5 Things You Need for the Beach

by Treehouse Editors

by Rachel Anne Bondurant

Summer is upon us, boys and girls. Whether your fancy be pool or river, ocean or the local waterin’ hole, you’re going to need a few things to pass the time not spent in the water. Here are some suggestions from yours truly:

  1. A book, obviously.  I suppose any book will do, but I prefer to read noncommittal narratives when I’m poolside.  You know the ones: the term “beach read” was invented for them.  Books like the Sookie Stackhouse and Vampire Academy series.  Another favorite is Christopher Moore’s Island of the Sequined Love Nun.  If the title isn’t enough to grab you, here’s a description.  If you prefer deep reading in the deep end (sorry), Still Life with Woodpecker by Tom Robbins or Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver ought to fit the bill nicely.  (Still Life is also wonderfully weird, and you should read that anyway.)  Something shorter, you say?  Marie Helene Bertino’s short story collection Safe as Houses is beautiful.

  2. A bucket, a shovel, and a flashlight.  This does little good for those of you whose water worlds don’t include sand, but it’s a must for those that do.  Build a sandcastle.  Build three.  Have sandcastle wars.  Destroy everything.  And then when the sun goes down, use the flashlight to hunt for critters to inhabit your bucket (use the shovel for safe transfer from sand to bucket.  Some critters have claws, after all).

  3. Lana Del Ray’s Ultraviolence.  Summertime is the hottest time, but Lana Del Ray’s new album promises to be so incredibly cool.  Start with “West Coast,” and try, I dare you, try not to get the rest.  Album drops June 17th.  

  4. Sunscreen, sunglasses, and lots of water.  Because of course you should.  Be smart, people.  I wouldn’t begrudge you a big, floppy hat, either.  

  5. A camera.  Document that shit for posterity.  Summer comes but once a year, you know.

Honorable Mentions: #4 on this list (no, seriously). And if you’ve got kids, take note.