List

Let's Go on an Adventure!

By Skokie Staff Advisory Services

Whether you are diving into a fiction book featuring time traveling, magic, and distant places, or traveling vicariously through nonfiction, we have selected a variety of titles to satisfy your wanderlust this summer and beyond.

  • Sun of Blood and Ruin

    2024 by Lares, Mariely

    An action-packed swashbuckling, gender-flipped Zorro story set in an alternative 16th century Mexico that beautifully weaves history, magic, mythology, and romance into a read that I found hard to put down. Suggested by Rummanah.

    Get this item

  • True North

    2024 by Graff, Andrew J.

    After buying a rafting company on a whim, the Brechts move their family from Chicago to northern Wisconsin to try out life on the river. Hoping to rekindle their marriage and build a successful business, they find they must fight for their family and the land they have grown to love. Suggested by Brenna.

    Get this item

  • A Quantum Love Story

    2024 by Chen, Mike

    Quantum mechanics engineer Carter Cho is stuck in a mysterious four-day time loop and needs the help of neuroscientist Mariana Pineda. Featuring intricate worldbuilding, this charming story is an adventure through time and love in a way that you won't want to miss. Suggested by Paul.

    Get this item

  • The Book of Doors

    2024 by Brown, Gareth

    Cassie discovers she has the ability to go through any door and come out wherever she wishes after one of her favorite customers dies in her bookstore. Kirkus Reviews raves, "a whirlwind journey that opens doors into other worlds but also into the heart of the human experience." Perfect for fans of ;The Midnight Library, The Invisible Life of Addie Larue, The Night Circus,; and The Ten Thousand Doors of January. Suggested by Rummanah.

    Get this item

  • The Great Divide

    2024 by Henríquez, Cristina

    This lyrical novel will transport you back in time to the building of the Panama Canal and the historically overlooked people who came from all over to work on its construction. With rich detail and warm characterization, this is a great pick for historical fiction fans. Suggested by Brenna.

    Get this item

  • A Short Walk through a Wide World

    2024 by Westerbeke, Douglas

    In this critically acclaimed debut, Aubry is cursed with immortality, with a requirement that she stay in perpetual motion at a young age. She flees Paris and embarks on a century-spanning, globe-trotting odyssey, seeking a cure and discovering a world beyond the boundaries of time and space. Kirkus Reviews glowingly praises, "striking set pieces, stunning character work, and evocative, insightful prose make every page worth savoring." Suggested by Rummanah.

    Get this item

  • The Wishing Game

    2023 by Shaffer, Meg

    Do you remember the magic of reading your favorite childhood book? For Lucy Hart, a 26-year-old woman who is feeling lost and alone in life, that magic might be her only hope after her favorite childhood author announces a mysterious contest on the island where his books took place. Suggested by Elise.

    Get this item

  • The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi

    2023 by Chakraborty, S. A.

    A thrilling fantasy adventure featuring pirates and sorcerers, forbidden artifacts and ancient mysteries, and one woman's determined quest to seize a final chance at glory and write her own legend. Suggested by Rummanah and Sharon.

    Get this item

  • On Savage Shores: How Indigenous Americans Discovered Europe

    2023 by Dodds Pennock, Caroline

    The "Age of Discovery" is still almost always taught as a unidirectional affair. But thousands of people from the so-called "New World" would visit Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries, sometimes enslaved, sometimes feted as visiting royalty. This book combs the historical record for glimpses of those forgotten voyagers, arguing that they deserve to be recognized as "explorers" in their own right. Suggested by Andrew.

    Get this item

  • The Slow Traveller: An Intentional Path to Mindful Adventures

    2023 by Tinsley, Jo

    As somebody who's a great believer in making sure serendipity and the unexpected are part of any adventure, I really appreciated this book's focus on how to incorporate spontaneity, the unexpected, and chance encounters in our travels. And what a lovely book, too, full of color and whimsy and all based on the writings of the cherished (though now concluded) independent travel journal, Ernest. Suggested by Chris.

    Get this item

  • The Ark of Taste: Delicious and Distinctive Foods That Define the United States

    2023 by Lord, Giselle Kennedy

    Armchair travelers of all ages can enjoy Slow Food USA’s tour of “heritage” ingredients, basic foodstuffs that will only endure if Americans start eating them again. With beautiful illustrations, accessible facts, and recipes for things like “Manoomin (Midwestern wild rice) with Grilled Sunflower and Root Vegetables” and “Arkansas Black Apple Doughnuts,” this is a good book to wander through without any particular destination in mind. Suggested by Andrew.

    Get this item

  • Our Little Farm: Adventures in Sustainable Living

    2023 by Wohlleben, Peter

    Who hasn't daydreamed of moving to a small wooded village in Germany and making a go of living sustainably off the land? This husband and wife duo did just that, making a reasonable go of things and documenting their adventures in this inspirational memoir about self-sufficiency and the joys (and challenges!) of living off the land. Suggested by Chris.

    Get this item

  • The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder

    2023 by Grann, David

    The good news is that wherever your travels take you, you’re highly unlikely to have as bad a time as the crew of the H.M.S. Wager. Stranded in one of the most inhospitable environments on Earth, the unfortunate 18th century mariners split into warring camps that would later accuse each other of mutiny and worse. Suggested by Andrew.

    Get this item