Book by Book:
Adult Summer Reading

May 20 - August 30, 2019

Why let kids have all the fun? Milwaukee Public Library (MPL) is here to help grown-ups celebrate this summer with the best books around. Read or listen to five books between May 20- August 30, 2019 and be entered to win a membership for Milwaukee Film and other fun Milwaukee Public Library goodies.

To sign up, visit any MPL location for a reading log. Receive a coupon* for one free used book from the Friends of Milwaukee Public Library (while supplies last). *Redeemable at any MPL location.
Keep track of your books on your reading log.
Return completed log to any MPL by Friday, August 30 and enter for a chance to win a prize.
One entry per participant. Ages 18 +

The Book by Book Adult Summer Reading Program supports the library’s goal of creating a city of readers and lifelong learners by encouraging adults to read based on their interests, visit the library during the summer, and model positive reading habits. Past program participants have shared that the program helped reignite their passion for reading with the added benefit of fun prizes!

A special thank you to our 2019 prize sponsors!

Explore Our Booklists:

Recently Added

The Falconer
by Dana Czapnik

In 1993 New York, 17-year-old street-smart, trash-talking baller Lucy Adler finds her comfortable life playing pick-up games with her unrequited love, Percy, thrown into turmoil when a pair of female artists draw her into their world.

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Talent
by Juliet Lapidos

An English grad student struggling with her dissertation about the intellectual history of inspiration desperately searches for a perfect case study to anchor her thesis, only to find it in the unlikeliest of places.

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The Current
by Tim Johnston

Surviving the accident that killed her friend, a young woman delves into the case of another victim from a decade earlier to identify a killer among her neighbors.

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The Far Field
by Madhuri Vijay

After the death of her mother, Shalini, a young woman from Bangalore, arrives in Kashmir to confront a man from her mother's past but instead is brought face to face with the city's politics, forcing her to make difficult choices.

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To Keep the Sun Alive
by Rabeah Ghaffari

A cinematic novel about an Iranian family and their fruit orchard, caught up in the Revolution of 1979.

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Sugar Run
by Mesha Maren

Released after serving 18 years for manslaughter, Jodi McCarty finds her efforts to track down a friend and move on with the woman she loves challenged by the insular values of their rural West Virginia community.

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An Orchestra of Minorities
by Chigozie Obioma

In a contemporary twist of Homer's The Odyssey, a guardian spirit recounts the tragic story of a Nigerian poultry farmer who sacrifices everything for the wealthy woman he loves.

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Looker
by Laura Sims

A woman's obsession with the beautiful actress on her block drives her to the edge.

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Adele
by Leila Slimani

Adáele seems to have a perfect life as a successful journalist living with her surgeon husband and young son, but she is consumed by boredom and a sex addiction that she has to organize her entire day around.

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You Know You Want This
by Kristen Roupenian

A collection of short stories that includes the popular tale "Cat Person," as well as others that explore the complex--and often darkly funny--connections between gender, sex, and power across genres.