Looking for some great books to enjoy this summer as a teacher? Whether you want to relax by the pool, curl up in bed, or sharpen your skills, we have some recommendations for you. Here are a few recommended books for teachers to read for fun, followed by some more serious and inspiring reads, and finally the best books to help you grow as a professional.
Best Books for Teachers, Summer 2023
These 3 books are our favorites based on teacher feedback, Amazon reviews, and our intuition from chatting with over 3,000 teachers this year. We think these are the best fiction books for teachers this summer. What about you? Share your thoughts in the comments!
The Four Winds
The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah is a historical fiction novel about Elsa Wolcott, a Texas farmer who migrates to California with her two children during the Dust Bowl. The novel explores how Elsa and her family face the challenges of poverty, discrimination, and exploitation as they search for a better life in the land of milk and honey.
The Push
“A tense, page-turning psychological drama about the making and breaking of a family—and a woman whose experience of motherhood is nothing at all what she hoped for—and everything she feared.”
The Sanatorium
The Sanatorium by Sarah Pearse is a psychological thriller novel about a detective who has to solve a series of murders at a luxury hotel in the Swiss Alps. The hotel, Le Sommet, used to be a sanatorium for tuberculosis patients and has a dark history. The detective, Elin Warner, is also haunted by her own past and has to face her fears and secrets as she tries to find the killer before it’s too late.
Best Nonfiction Books this Summer (2023)
Don’t worry, this part is not “too boring”. It’s like reading something smart on a flight or with your breakfast, not like relaxing by the pool or with a glass of wine. But trust us, these nonfiction books are INCREDIBLE! They’ll touch your emotions, your thoughts, and your energy.
Grown Up Digital: How the Net Generation is Changing Your World
“If you’re a Baby Boomer or Gen-Xer: This is your field guide.
A fascinating inside look at the Net Generation, Grown Up Digital is inspired by a $4 million private research study. New York Times bestselling author Don Tapscott has surveyed more than 11,000 young people. Instead of a bunch of spoiled “screenagers” with short attention spans and zero social skills, he discovered a remarkably bright community which has developed revolutionary new ways of thinking, interacting, working, and socializing.”
The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact
“Many of the defining moments in our lives are the result of accident or luck – but why would we leave our most meaningful, memorable moments to chance when we can create them? The Power of Moments shows us how to be the author of richer experiences.”
Explore this book on Amazon >>
The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters
“Priya Parker argues that the gatherings in our lives are lackluster and unproductive–which they don’t have to be. We rely too much on routine and the conventions of gatherings when we should focus on distinctiveness and the people involved. The Art of Gathering will forever alter the way you look at your next meeting, industry conference, dinner party, and backyard barbecue–and how you host and attend them.”
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Best Professional Books for Teachers in 2023
First, we checked out the books that are perfect for relaxing on the sand. Then, we explored some books that will make you think and feel. Finally, don’t miss the ones that will boost your skills and career.
Teaching with Your Mouth Shut
We love this book because it focuses on recognizing that our job as educators is not to deliver expert information, but to create an environment for students to learn.
“Use Teaching With Your Mouth Shut to design activities that require students to do the developmental work. It’ll teach them how to learn in collaborative workshops. How to learn for life.”
Explore this book on Amazon >>
The Innovator’s Mindset: Empower Learning, Unleash Talent, and Lead a Culture of Creativity
This book is a must-read for all educators(district leaders included)!
“The traditional system of education requires students to hold their questions and compliantly stick to the scheduled curriculum. But our job as educators is to provide new and better opportunities for our students. It’s time to recognize that compliance doesn’t foster innovation, encourage critical thinking, or inspire creativity—and those are the skills our students need to succeed.”
Explore this book on Amazon >>
The Beginning Teacher’s Field Guide: Embarking on Your First Years (Self-Care and Teaching Tips for New Teachers)
“The joys and pains of starting a teaching career often go undiscussed. This field guide dives deep into the personal side of teaching, offering crucial advice, empathy, and new-teacher support. The author details six phases every new or first-year teacher goes through (anticipation, survival, disillusionment, rejuvenation, reflection, and second anticipation) and outlines targeted classroom strategies, teaching tips, and self-care practices for each.”
Explore this book on Amazon >>
Honorable Mentions
- The Survivors “As always, Harper skillfully evokes the landscape as she weaves a complicated, elegant web, full of long-buried secrets ready to come to light.” –The New York Times Book Review
- The Last Thing He Told Me “page-turning, exhilarating” PopSugar
- The Teachers: A Year Inside America’s Most Vulnerable, Important Profession “A National Bestseller. A riveting, must-read, year-in-the-life account of three teachers, combined with reporting that reveals what’s really going on behind school doors.”
- The New Childhood: Raising Kids to Thrive in a Connected World “A provocative look at the new, digital landscape of childhood and how to navigate it.”
- The Classroom Management “This is a solutions book that shows how to organize and structure a classroom…”
- The Happy Teacher Habits: 11 Habits of the Happiest, Most Effective Teachers on Earth “This is no ordinary teaching book. It is a success roadmap through an educational system that is becoming increasingly harder to navigate.”
- The First Days of School: How to Be an Effective Teacher For New Teachers!
- The Power of Our Words: Teacher Language that Helps Children Learn
- Conscious Discipline: Building Resilient Classrooms
We kicked off this list with some fun beach reads, and now we’ve reached the end. We hope this list gave you some great ideas for books to read this summer. We’d love to hear from you in the comments below! Which book caught your eye? What book do you think we should have included? What’s a must-read book for teachers this summer?
Want to see last summer’s recommendations?
