Discover some of my favorite summer reading list books for moms, including fiction and nonfiction, classics, and contemporaries.
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If you’re looking for some women’s fiction, parenting books, and memoirs to add to your summer reading list, here are over a dozen books, in no particular order. I even included a fun horror story about a moms’ book club.
Pick up a copy at your local library, add it to your e-reader, or purchase a good old paperback through the links below. Suggest these titles to your book club, read with a friend, or grab a good old paperback for the patio.
And of course, you don’t have to be a mom – or a woman – to enjoy these.
Mom’s summer reading list
The Paris Wife
The Paris Wife by Paula McLain
This story is historical fiction about Ernest Hemingway’s wife, Hadley. Told from her perspective, it starts with their meeting and tells the ups and downs of their relationship. They live in Paris in the 1920s and you really see Hemingway and their adventures through her eyes. The book is romantic and has all the appeal of The Sun Also Rises without Hemingway’s awkward writing style.
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Where’d You Go, Bernadette?
Where’d You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple
Bernadette is a working mom who struggles with the anxiety of work, family, and socializing with other moms. She avoids leaving the house and hires a virtual assistant to handle as much as possible for her. Her run-ins with the neighbors and helicopter parents finally drive her to disappear. The book is written as a compilation of research that her daughter gathered (emails, etc.) to find out where she went. This book is funny and resonates with the way most moms feel at some point.
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Love, Life, and Lucille: Lessons Learned from a Centenarian
Love, Life, and Lucille by Judy Gaman
This memoir tells the story of a middle-aged writer whose life is changed when she interviews a 100-year-old woman and they become best friends. The older woman becomes her mentor and a bit of a mother figure as the writer cares for her in her twilight. (Read a longer review.)
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The Red Tent
The Red Tent by Anita Diamant
This historical fiction focuses on the characters and culture circa 500 BC. It is based loosely on the story of Dinah from the Hebrew Bible. Told from Dinah’s perspective, it takes a close look at the culture and everyday life that people lead. The red tent is where women went during their monthly cycle, as well as during childbirth or severe illness. In the story, it represents the hub of women’s lives in the community.
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Of Mess and Moxie: Wrangling Delight Out of This Wild and Glorious Life
Of Mess and Moxie by Jen Hatmaker
Jen is a mom, wife, and very relatable woman. In this nonfiction book, she discusses all the mom-life hot topics from parenting and shopping to friendship and marriage. She shares her own embarrassing stories and struggles and gives advice to others who feel the same.
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Homeward Bound: Why Women are Embracing the New Domesticity
Homeward Bound by Emily Matchar
This book is a fun and interesting non-fiction read. The author goes on a quest to study women and the renewed interest in all things domestic. She interviews people who are homesteading, canning produce, growing their own vegetables, knitting and sewing, selling crafts, and even blogging. What she finds is that each person has a unique story on why and how they started doing what they do.
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Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the New Girlie-Girl Culture
Cinderella Ate My Daughter by Peggy Orenstein
This nonfiction book takes a serious look at what many parents call the princess phase. The author raises a lot of questions about little girls, princess dresses, tween makeup, and many of the issues that parents of daughters think about. This is a good book to get you thinking but doesn’t give you a list of answers.
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Motherhood So White: A Memoir of Race, Gender, and Parenting in America
Motherhood So White by Nefertiti Austin
This is the memoir of a single black woman who adopts a child through foster care. She shares her struggle with the system and other people, providing a different perspective than is often shared.
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Girl, Wash Your Face: Stop Believing the Lies about Who You Are So You Can Become Who You Were Meant to Be
Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis
Another nonfiction book, in this one Rachel gives her best girlfriend advice on 20 different topics that keep women and moms from living their best lives. This book is for every mom who is struggling or believes she is a failure.
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The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls
The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls by Anissa Gray
This family drama revolves around the relationship between mothers and daughters. When matriarch Althea and her husband are arrested for a crime, her sisters must care for her teen daughters. Each person in this family has strengths and struggles that are so realistic. This one is a page-turner to the end.
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Practical Magic
Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman
Gillian and Sally are sisters, raised by their aunts in a town that blames their family for everything wrong. They both try to escape, but the shared bonds of sisterhood are strong. When both are struggling, they return to their home to stop running from their magical heritage.
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All Adults Here
All Adults Here by Emma Straub
Astrid is the aging mom of adult children and when she witnesses an accident, she realizes she hasn’t always been the best one. Determined to fix things, she brings 3 generations together for a season of family drama and healing.
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Gold Diggers
Gold Diggers by Sanjena Sathian
In a story of contemporary magical realism, Anita and her mother have been turning stolen gold into potions that channel the owner’s ambition. When Neil, the boy next door gets involved, it turns into a tragedy. Ten years later, Anita and Neil must team up for one last magical heist to save her mother.
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The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires
The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix
A traditional 90s suburban housewife, Patricia’s book club is the highlight of her boring life. Reading true crime and thrillers is a distraction from her disconnected family – husband, kids, and mother-in-law. When a new man moves to their neighborhood, the women are entranced and welcome him into their social circle. But suddenly children are going missing and Patricia decides to investigate this mysterious stranger.
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No matter what your favorite genre is, there is something in this summer reading list of books for moms that you’ll enjoy. Grab your e-reader and download one of these today.
What’s next? Try these other fun and creative ideas on One Mama’s Daily Drama:
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