Boiling Point: Literary Heatwaves in the Members’ Lounge this July

With the temperature rising outside, we’ve compiled a list of books that feature hot weather or heatwaves here at the American Library in Paris this July. 

Authors often use hot weather and heatwaves at moments of intensity, helping to build tension between characters in the run-up to an often explosive climax. 

From characters who can’t keep their hands off one another on a sultry summer’s day, to fiery revelations, strained and exhausting midday meals where time feels suspended, and children running riot under the influence of sunburn and hot temperatures, this literary trope guarantees drama and suspense in equal measure. 

We’ve curated a selection of literary heatwaves in the Members’ Lounge, all available to check out and read, just in time for some real-life hot weather here in Paris.

Atonement by Ian McEwan 

On the hottest day of the summer of 1935, thirteen-year-old Briony Tallis sees her older sister Cecilia strip off her clothes and plunge into the fountain in the garden of their country house, setting off a chain of events that will change the lives of all three. 

Call Me By Your Name by André Aciman 

Taking place during a balmy 1980s summer on the Italian Riviera, a sudden and powerful romance blossoms between an adolescent boy and a summer guest at his parents’ house.

The Cement Garden by Ian McEwan

In this haunting novel, four children do something unforgivable on a hot summer’s day that will set in motion a series of depraved events. 

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd 

A heartwarming coming of age tale set in 1960s South Carolina. 

Instructions for a Heatwave by Maggie O’Farrell

A story of a dysfunctional but deeply loveable family reunited, set during the legendary summer of 1976.

The Greengage Summer by Rumer Godden

Left alone because of their mother’s sudden hospitalization during a vacation in France, four British children have to fend for themselves.

The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy

The story of Rahel and Estha, twins growing up among the banana jam vats and peppercorns of their blind grandmother’s factory, and amid scenes of political turbulence in Kerala.

But no matter where you are in the world—whether it’s sizzling hot or freezing cold—you can escape into a literary heatwave on our online reading platforms. 

We recently launched a collection of e-audiobooks, from classics to today’s bestsellers, many of which feature high temperatures: 

• Listen to Agatha Christie’s classic murder mystery set in the sweltering Egyptian heat, Death on the Nile

• Listen to The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, in which the rich and the poor contend with the heat—and their own trials and tribulations—in 1920s New York

You can also use Libby to borrow e-books which feature hot weather, including: 

• NW by Zadie Smith – set in summer in northwest London, four locals try to make adult lives outside of Caldwell, the council estate of their childhood

• Holes by Louis Sachar – Stanley Yelnats is sent to a hellish correctional camp in the Texas desert where he finds his first real friend, a treasure, and a new sense of himself

• Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens – either as an e-book or an e-audiobook – follows an unforgettable young woman who is determined to make her way in the wilds of North Carolina

Happy reading!