July is an interesting month: arguably peak summer, a time for travel and beach jaunts and — perhaps — a time to consider what the second half of the year has in store. July can be a lot, basically. And so, our recommended July books cover a lot of territory. If you’re in a serious mood and would like a searing trip into recent history, we have you covered. If you’re looking for an ambitious tale of adventure, we can help with that as well. Here are 10 recommended books due out this month.
Alex Christofi, Cypria: A Journey to the Heart of the Mediterranean — A Gripping New History of Cyprus (July 23)
The island of Cyprus has a long and fascinating history — a statement that’s accurate whether you’re discussing its ancient history or more contemporary events. Alex Christofi’s new book offers readers a thoughtful, unexpected look at Cyprus’s history and the places and people who made it wholly singular. It’s also worth pointing out that this book received rave reviews upon its publication in the U.K.
Keanu Reeves and China Miéville, The Book of Elsewhere (July 23)
When he’s not acting, running a motorcycle company or publishing books, Keanu Reeves has been getting into the storytelling side of things. That initially took the form of a comic book, BRZRKR, that he co-wrote with Matt Kindt. Now, he’s heading into the world of prose and, as with his comic work, his writing collaborator is an interesting choice — China Miéville, whose heady forays into fantasy and science fiction are well worth your time. That the plot of this one involves immortality, cosmic forces and unsettling secrets may well sweeten the deal.
Robyn Hitchcock, 1967: How I Got There and Why I Never Left (July 2)
Robyn Hitchcock has been making music that combines cerebral imagery with visceral pop chops for decades now — and he’s collaborated with everyone from members of R.E.M. to Gillian Welch and David Rawlings over the years. With his new book 1967, he’s revealed his own origin story, recounting the year in which his love of music transformed into something else and paved the way for his long career there.
Chris Nashawaty, The Future Was Now: Madmen, Mavericks, and the Epic Sci-Fi Summer of 1982 (July 30)
There are a lot of years that are considered to have been seismic when it comes to cinematic history. In The Future Was Now, Chris Nashawaty makes a convincing case for 1982’s place in that pantheon. That summer saw the release of eight films that proved to be hugely influential for science fiction on screen: Blade Runner, Conan the Barbarian, E.T., Mad Max: The Road Warrior, Poltergeist, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, The Thing and Tron. In The Future Was Now, Nashawaty chronicles the circumstances around those films’ release — and the way they transformed the industry.
Paolo Iacovelli, The King of Video Poker (July 9)
Gambling has become increasingly ubiquitous in recent years, with fiction about gamblers doing its part to balance things out. Paolo Iacovelli’s debut novel follows one man whose compulsive playing of video poker leads him to travel to Las Vegas, abandoning his family for an uncertain future in order to do so. If you suspect that things get bleaker from there — well, things do have a tendency to get worse in tales of gambling.
Betsy T. Phillips, Dynamite Nashville: Unmasking the FBI, the KKK, and the Bombers Beyond Their Control (July 16)
Historian Betsy T. Phillips has been chronicling Nashville’s turbulent history for years — including a series of articles about racist bombings that left the city unsettled in the 1950s and 1960s. Her new book Dynamite Nashville is a book-length chronicle of that time in the Nashville’s history, focusing on a trio of bombings that reverberated on both a local and national level, and the response from Civil Rights leaders and law enforcement.
Jay Ellis, Did Everyone Have an Imaginary Friend (or Just Me)?: Adventures in Boyhood (July 30)
Jay Ellis’s career in film and television has included roles in the likes of Insecure and Top Gun: Maverick. His latest project, though, is a book that chronicles his unique childhood — one where his father’s Air Force job caused the family to move frequently and a young Ellis took refuge in an imaginary friend. It’s a compelling look at one young man’s experiences coming of age that will likely resonate with a wide readership.
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Sarah Gerard, Carrie Carolyn Coco: My Friend, Her Murder, and an Obsession with the Unthinkable (July 9)
Sarah Gerard’s previous foray into nonfiction, Sunshine State, was a memorable journey into spaces both personal and political. For her new book, she’s honed both down and combined them for a searing narrative which explores the 2016 death of one of her friends. The result is a haunting, empathic read that ventures to some difficult and revelatory places.
Elle Reeve, Black Pill: How I Witnessed the Darkest Corners of the Internet Come to Life, Poison Society, and Capture American Politics (July 9)
As the prevalence of conspiracy theories, misinformation and disinformation all increase, it’s eminently worth looking into why these things happen, what effect they can have on our society and how we can take steps to stop them. CNN correspondent Elle Reeve’s new book Black Pill takes readers into the origins of these phenomena — as well as the unsettling places they’ve gone since then.
Ed Simon, Devil’s Contract: The History of the Faustian Bargain (July 9)
Whether literal or metaphorical, the idea of a deal with the devil has had plenty of mileage over the centuries. For his latest book, Ed Simon — whose previous cultural histories have been both illuminating and engaging — chronicles examples of the Satanic bargain in history and literature, and analyzes what our continued interest in it says about our society.
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