The best beach reads are long, dark and difficult - really
Briefly

When we think of the 'beach read', we think of a certain type of book. It's almost definitely a novel. It probably has a heavy dose of romance or mystery, and is set somewhere lush and glamorous... Above all, it has a certain tone: fun and light, with drama but no outright misery, and prose as gentle as waves lapping on sand.
So, what should you be reading as you singe on the sand? The longest, most difficult and most depressing books you can stomach. This might seem counterintuitive. It isn't... Trying to trudge through the anguished pages of Shuggie Bain or A Little Life in winter, with less than eight hours of sunlight a day, is a truly harrowing experience.
Read at British GQ
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