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Matching Vacation Reading with Getaway Vibes
When you're on vacation, reading does more than fill quiet moments…reading brings a place into focus, lifts your mood, and gently adds purpose to your time away.
That’s the kind of reading we look for at Beyond Beaches — so that you have books to read on your vacation that add pleasure to the experience.
Literary Cats host Beyond Beaches as the collective voice of thoughtful, well-read guides leading you toward stories to match the rhythm of your trip—whether you’re in the mood for something light and relaxing, absorbing and reflective, or something that reveals the cultural sense of place.
Relaxing
Reflective
Revealing
As any Literary Cat can tell you
"Once you open a book's cover, the story inside whisks you away quicker than an airplane takes flight."
Happens to us wherever we read, on vacation or not.
Books That Make Your Vacation Feel Right
When choosing which books to pack, the question to answer is…
How do you want to feel while on your vacation?
Planning vacations with books in mind is the trick to changing ordinary vacations into more enjoyable experiences.
If you're curious, we can show you how reading helps to stretch your vacation benefits beyond just time away from work.
Vacations Differ, Calling for Different Kinds of Reading
When you read on vacation, your brain begins to blend two worlds — your physical destination and the narrative of your story — creating awareness where your getaway and your reading life meet.
We may be letting the cat out of the literary bag, but it's true — vacation reading doesn’t happen only between the lines of literary novels. Vacations give you permission to enjoy all types of books.
Whatever genre, format, or form holds the stories that make you smile -- those are the ones to carry along, on paper or screen, or as whispers in your ear.
We don’t review books or tell you what to read.
We simply help readers discover stories that add a touch extra to ordinary vacations.
Reading Beyond Beach Books and Bestsellers
Fortune places Literary Cats quite near Alabama beaches. So, we know all about beach reading…and we're spilling the beach vacation beans.
A beach book can be found in all kinds of books and tell a story about beach life and loves…or take you places far beyond any beach, even to places you can only imagine.
Think beach reading begins and ends with one type of book? Think again.
You've no limit to the places you can go on a beach vacation, reading a good book.
Vacation in Southern Settings, Reading or Not
You'll find no limit to the places you can go on an Alabama beach vacation, reading a good book. But when nearly every story told about the South is only a short trip away, neither you nor your vacation (or book) needs to stay only on the beach.
Southern stories unfold details beneath moss-draped oaks, along quiet back roads, and in towns where history and heart shape the people who live there, and such stories beckon you to experience Southern hospitality.
Stories set in the South open the door to places you might dream of visiting someday—or visit today, reading one page at a time.
There is no wrong way to travel with a book at hand.
Turning Pages into Vacations
Some books feel like vacations not yet taken. But once read, a yearning can turn that story into a new chapter in the reader's life story.
That's how Literary Cats got from Alabama to Alice Springs.
If a book’s setting has ever stirred your desire to visit some irresistible destination, we want to hear about your book inspirations and vacations…because Literary Cats are always curious.
The Right Book Changes Everything
The stories you bring along on vacation often shape how you remember a place, person, activity, or journey. Reading becomes a travel companion. So choosing a book to share your vacation requires mindful consideration because every vacation is different, and so is the right book.
Beyond Beaches exists to help you choose those companions with care, so your reading doesn’t compete with your vacation, but gently layers enjoyment into your memories.
Susan Rowlett
Curious About Most Everything
Susan is a lifelong reader who has shed her technical writer background to assume a more casual "Literary Cats" voice for hosting Beyond Beaches. Along with reading, Susan enjoys traveling to places she first met in books, journeying overseas as well as across America. She blends her own travel experiences with insights and anecdotes from fellow travelers who also enjoy stories revealing the culture, history, and character of the places they visit. Reading The Thorn Birds first sparked Susan's desire to travel; continuing to read keeps her going.
We help you discover those books.