11 light summer reads that won't put you over the baggage limit
All under 250 pages, they’re light in weight, not worlds
Summer is here and with the heatwave consuming all your thoughts (and good moods), what is required urgently is a refresher. Ideally in the form of a vacation, where you take a break from desperately seeking a room with AC, to just chilling with little on, by the hotel pool, living your best cheat day.
Once you book the holiday, there’s no looking back, only online shopping for cute summer fits while hoping like hell your PTO is approved. You dust off the Instagram folder of all the must-see locations, hidden spots and cafes you’ll finally have a chance to see. Day dreams about catching up with your reading list make you sigh happily.
Then you start packing and realise you miscalculated. You can still have all your cute outfits with matching accessories, as well as your 12-step skincare routine. But you’ll have to skip on any tomes you were planning to read or you’ll exceed the baggage limit. What to do?! You know that the right book can make or break the vacation vibe, and you’re committed to that vision of yourself reading by the water i.e. no e-readers.
Easy, enter the slim novel or novella, under 250 pages. Meatier than a short story, speedier than a sprawling novel. And perfect for taking with you everywhere on holiday—in airport queues, on uninterrupted solo dates, and stashed at the bottom of your beach bag (dog-eared books only add to the beach bum aesthetic).
We’ve put together a list of short, multi-genre summer reads that will travel light even if you don’t.
11 light summer reads that punch above their weight
Transcription by Ben Lerner
This novel follows a nervous unnamed narrator to Rhode Island, where he is about to interview his famous 90-year-old former mentor. Before the interview, he drops his phone in the hotel sink, and unable to delay the appointment, he goes ahead with it without letting the older man know he’s not recording. But now without the technology to lean on to capture the conversation, the already-tense narrator is forced to actively participate in an interview he was only meant to write about.
The Transcription (2026) is a novella about memory, relationships and how they’re both influenced and sometimes destroyed by the technologies we use to navigate them. Sounds perfect for a day spent offline, away from doomscrolling, when you’re sipping a negroni, contemplating your own relationship with the digital world.
The Subtle Art of Folding Space by John Chu
Hugo winner John Chu fits in a bewildering sci-fi tale full of twists and turns into a snug 250 pages,
Plagued by familial expectations and never-satisfied parents, the protagonist Ellie’s worlds (personal and also the literal world) are falling apart. Her mother is sick and Ellie might have found an illicit device that can save her, but it’s also causing destabilising shifts in the universe. Now she has an existential choice: preserve what’s left of her mother’s legacy and prove her loyalty to her Chinese identity. Or save the world—and set herself free in the process. Most importantly, will either of these get her what she really wants the most: her mother’s approval?
You can commiserate with Ellie even as you comfortably lounge far, far away from the stress of getting that other equally elusive kind of approval: your client’s.
Orbital by Samantha Harvey
Holidays often start with the expectation that we’ll return as new people, somewhat relaxed, and hopefully a bit enlightened from encounters with the natural world that makes our worries seem small.
Orbital which won the 2024 Booker Prize, packs that entire experience in under 200 pages. Astronauts and scientists floating in space find themselves unable to disentangle themselves from their Earthly affairs and duties. As they continue to be plagued by what awaits them back home, the gravitational pull towards one another is their shared humanity. They question borders, themselves and even the nature of time, as they look down at their home planet from the vastness of cold space.
If you have been following Artemis II’s journey or liked Project Hail Mary (2023) by Andy Weir, throw this astro-literary read into your suitcase.
The Lady Who Carries the Monk Across the River by Pavan Varma
Set in the Himalayas, this re-telling of an ancient parable follows monks Kevala and Gyandeva whose lives are shaped by following Guru Brihaspati’s teachings.
Their friendship and commitment to monkhood unravels when the celibate Kevala mindlessly carries a woman, Mandakini, across the river. Both the river and Mandakini represent desire, social pressures to conform and obstacles in a monk’s journey to unwavering values. While Kevala is coming to terms with his accidental lapse, Gyandeva begins debating the value of their commitment to these abstract values with their guru. Will teacher and acolyte come to an agreement? Or will crossing this river change their entire course?
As daunting as it sounds, the novel is a beginner-friendly introduction to rich Eastern philosophy. Probably best enjoyed alongside other Eastern pleasures like a relaxing Thai massage and mango sticky rice.
Bhaunri by Anukrti Upadhyay
If “I support women’s rights and wrong” is your standing philosophy, Bhaunri (2019) is the travel companion for you. A young, Rajasthani tribal woman Bhaunri finally arrives at the home of the man she was married off to as a child, only to fall in love with him immediately.
