As the hours of sunlight increase and upper brain stem activity withers proportionately, summer makes its indisputable debut. Within a month, much of our academic stress will dissipate, to be replaced by the new stress of summer jobs, family life and blistering sunburns. I imagine you’ll remain literate over the course of the summer (some of us will even be rereading our CS readers to recapture the magic of 105), but I suggest you take the opportunity to savor some of the literature the English Department or your IHUM class might overlook. The world — starting with your local Barnes & Noble — has plenty to offer. I’ve compiled a few of my favorite recreational readings to prod you along the path.

1) Carlos Ruiz Zafón’s “Shadow of the Wind”: If you haven’t read Ruiz Zafón’s Spanish bestseller, you missed the boat. Considering that Ruiz Zafón wrote the original in his native Spanish, it’s hard to rationalize how the world of young protagonist Daniel Sempere could possibly be described so vigorously in English. Mid-century Barcelona explodes on the page as a backdrop for Ruiz Zafón’s elaborate mystery, beginning with the mysterious book-burning of the relatively unknown writer Julián Carax. We watch Daniel mature as he is innocently co-opted by Carax’s puzzle. While he plays devoted detective, the story is every bit as much about him as it is about enigmatic Carax and his lost love.

2) Tobsha Learner’s “The Witch of Cologne”: Ruth bas Elazar Saul walks a fine line as a Jewish midwife in 17th century Catholic Cologne. In fact, her precarious role is such that a successful delivery results in accusations of witchcraft, while failure would result in her death. As the Spanish Inquisition encroaches on Cologne and a lifelong enemy of her late mother heads up the initiative, Ruth loses everything. She does, however, find love in the process, and more importantly gains a name for herself as a scientist as well as a midwife. Learner’s plot is so intricately woven that no simple summary could do it justice; you’ll have to read it. If you do pick up a copy, though, don’t blame me for the dirty parts. I didn’t write them, and I did warn you.

3) Karen Yamashita’s “Through the Arc of the Rain Forest”: The fact that I first encountered Yamashita in an STS class doesn’t make the read any less flavorful. In fact, appreciating the layered complexity of Yamashita’s magical realism is a key component to enjoying her work. “Through the Arc” is peppered with the absurd, from a male protagonist with a plastic ball spinning in front of his forehead to Amazonian monkeys shooting each other with machine guns. You’ll smile within the pages, and then reflect once the cover’s closed: the perfect summer read.

4) Eugenia Price’s Georgia Trilogy: If we can’t read rich, Southern-set historical romances in the dog days of summer, when can we partake? Within this dubious sub-genre of “real literature,” Price is the best. The first book, “Bright Captivity,” opens with the celebration of Anne Couper’s eighteenth birthday in St. Simon’s, Georgia. Who better to crash the party than the British soldiers, fresh arrivals for the other shindig going on in that era — the War of 1812? Without ruining the story (admittedly, it isn’t that original to begin with — but don’t let that deter you), Anne relates particularly well to a British soldier. The story continues with “Beauty from Ashes” and “Where Shadows Go.” None of the three are less than 550 pages.

5) Anton Myrer’s “Once an Eagle”: I’ve been saving the best for last. This book catalogs the life of Sam Damon, an “ordinary American” who is first defined and then destroyed by his connection with the military. Damon enlists in World War II as a small town teenager, and his experience on the European front earns him the near-worship of his community upon his return. He decides to continue his career in the military in large part because he has no other competing idea of what to do. Myrer, a war veteran himself, follows Damon through World War II and the Korean Conflict, painting a tragic portrait of a dignified man trapped by honor and habit. For those who might construe “Once an Eagle as the literary equivalent of “The Fourth of July,” meant as a sharp critique of the military, Myrer deviates from expectation. Ultimately, Damon is the most convincing soldier-hero I’ve ever encountered in fiction. The most harrowing scenes involve his inflexible honor: he persuades his best friend, for example, to return to the front and not to desert — only to watch him die days later. I had a friend (okay, my brother-in-law) read this book. He started it on a plane ride to a family vacation in Germany, and he finished it hiding from his brother and sister in the hotel bathtub later that night. It’s that good.

These five books, some of my favorites for one reason or another, should get you started. If you run out of ideas (or simply don’t enjoy the historical-fiction-skew of my recommendations), solicit advice from a bookseller. I used to work at Barnes & Noble. Besides the 40% off Christmas-time discount, the best thing about working there was connecting people with a book they truly might enjoy.