up to the actual end of summer.
The book also struck me in other ways. Sometimes I have memories that sneak into my head and I can’t quite place them. Like the other day, all of a sudden I found myself remembering being in a car (or is it on a bus?) and looking out the window over an expanse of green hills and winding dirt paths. I know it’s something I’ve seen but I can’t quite place it- it’s a memory at least a decade old that could be Costa Rica or Cuba or a range of places in Spain. (At 15, I was pretty well traveled; at 25, I’ve at best evened out with my peers but realistically have fallen behind.) The book symbolizes a lot of that as well- at the same time they were losing summer, the characters were shedding their old selves, yet hoping to hold onto the little parts that made them excited and happy and nostalgic. The descriptions of Mallorca definitely brought me back a bit to the feeling of being in a new, foreign place and made me long not for a particular place, but for the newness of dropping yourself somewhere you haven’t been before. I’ll get that back one day too, in one context or another.
Perhaps I’m feeling a bit introspective though, and placing a bit more importance on the book than I might otherwise. (Not shocking.) The book is unquestionably a light beach read, though a little more substantial than some others. The characters are intriguing and well developed, with a lot of stories, secrets and history among them. It’s a good book to grab and bring to the beach or the pool, and certainly held my attention, but I found myself craving non fiction. I’m really excited about the books I have coming up in the coming weeks and I couldn’t read either one any earlier based on availability, so perhaps the book is in and of itself a perfect example of what the characters feel: enjoyment in the moment but an more prevalent anticipation for what’s to come.
You’ll like this if: you like reading descriptions of gorgeous landscapes, incredible food and people who love (but maybe not tolerate) each other out of obligation above all else.
Happy reading!
Buy The Vacationers
carlyreads 