Editor's Note:

Under the scorching sun, ancient people sought relief from the heat by enjoying the lush shade in the mountains or frolicking in the water with friends. Those with a more refined taste, like the Tang Dynasty (618-907) poet Wei Zhuang, would "move their reading couch by the water." Isn't reading a wonderful way to spend the summer? As the sweltering season of summer arrives, so  does the latest installment of the Global Times' "Four Seasons Reading List: The Charm of Summer." 

We hope readers can find some shelter in the pages of these books during their leisure time.

Spring Songb By Ai Wei

The story of Spring Song begins in the 1980s. The author places three generations and six families in complex relationships, observing the vast landscape of the human heart with keen insight. It pays homage to Chinese aesthetics, while the people in the story are those who love it "without knowing where it begins, yet do so deeply and unwaveringly." 

Recommendation:

It is the peak of Ai Wei's romantic feelings and gorgeous writing, a graceful melody emanating from the beautiful sounds of a brocade zither. (Wang Kan, Professor at the School of Humanities, Hangzhou Normal University)

This Very Moment By Lu Min, Flower City Publishing House / Zhejiang Literature and Art Publishing House

This Very Moment tells the story of the protagonist Ai Shengchun, who actively rebuilds his life after hitting rock bottom. The work confronts the harsh reality of the complex economy that entangles and shelters daily life, carving out the character in detailed relief and painting a portrait of the times. 

Recommendation:

This Very Moment focuses on the suffering masses trapped in the mire "at this very moment." Eleven families, 11 sorrows, and 11 intertwining melodies of fate, bitter and joyful, are composed by the protagonist Ai Shengchun's resilience as a paean to ordinary people. (Song Song, Editor-in-Chief of Selected Novels Magazine)

Czu?y Narrator By Olga Tokarczuk

Czuły Narrator is Olga Tokarczuk's first work since winning the Nobel Prize in Literature. It includes 12 important and highly relevant essays selected by the author herself, opening up her behind-the-scenes world of writing to readers. 

Recommendation:

In the book, Tokarczuk elaborates on her creative philosophy: Creators always love their characters in some way, otherwise it would be impossible to deeply construct their identities and psychology. (Ma Ling, Professor at the School of Journalism, Fudan University)

Red Brick Building By Luo Weizhang

In the small town of Dongxuan stands a red brick building that was once a symbol of the local literary world. Living in the building was the "Dongxuan Writers Group," centered around Ran Qiang, Sun Yunqiao, and others. They surged and drifted on the tide of the times, staging tragicomedies about ideals, fame, and survival. Sincerely devoted to literature, the young Sheng Hua steps into the red brick building. 

Recommendation:

Based on reality and observing the human heart, the novel presents a panoramic view of the era's ecology and deeply examines today's spiritual dilemmas. (Han Chunyan, Professor at the School of Literature, Liaoning University)

The Beginning By Hai Zi

Although Hai Zi's career was short, he left behind a large number of works. The short story collection The Beginning is compiled from precious manuscripts that are being published for the first time. The language is vivid and imaginative, and can be seen as an exploration of poetic novels. 

Recommendation:

This book is named according to the poet's last wish and includes 10 short stories. They are mostly abrupt fragments, yet manage to generate boundless echoes in their incompleteness. (Hu Xingzhou, Assistant Professor at the Department of Chinese, Xiamen University)

Der Hahn ist tot By Ingrid Noll

Thyra is unmarried, independent, and attractive. After several failed relationships, she still dreams of love. At a literature lecture, it is love at first sight with the speaker Witold, which begins a series of secret encounters. 

Recommendation:

This is not a conventional story of "going crazy for love," but explores how women find their own way to exist in a world of branching paths, how they handle their bodies and desires, and how they face illness and friendship. (Huang Yuning, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of the Shanghai Translation Publishing House)

The Yellow River: A Natural and Unnatural History By Ruth Mostern

Since the Neolithic period, the Yellow River and its basin have influenced human society while being continuously shaped by human activities. Ruth Mostern uses the Yellow River to illustrate the significant and lasting impact of human activities on the environment, as well as the ecological changes caused by human decisions. 

Recommendation:

This book is not only a scientifically rigorous interdisciplinary masterpiece, but also an epic of the symbiosis between water and soil, people and rivers. (Ding Bo, Editor-in-Chief of Research Press)

Chinese Universities in the Flames of War (Expanded Edition) By Chen Pingyuan

During the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression (1931-45), China's higher education began a journey of relocation and rebirth amid the smoke of gunpowder. This book centers on National Southwest Associated University and other universities, and restores the real scenes of Chinese universities preserving their academic strength and continuing cultural lifelines at the juncture of life and death.

Recommendation:

Looking back at the stories of universities that guarded culture amid the flames of war not only allows us to touch the unyielding scholarly intentions and national responsibility of a generation of scholars, but also reminds us that responsibility to the nation, reverence for knowledge, and protection of cultural heritage are always the foundations of a university's existence. (Ma Bing, Professor at the School of Literature, Shandong University)

The Mountain in the Sea By Ray Naylor

This science fiction novel is about AI, yet far more than that. The novel imagines a world where a group of octopuses possess their own language, civilization, and society. 

Recommendation:

It cleverly blends the shell of a thrilling and suspenseful story with profound philosophical inquiries: In the near future, intelligent octopuses with language, culture, and social organization appear in the sea, and humans face a truly alien mind for the first time. (Chen Qiufan, Deputy Director of the Science Fiction Literature Committee of the China Writers' Association)

After Ending a Week of Work, I Will Go to the Zoo to Dream: Hongshan Forest Zoo Poetry Collection By the Friends of Red Hill, Yilin Press

This poetry collection originates from the solicitation activity "In the Name of Poetry, Let Rareness Be Cherished" initiated by the Nanjing Hongshan Forest Zoo. This book is not only a poetry collection about the zoo, but also an ongoing dialogue about nature, life, and human coexistence.

Recommendation:

I feel real and exquisite feelings, as well as a quiet and sincere connection between humans and animals, humans and nature. (Shen Zhijun, Director of the Nanjing Hongshan Forest Zoo)



This article was first published in the People's Daily Overseas Edition on July 24, 2026.