June — A place you want to visit

The June theme for our "Read with The Snail" Reading Challenge is a book set in a place you want to visit. Summer is the perfect time to be transported to a far-flung locale, so let your wanderlust lead you this month.

We asked Erin Burke, who writes a book/travel blog called Flying off the Bookshelf, for some of her recommendations. You'll find them below, along with her reasons for reading. We think you'll love her suggestions! 

We can't wait to see what you share this month; make sure to share on social media and use the hashtag #ReadwithTheSnail.

Click HERE to return to our Reading Challenge, and find all the categories and reading lists.

The Girls of Summer: A Novel By Katie Bishop Cover Image
$28.00
ISBN: 9781250283917
Availability: Coming Soon - Pre-Order From The Snail!
Published: St. Martin's Press - June 6th, 2023

Years ago, Rachel had an affair with Alistair, who was twenty years older than her. Now, Rachel still feels obsessed with that affair. But was everything as it seemed at the time? Or are there troubling details about it she may have forgotten? This is for fans of psychological suspense. —Erin, Flying off the Bookshelf


You Can't Stay Here Forever: A Novel By Katherine Lin Cover Image
$28.99
ISBN: 9780063241435
Availability: Coming Soon - Pre-Order From The Snail!
Published: Harper - June 13th, 2023

After her husband dies unexpectedly, Ellie cashes in his life insurance policy and escapes to the French Riviera with her best friend. At first, it’s the perfect distraction, but eventually she has the face the truth of what her life is. —Erin, Flying off the Bookshelf


Hula: A Novel By Jasmin Iolani Hakes Cover Image
$32.00
ISBN: 9780063276987
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: HarperVia - May 2nd, 2023

In this family saga set in Hilo, Hawaii, Hi’i is aiming to win the Miss Aloha Hula competition. Meanwhile, her mother and grandmother have secrets they have never shared with her and there are growing tensions in her community that somehow connect back to her family. Perfect for readers who love a multi-generational family story. —Erin, Flying off the Bookshelf


The Little Italian Hotel By Phaedra Patrick Cover Image
$30.00
ISBN: 9780778307648
Availability: Coming Soon - Pre-Order From The Snail!
Published: Park Row - June 6th, 2023

Pieces of Blue By Holly Goldberg Sloan Cover Image
$28.99
ISBN: 9781250847300
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Flatiron Books - May 9th, 2023

After Lindsey’s husband dies, she and her kids need a change. So she decides to buy an old motel in Hawaii to fix up, and she and her three kids move there in search of a new life. For readers who love contemporary family stories with a bit a romance. —Erin, Flying off the Bookshelf


America the Beautiful?: One Woman in a Borrowed Prius on the Road Most Traveled By Blythe Roberson Cover Image
$18.99
ISBN: 9780063115514
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Harper Perennial - April 18th, 2023

In this memoir, Blythe Roberson examines the idea of the road trip as she sets off on her own to explore the US National Parks. This is a memoir filled with both humor and reflection, as she thinks about what it really means to escape your problems by traveling. —Erin, Flying off the Bookshelf


Off the Map By Trish Doller Cover Image
$16.99
ISBN: 9781250809490
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: St. Martin's Griffin - March 7th, 2023

Carla loves traveling the world and never stopping for long in one spot. But then she goes to Dublin for her friend’s wedding and is driven by Eamon, a mapmaker whose life has gone off course. For readers who love romance. —Erin, Flying off the Bookshelf


Beautiful Ruins: A Novel By Jess Walter Cover Image
$16.99
ISBN: 9780061928178
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Harper Perennial - April 2nd, 2013

When a movie star in the 1960s shows up to a little Italian Riviera village with a secret, a local man hopes it might be the big break his town needs to attract tourists. Fifty years later, in Hollywood, the ramifications of that encounter resurface. Perfect for readers who want to escape to Italy and enjoy books with multiple timelines. — Erin, Flying Off the Bookshelf


Honestly, We Meant Well: A Novel By Grant Ginder Cover Image
$17.99
Email or call for price
ISBN: 9781250143167
Published: Flatiron Books - September 22nd, 2020

Family dysfunction is at its finest when the Wright family travels to Greece for vacation. Sue Ellen Wright is a Classics professor who is excited to return to the island where she first fell in love with Greece. But the rest of her family is keeping all kinds of secrets that threaten their peace. For fans of contemporary fiction and family stories. — Erin, Flying off the Bookshelf


Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life By William Finnegan Cover Image
$18.00
ISBN: 9780143109396
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Penguin Books - April 26th, 2016

In this memoir, William Finnegan writes about his obsession with surfing, from his childhood in Hawaii to seeking out waves no one had ever ridden in the South Pacific. You might think you aren’t interested in surfing, but this is one of those non-fiction titles that will pull you in and make you care deeply about something you thought you had no interest in. — Erin, Flying off the Bookshelf


