Welcome to the Graham Library!
Whether you are stepping onto campus for your very first day or returning for another year, explore these summer reading recommendations from our library staff.
To our incoming students and new faculty: a warm welcome to your new academic home. To our returning faces: welcome back. We missed the energy you bring to the stacks. Whether you are stepping into your first lecture hall, moving into residence, or diving back into advanced research, the John W. Graham Library team is here to support you every step of the way. Check out our Library Support Services.
While campus was quiet this summer, our team kept busy preparing for your arrival, and of course, reading. To help kick off the term, we gathered our favourite summer recommendations, organized into two distinct moods:
- Syllabus Breakers: Light, fast-paced, or captivating reads designed to give your brain a true break between classes, tutorials, and heavy study sessions.
- Deep Dives: Thought-provoking non-fiction, rich memoirs, and historical deep dives for when you want to get completely absorbed in a complex topic.
Here is what we read this summer, along with why we think you should add them to your hold list this fall.
Syllabus Breakers: Our Top Summer Reading Recommendations
The Other Bennet Sister
by Janice Hadlow
(Popular Reading: PR6108 .A354 O84 2021)
Recommended by:
Daniela Mazic, Library Technician, Public Services & Community Engagement
Why You’ll Love It:
Jane Austen fans will not be disappointed with Janice Hadlow’s rendering of Mary Bennet, the bookish, often ignored middle sibling in Pride and Prejudice. The Other Bennet Sister imagines Mary’s life after all her sisters have married, as she is forced to consider her own circumstances and forge her own path. Mary’s journey sees her severe, logical outlook on life challenged as she matures emotionally, gaining confidence and admirers along the way (of course). Hadlow’s Mary is a multidimensional character that readers will love just as much as they do Austen’s Lizzy.
Frying Plantain: Stories
by Zalika Reid-Benta
(Popular Reading: PS8635 .E4355 F79 2019)
Recommended by:
Rebekah Bedard, Distinctive Collections Librarian
Why You’ll Love It:
Frying Plantain is a fantastic series of short stories about a girl growing up in Toronto’s Little Jamaica. The stories poignantly explore the protagonist’s relationships with her mother, Jamaican grandparents, and friends, and her experiences being a second-generation Canadian in Toronto in the 1990s.
One Half of Robertson Davies: Provocative Pronouncements on a Wide Range of Topics
by Robertson Davies
(Stacks: PS8507 .A9 A16 1977)
Recommended by:
Allison Graham, Instruction and Theology Librarian
Why You’ll Love It:
A collection of short stories and speeches from the ever-witty Robertson Davies. I particularly recommend the story “The cat that went to Trinity” for some Gothic feline adventures on campus.
Trash!: A Garbageman’s Story
by Simon Paré-Poupart
(Popular Reading: HD8039 .R462 P3713 2026)
Recommended by:
Heather Buchansky, Head Librarian of User Services
Why You’ll Love It:
At just under 200 pages, this book is a short but powerful story about the world of garbage collectors, as told by a Montreal man who’s been on the scene for two decades. It made me think about how much we throw away really belongs at the curb and whether it was needed in the first place.
Deep Dives for Your Hold List
Ready to lock in and explore a rich world, topic, or era? These are for you.
The Memoirs of Cleopatra: A Novel
by Margaret George
(Stacks: PS3557 .E49 M4 1997)
Recommended by:
Sandy Soud, Library Technician, Acquisitions and Cataloguing
Why You’ll Love It:
Margaret George brings one of history’s most iconic figures to life through an incredibly immersive, first-person character study. Instead of relying on the usual myths, this novel dives deep into Cleopatra’s psychological motivations, her brilliant political mind, and the complex relationship dynamics she navigated to protect her empire. If you appreciate sweeping storytelling and deeply layered, multidimensional characters who take charge of their own narrative, this massive historical fiction is incredibly easy to get completely lost in.
In Trees: An Exploration
by Robert Moor
(Stacks: BF353.5 .N37 M66 2026)
Recommended by:
Allison Graham, Instruction and Theology Librarian
Why You’ll Love It:
From tree climbing to bonsai cultivation, family trees to environmental activism, Moor explores humans’ relations with trees and how the processes of rooting, branching, and gnarling can be a model for living well.
Liberty Street: A Novel
by Heather Marshall
(Popular Reading: PS8626 .A76677 L53 2026)
Recommended by:
Heather Buchansky, Head Librarian of User Services
Why You’ll Love It:
This historical fiction novel about a former Toronto women’s prison offers a shocking glimpse into a dark chapter of Canadian history. I got a lot out of reading the author’s notes, as the characters and storylines Marshall included demonstrated the depth of research that went into writing this book.
Stop By & Say Hello!
Whether you are looking for a quiet study nook, research help, or your next favourite book, our doors are open. Drop by our circulation desk to introduce yourself, pick up your holds, or let us know what you read this summer.
Welcome to the semester! Let’s make it a great one.