Her husband Bheema is everything she dreamed of—he’s loving, handsome and satisfies her desire—except for one thing: he is a serial cheater. Her jealousy over the other women her husband meets soon turn her tender love and affection into something darker. She begins scheming to win back his attention, sometimes going too far.
Bhaunri is the story of a woman taking back control of her own life, allowing her body and mind to dictate her actions in a way that was never allowed previously. A must-read for the summer, especially when Bookstagram’s “spicy” reads aren’t nearly as entertaining anymore.
Where Shall We Go This Summer? by Anita Desai
The title of this 1975 novel justifies its spot on this list, but it’s the plot that will keep you rapt—especially if you’re a woman caught between choosing your own unhappiness over social conformity.
Sita is a homemaker, sick and tired of her boring urban life in Bombay and her misogynistic husband. When she falls pregnant for a fifth time, she becomes feverish with unhappiness. In search of a solution, she goes back to the island of her childhood. She romanticises the life she lived there with her father, and tries to resurrect it with her own children but eventually realises that it wasn’t as magical as she remembered.
Anita Desai is one of the most adored Indian authors, and her words have remained relevant to women across generations both within and outside the Indian sub-continent, for how they capture intricate details of our inner lives.
This book won’t take up too much space, but it’s a good reminder that you should.
Small Days and Nights by Tishani Doshi
Grace, half Italian-half Indian, has recently returned to Pondicherry after her mother’s passing. She hopes to reconnect with this side of her roots but instead discovers Lucia, an older sibling with Down’s Syndrome she never knew about.
Grace takes over the care of Lucia and sets up a life in the bucolic town along with a few feisty locals. But what first seems like an emotional story of familial reconciliation, perfectly set against Pondicherry’s natural beauty, turns sour when she is confronted with the reality of living as an unmarried woman in India. Grace is overcome with disgust and annoyance.
Women’s rage is a popular micro-genre in all media forms lately, primarily for its relatability. Perhaps, Doshi’s work could be a timely fit for any elder daughters out there finally ready to take a break to prioritise themselves.
Foster by Claire Keegan
The shortest book in this entire list at under 100 pages, Foster (2010) is a novella set in 1980s Ireland.
A young girl is sent to live with a foster family on a farm as her mother prepares for the birth of another child. Used to being invisible in her crowded household, she finds her foster parents treat her much better than her own family and begins to come into her own under their watch. But the closer she gets to them, the more she realises she may not know them as well as she first thought.
Just long enough for a cover-to-cover read on a short flight, you can squeeze in a tour of rural Ireland with this one before you even touch down on vacation.
We Burned So Bright by TJ Klune
The youngest book on the list, from late April, 2026, We Burned So Bright is about an older, queer couple who upon finding out the world is ending in 30 days, decide to go on a final roadtrip.
The couple’s journey lets them encounter how people everywhere are celebrating their final days, and puts their own 40 years of togetherness into perspective. The novel braids nostalgia, dystopia and a moving meditation on love —all in under 200 pages.
The best way to enjoy this book which will probably bring on the water works is in the privacy of your hotel room, with room service and a deep-hydrating sheet mask for after.
Three Days in June by Anne Tyler
A24’s new movie The Drama follows wedding drama from the perspective of the couple, and Three Days in June (2025) follows it from the bride’s mother’s vantage.
Socially awkward Gail Baines’ has just lost her job, her daughter is getting married the next day into a family that hasn’t included Gail in some of the festivities. To make matters worse, her ex-husband, Max, shows up at her doorstep seeking refuge.
As tensions brew, her daughter tells her parents something troubling that she’s just found out about her fiance—that makes the older couple question the nature of their own relationship.
Perfect for a summer-destinationation-wedding and if the real thing doesn’t have drama (unlikely), you can bury your nose deep in these subplots just like a nosy wedding guest would.
Morsel by Carter Keane
Lured by the prospect of a promotion, this folk horror story’s young, hustling protagonist Lou is headed to rural Ohio for an ambitious work project, when she gets stranded in Appalachian hills en route. Having only ever had to worry about surviving the corporate world and a childhood of poverty, she knows nothing about surviving nature.
With no apparent escape and a sense that she’s not alone in these ancient woods, she has to figure a way out of there without losing her life—and less importantly, her job.
Definitely not a pick for a vacation in the hills, but perfect to be read in the safety of fluffy hotel blankets.
