The Summer Reading List

Given how overrun a museum can be these days—just try to get close and personal with the Mona Lisa—it’s well worth seeking out artworks outside the confines of its four walls. Here to help is this photographic ode to publicly displayed artworks from around the world, featuring works such as the Digital Orca (a pixelated outdoor sculpture in Vancouver) and the large-scale The Future Is Now sculpture in Saudi Arabia, in addition to pieces from Ghana, Scandinavia, Mexico City, and beyond. Consider it a bucket list for a lifetime of art-centric adventure.

(gestalten, June)

As this book ably demonstrates, vacation rentals have gotten decidedly upscale. This coffee table collection captures 33 of the world’s most appealing—from Greek beach houses and Swiss chalets to a secluded tropical retreat in Brazil and a sprawling seaside estate in the Caribbean. Best of all, each of these homes are available to rent (information is included), which means this is basically a travel brochure for your next blowout vacation.

(Beta-Plus, June)

One of the pleasures of traveling is getting to know a place, to immerse yourself in its history, its culture, its people. This book, written by an editor at Vice, aims to do that for an entire continent, while also righting past wrongs (including the misconception referenced by the title, alongside addressing how charitable efforts have backfired) and subverting longstanding stereotypes (such as the one that the entire continent is plagued by poverty). Faloyin chronicles the politics, the foods, even the sports of the African nations, with a humor that calls to mind having a trusted friend guide you on your next trip.

(Norton, September 6)

Over 40 years, husband-and-wife duo William and Anne Frej—longtime photographers who have documented everything from remote Mayan ruins to religious festivals in the American Southwest—took 20 trips to the Himalayas, documenting their experiences (and their views) via breathtaking photography. This photo book-cum-memoir collects their best images, along with their thoughts on the remote region’s changing cultural and literal landscape. A stunning book that radiates empathy for the people who live there, their rich culture, and their resilience.

(GFT, July)

Jorge Luis Borges revolutionized fiction in the 20th century. He spent the last 11 years of his life with María Kodama, though he met her decades earlier at a bookshop in Buenos Aires. (She was 37 years his junior and inspired his tender poem, The Moon.) This book includes photos of them from their time together, alongside Borges’ poems and manuscripts written during that period. The images, largely black and white, capture their romance, while the writing offers insight into the mind of the quintessential Argentine writer. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself booking a trip to Buenos Aires.

(Assouline, July)

If Mayes’ Under the Tuscan Sun is the book that launched 1,000 trips to Italy, her latest might inspire those lucky enough to do permanent remote work. (Or encourage those who can’t.) Through a series of essays, she chronicles her time living in France, Mexico, and yes, Italy, contemplating what defines a home, no matter the locale—and no matter the owner, as she includes a number of friends’ homes in her collection.

(Crown, August 23)

Vacationers choose their destinations for all sorts of reasons: cost, convenience, a lifelong desire to visit a particular place. This charming book suggests an alternative motivation: color. By pairing vivid photographs with the globe-trotting author’s own musings, Mikati—born in Lebanon, raised in Paris, extensively traveled—highlights 50 locales, each chosen for being especially vivid, like the so-called Rainbow Mountain in the Peruvian Andes, where mineral deposits turn the mountainsides into ribbons of color. Certain to brighten your coffee table, if not your future travel plans.

(Rizzoli, August 30)

Many of us have longed for the life of a pilot, paid to explore the remote corners of the world. Vanhoenacker actually lived it, having left the world of academia to fly commercial airliners for nearly 20 years. This memoir tells of his impression of the cities he encountered. He chronicles experiences in Abu Dhabi and London, Delhi and Sapporo, each one inspiring him to investigate cultural totems like road signs and poetry. A welcome reminder of the joy of hopping on a plane and heading somewhere new—whether you’re in the cockpit or coach.

(Knopf, July 5)