If You Only Read One Book in July, Make it This One
It’s officially summer. That means peaches are in season, shorts and sunscreen are integral parts of warm weather uniforms, and the perfect lazy day involves a pool and a really good book. If you’re in the market for a tote bag-friendly novel that’ll keep you company, there’s a handful of great July releases.
Out of the bunch, the novel to pick up first is “Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead” (it sounds more ominous than it is). In her debut novel, Emily Austin introduces Gilda, a 27-year-old young woman who has anxiety. After getting into a fender bender and realizing she can’t keep going back to the hospital every time she’s having a panic attack, Gilda starts half-heartedly looking for a solution.
That solution comes to her in the form of a Catholic church pamphlet that advertises free therapy. “Do you need someone to talk to? Come to 1919 Peach Tree Crescent for free mental health support,” the pamphlet reads. Gilda isn’t totally sure why she thinks this is a good idea: She’s an atheist, and the Catholic church is generally not known for welcoming lesbians with open arms. Gilda goes anyway, and is surprised when Pastor Jeff mistakes her for a job applicant for an open receptionist role.
Gilda really needs the money, so she takes the job. However, she soon discovers that the receptionist before her died, and the police think the circumstances around her death are suspicious. Gilda’s anxiety takes on a whole new level as she pretends to be a heterosexual Catholic, and her fears only deepen when a church-goer sets her up with an obnoxious male YouTuber and she keeps having to hide things from her new girlfriend. Also, she begins investigating the death of the former receptionist, because why not?
“Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead” isn’t exactly a lighthearted read, but Austin’s deadpan humor and tenderness is what makes Gilda so lovable and relatable. It’s difficult to capture anxiety, depression, and the unbearable ways people-pleasing is detrimental to our mental health, but Austin does it well.
Here are a few other books to add to your summer reading list: