You may wonder how people who work at a newspaper find time to read for fun, but it can be done. To add to your summer reading list, here are several choices from our staff.

-Vice President of Development Alan Bebout recommends “Undaunted Courage” by Stephen E. Ambrose

Alan says: The story of the Lewis and Clark exploration of the Louisiana Purchase. Today, it is hard to imagine an America that was mostly empty west of the Mississippi River, but that’s the way it was, just barely more than 200 years ago. Fascinating adventure! Tragic ending.

-Staff Reporter Ben Bulkeley recommends “The Road” by Cormac McCarthy

Ben says: Brutal, unforgiving and hopeless: All things no one wants from summer reading. But there is also remarkable beauty in McCarthy's 2006 post-apocalyptic father-son tale. Only McCarthy can make a world of ash seem so alive.

-Staff Reporter Katrina Clark recommends “Sadist: The Rise” by Kel Fulgham

Katrina says: Set in the Bronx, the main character struggles to deal with a hard world and a curse that fate has dealt him, which he attempts to control. When someone he cares about is harmed, he must decide whether to embrace one form of evil to rid the world of another.

-Executive Editor Joe Gelarden recommends “The Barbarous Years” by Bernard Bailyn

Joe says: An account of the British colonial efforts between 1600 and 1675.  A highly detailed and well-sourced historic account of the birth of America. Hint: It was not easy, it was not pretty and it was bloody.

-Graphic artist Mike Marr recommends "Heart Shaped Box” by Joe Hill

Mike says: It is a story about a musician who takes his status as a rocker for granted. His passion for collecting macabre things takes a turn when he purchases a strange black suit off the Internet. It is a definite must-read for fans of Stephen King. (Joe Hill is his son.)

-Graphic artist Mike “Zeke” Scarborough recommends “The World until Yesterday: What Can We Learn from Traditional Societies?” by Jared Diamond

Zeke says: You'll understand why we (the human race) are the way we are.

-Graphic artist Suzi Thayer recommends “Peace Like a River” by Leif Enger

Suzi says: Magical and profound, this book is a beautifully written story of the heartfelt journey of an enigmatic father and his children. Eleven-year-old asthmatic Reuben is the narrator, and his little sister Swede, is a poet/genius. A heartfelt novel that begins with a miracle and leaves you wanting more.

-Online editor Alex Toy recommends “1Q84” by Haruki Murakami

Alex says: A sprawling epic set in and around Tokyo, divided chapter by chapter between two characters whose worlds intersect at crucial yet nearly imperceptible junctures. Murakami's work is known for its hard-boiled detective cadence combined with elements of Japanese history and magical realism.