11 Books That Will Make You Nostalgic For Summers Past

Before it became a movie starring Sandra Bullock, Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood started as a book by Rebecca Wells. The Louisiana-set tale revolves around a group of lifelong friends who set out to fix a broken relationship between one of their own and her daughter. This is just one book in the series, which also includes Little Altars Everywhere and Ya-Yas in Bloom. Read while sipping sweet tea.

Nothing says "Summer" like this 1876 Mark Twain novel. Read about Tom as he cleverly avoids painting a fence, falls for Becky Thatcher, and hangs out with Huckleberry Finn in ye olde graveyard. The story itself isn't set in the summertime, but it sure does feel like you should be reading it in the hot sun under a tree.

Aren't you glad your mother kept her old Nancy Drew books for you to read? Nancy is always getting into the middle of the most excellent mysteries, some scarier than others. (Seriously, The Hidden Staircase is still frightening.) The character appears in hundreds of books written by different authors, most under the pseudonym Carolyn Keene. What are you waiting for? Grab a flashlight and find a tree house to sit in.

Judy Blume just gets girlhood, doesn't she? This 1998 novel in particular explores themes of coming of age and friendship that are universal to nearly every woman but probably hit you especially hard if you're in middle or high school. It's also a pretty scandalous book for that age group and worth a revisit if it's been a while since your last read.

Any '90s girl worth her weight in jelly shoes loved (and maybe still loves) Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. Their empire churned out several novels and series, including book versions of their movies and TV shows like Two of a Kind. I'll always love the Adventures of Mary-Kate and Ashley series, but there are so many to choose from that you probably couldn't make it through them in an entire Summer.

The 2001 movie is good, but Meg Cabot's original book (which kicked off a series) is even better. The star of the novel is Mia, an awkward teenage girl who learns she's the princess of a small European country. Unlike the movie, Mia's dad is alive in the book, making it slightly lighter and altogether a great read for a lazy day in the backyard.

Goosebumps covers a variety of ghoulish topics, not the least of which are creepy crawlers at Summer camp. You don't actually have to be at Summer camp to appreciate the books; you only need a campfire, a group of friends, and Ghost Beach. Just remember: you have R.L. Stine to thank for your nightmares later.

Who didn't love Francine Pascal's series about twins Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield? They live in a picture-perfect town in California, always have perfect hair, and spawned spinoffs like Sweet Valley Senior Year and Sweet Valley University. True, most of the action in the books happens in school, but after all the reading you did in class, these books were a Summer treat.

Friends away on vacation? That's OK, you could always hang out with Kristy, Mary Anne, Claudia, and Stacey. This series, written by Ann M. Martin (partially ghostwritten by Peter Lerangis), was published from 1986 to 2000, and each book is just as good as the last. Not only did you learn about being a young entrepreneur, but you also got some valuable life lessons on the way.

Reading Louise Rennison's series about Georgia Nicolson made you feel really exotic, since it's set in the UK and all. She has a fat orange cat, wears a school uniform, and is in love with a hottie named Robbie. The goal? A full-frontal snogging session. You might be surprised at how entertaining these books still are, especially if you stopped reading the series after a while.

Raise your hand if you read Ann Brashares's novel and subsequently tried to locate a magical pair of pants with your best friend? Oh, all of us? Great. No matter what was going on in your life, you had to relate to at least one of the four main characters: artsy Tibby, adventurous Bridget, romantic Lena, or conflicted Carmen. In fact, you probably related (and still relate) to all four. Go ahead, reread it and try not to cry when Bailey dies . . . spoiler alert.