Summer may be coming to an end, but that doesn’t mean Lit Girl Summer has to end — it’s a perpetual state of mind!
In case you missed it, allow us to fill you in. Elle recently coined the term “Lit Girl Summer” to highlight all of the celebrities and “it girls” who love to read. Truly, what is better than spending a day at the beach flipping through the pages of your latest read while getting some sun? It’s something that we are absolute pros at, and even though the summer sun is going to go away before we know it, the state of mind that Lit Girl Summer exudes lives on for all four seasons.
While we’re 100% here for Lit Girl Summer, we can’t forget to mention the music girls who are taking over right now: Chappell Roan, Charli XCX, and Sabrina Carpenter. Of course, these three ladies are quite busy touring, singing, and creating music, but we can’t help but wonder what they would be reading. So, naturally, we curated a Lit Girl Summer reading list to match their energies.
Chappell Roan:
If you’ve somehow gone this whole summer without hearing the name Chappell Roan, do you happen to live under a rock?! Roan has taken the music industry by storm, particularly gaining rapid popularity this summer, all thanks to her remarkable talent, show-stopping outfits, and her iconic HOT TO GO! dance. Roan’s vibe is hard to describe in a single sentence, but if we had to, we would say that she is the moment.
WHEN AMONG CROWS by Veronica Roth
A book with high drama and strong women. Plus, the first chapter is available in full via Lit Picks!
A cursed female zmora must unite with her enemy — a monster slayer — to fight against time and the wrath of the Chicago underworld in this “imaginative and ethereal” Slavic fantasy.
LADY MACBETH by Ava Reid
This protagonist induces madness in men. A book with lots of femininity and power (a femininomenon?!)
Shakespeare’s boldest villainess uses her wiles and witchcraft to survive an unwanted marriage to Lord Macbeth and reclaim her voice once and for all.
HOUSEMATES by Emma Copley Eisenberg 
Complex relationships = far from “Casual.” A celebration of queer joy.
Two artists embark on a roadtrip across America, using photography and words to capture the world around them, while falling in love along the way.
LATE BLOOMER by Mazey Eddings
A sizzling opposites-attract romance. “Stop the world just to stop the feeling”-coded.
After winning the lottery, a young woman puts her money towards a flower farm, but the farm’s rightful owner makes life all the more difficult, especially when hatred blossoms into love.
EVERYONE I KISSED SINCE YOU GOT FAMOUS by Mae Marvel
A small town girl turns A-list star. If you’ve kissed your best friend, read this. A little dose of Roan’s “My Kink is Karma.”
Famous A-list star returns home for the firs time in years, and comes face-to-face with the best friend she never got over.
COVER STORY by Rachel Lacey
A sapphic story about the price of fame. Fake relationship turned real romance.
A celebrity is desperate for a new bodyguard, but needs someone who is willing to go undercover as her girlfriend to avoid drawing more media attention — until the lines of reality and fantasy begin to blur, and feelings grow.
Charli XCX:
Who would’ve thought that Charli XCX’s latest album BRAT would be taking over the world? Everybody knows BRAT, even CNN and FOX are talking about it. Charli is a music icon, and this summer, it was hard to go anywhere without hearing the words “Brat summer.” Because Charli has played such a large role in creating the vibe of the summer, it only makes sense that these books would be on her TBR list (of course, for her to read after she is done celebrating Brat summer). It’s hard to put into words what Brat summer truly is, but all we can say is that these books are BRAT approved.
WHOEVER YOU ARE, HONEY by Olivia Gatwood
Explores loneliness and desire. Play “Sympathy is a knife” on repeat as you read.
In this debut novel, Gatwood tells the story of two women who form a close friendship, which leads them to confronting their pasts, which have overpowered their lives for far too long.
THE GUEST by Emma Cline
Hamptons debauchery. Wild protagonist you’ll (somehow) root for. Delusion + excess.
A young woman pretends to be somebody she isn’t on the East End of Long Island, and you’ll (somehow) root for her.
ALL FOURS by Miranda July 
Protagonist spirals into a self-indulgent haze. Chaotic and impulsive. “I might say something stupid”-coded.
A semi-famous artist plans to drive cross-country from LA to NY. Shortly after leaving her husband and child at home, she exits the freeway, and embarks on a completely different journey than what she planned.
MEN HAVE CALLED HER CRAZY by Anna Marie Tendler
What’s more BRAT than sharing your most vulnerable moments? Gender dynamics giving “[BOY] so confusing.”
A memoir by artist Anna Marie Tendler detailing her experience in a psychiatric hospital, as well as pivotal moments in her life that preceded and followed. A powerful story examining the unrealistic expectations and pressures women face in the 21st century.
BRAT by Gabriel Smith
Need we say more?
A funny and haunted novel with an unlikable protagonist (the “brat”) who is grappling with grief, inheritance, and the ghosts of his past.
LIARS by Sarah Manguso
Illuminates the messy, painful parts of marriage. If Charli is “[thinking] about it all the time,” the author would like a word!
A powerful story about the challenges of being a mother, wife, and artist, and how marriage makes liars out of all of us.
Sabrina Carpenter:
Please Please Please add these books to your TBR list, Sabrina! Carpenter has been gaining popularity for quite some time now, but after her hit single “Espresso” was released in April, it quickly became the soundtrack for the summer. Carpenter exudes a feminine energy that is so iconic, we just had to include her in this roundup — we love everything about her, but her fashion (and perfect hair), energy, and vibe are just too good.
THE FINAL ACT OF JULIETTE WILLOUGHBY by Ellery Lloyd
A story filled with obsession, revenge, and love (things get “Vicious”). Mystery and plot twists.
Half a century after an art studio fire in Paris, two students uncover the truth — the fire was no accident and there’s something far more sinister at play.
FUNNY STORY by Emily Henry
A steamy n’ sweet romance story. Opposites attract (queue “Please Please Please”).
A librarian is so over her ex-fiancé, who left her for a new woman. The perfect “win the breakup” revenge? Becoming roommates with the ex-fiancé of that new woman, because he’s the only one who understands her predicament.
CALL IT WHAT YOU WANT by Alissa Derogatis 
The undeniable pull of wanting somebody who’s not good for you. For readers who have cried to “because i liked a boy.”
A hopeless romantic falls for a closed-off guy, and wonders if she can handle a commitment-less situationship, or if she should accept that some things aren’t meant to be.
THE VILLAIN EDIT by Laurie Devore
If The Bachelor and Emily Henry had a book baby. For the people who liked the Disney villains more than the princesses.
A romance novelist rises to the top on a dating game show, until she realizes the producer is her former one-night-stand — and he’s purposely giving her “the villain edit” to make her lose favor on the show, so he can have her all to himself.
HUMOR ME by Cat Shook
A main character too embarrassed to find genuine connection. Sabrina soundtrack: “Nonsense.”
Reeling from her mother’s death, a young professional isn’t expecting for her mother’s best friend to dive headfirst into her life, handsome son in tow, and show her there’s so much more to life than just getting by.
SWIFT AND SADDLED by Lyla Sage
Romantic western, where work friendship turns into something more. Major “Lonesome” energy.
A powerful and independent interior designer falls for the cowboy who hired her, but she’s not sure if she’s ready for a relationship, despite the lasso he has around her heart.