Unfamiliar Fishes By Sarah Vowell Cover Image
$18.00
ISBN: 9781594485640
Availability: Backordered at publisher (but we may have it in stock!)
Published: Riverhead Books - March 6th, 2012

This non-fiction title about the history of Hawaii tackles the subjects of colonialism and the overthrowing of Hawaii’s government with both the seriousness it deserves and the dry humor that Vowell brings to all her writing. If you’re planning a trip to Hawaii, this is a perfect book to read to understand the history of where you’re going. —Erin, Flying off the Bookshelf


The Battle for Paradise: Puerto Rico Takes on the Disaster Capitalists By Naomi Klein Cover Image
$9.95
ISBN: 9781608463572
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Haymarket Books - June 5th, 2018

The recent hurricanes that have devastated Puerto Rico have made it a prime target for capitalists to swoop in and develop a vacation paradise. But how does this impact the people of Puerto Rico? And how can we travel to Puerto Rico responsibly? This is a short book that helps us be more thoughtful about the impact we have on the places we travel to. —Erin, Flying off the Bookshelf


Staff Pick Badge
One Italian Summer: A Novel By Rebecca Serle Cover Image
$17.99
ISBN: 9781982166809
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Atria Books - March 7th, 2023

Seating Arrangements (Vintage Contemporaries) By Maggie Shipstead Cover Image
$16.95
ISBN: 9780307743954
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Vintage - May 7th, 2013

This novel takes place over the course of one wedding weekend in New England, as family members behave badly, lobsters escape, and a whale washes up on the beach. For fans of literary fiction and dysfunctional family stories. —Erin, Flying off the Bookshelf


The Good Left Undone: A Novel By Adriana Trigiani Cover Image
$17.00
ISBN: 9780593183342
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Dutton - April 18th, 2023

Happy Place By Emily Henry Cover Image
$27.00
ISBN: 9780593441275
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Berkley - April 25th, 2023

Harriet and Wyn are taking one last summer vacation with their friends, escaping to the Maine cottage they’ve been going to for years. The only problem? Their friends don’t know they broke up months ago. —Erin, Flying off the Bookshelf


Save Me the Plums: My Gourmet Memoir By Ruth Reichl Cover Image
$18.00
ISBN: 9780812982381
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Random House Trade Paperbacks - May 5th, 2020

Ruth Reichl was maybe an unexpected choice to be the editor for Gourmet when she was offered the job, but she took it anyway and transformed the magazine. This is a very New York book as she dines around the city having meetings and tries to live in the fast-paced magazine world without losing herself. Perfect for readers who love food memoirs. —Erin, Flying off the Bookshelf


The Five-Star Weekend By Elin Hilderbrand Cover Image
$30.00
ISBN: 9780316258777
Availability: Coming Soon - Pre-Order From The Snail!
Published: Little, Brown and Company - June 13th, 2023

The London Séance Society By Sarah Penner Cover Image
$30.00
ISBN: 9780778387114
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Park Row - March 7th, 2023

The Queens of Animation: The Untold Story of the Women Who Transformed the World of Disney and Made Cinematic History By Nathalia Holt Cover Image
$18.99
ISBN: 9780316439145
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Back Bay Books - October 27th, 2020

Want to look at the Most Magical Place on Earth a little differently? This book dives into the history of the Disney company and the women who helped animate the movies and yet hardly ever got the credit. You’ll really never watch a Disney movie the same way again. —Erin, Flying off the Bookshelf


Staff Pick Badge
Go as a River By Shelley Read Cover Image
$28.00
ISBN: 9781954118232
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Spiegel & Grau - February 28th, 2023

Next Year in Havana By Chanel Cleeton Cover Image
$15.00
ISBN: 9780399586682
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Berkley - February 6th, 2018

Leave Only Footprints: My Acadia-to-Zion Journey Through Every National Park By Conor Knighton Cover Image
$17.00
ISBN: 9781984823557
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Crown - April 6th, 2021

After a breakup, Conor Knighton, a journalist, decides to spend a year traveling to every major US National Park. This memoir about his journey is filled with both humor and thought-provoking reflections. You’ll learn so much about our National Parks and never look at them the same way again. —Erin, Flying off the Bookshelf


The Vacationers: A Novel By Emma Straub Cover Image
$17.00
ISBN: 9781594633881
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Riverhead Books - June 2nd, 2015

The Unhoneymooners By Christina Lauren Cover Image
$16.99
ISBN: 9781501128035
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Gallery Books - May 14th, 2019

The Golden Hour: A Novel By Beatriz Williams Cover Image
$16.99
ISBN: 9780062834768
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: William Morrow Paperbacks - June 2nd, 2020

The Signature of All Things: A Novel By Elizabeth Gilbert Cover Image
$18.00
ISBN: 9780143125846
Availability: Usually available in 1-5 days
Published: Riverhead Books - June 24th, 2014