Summer Books 2025: What I'm Reading and Why Literature Is the Best Antidote to Noise

Summer is the season of light books, tradition says. But I abandoned this hierarchy a few years ago — a good book is good in any season, and vacation reading doesn't need to be superficial to be enjoyable. I find myself on my favorite terrace in Cluj with a stack of books and a coffee that's cooling, and I want to tell you what I've been reading lately and why.

Romance and Light Fiction: There's No Shame

The 'Off Campus' series and other contemporary romance titles have exploded in popularity in Romania, especially among young readers. There's a literary snobbism that looks down on these books — and it's completely wrong. Any book that keeps you away from screens and activates your imagination fulfills a valuable function. 'Terasa cu cărți' brought to attention translated Romanian titles that many wouldn't have discovered otherwise.

Serious Literary Fiction: Books That Stay With You

Alongside lighter reading, this summer I returned to some authors who don't compromise. Mircea Cărtărescu remains a reference point — Solenoid is a book I return to periodically for passages of devastating beauty. From world literature, I warmly recommend Stoner by John Williams — a book about a mediocre life written with extraordinary grace. It's the kind of novel that makes you look at your own life differently.

How to Rebuild the Reading Habit

If you've abandoned reading in favor of infinite scrolling, I know the return seems hard. A few tricks that worked for me: keep a physical book on your nightstand (not a phone); read 10 pages before any screen in the morning; choose your comeback book from your comfort zone — it doesn't need to be Dostoevsky. Your brain needs to rediscover the pleasure of reading before the challenge.