What the Mastermind Team is Reading This Summer

The books chosen for vacation often set the tone for the summer. From philosophical memoirs and road trip epics to political testimonies and gothic classics, here’s what the Mastermind team has packed for the long, hot days ahead. 

Marie-Amélie Sauvé, Founder and Creative Director

The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro

In post-WWII England, Stevens, an aging butler, takes a road trip that becomes an introspective journey into his past. Devoted to a life of service at Darlington Hall, he grapples with lingering doubts about the moral stature of his former employer, Lord Darlington, and the personal sacrifices he made in the name of duty.

L’affaire de la rue Transnonain by Jérôme Chantreau

Set against the backdrop of 1834 France, this historical novel reconstructs a tragic real-life massacre where government troops slaughtered civilians during a crackdown on dissent. As officer Lutz hunts down a missing girl who holds a key to the truth, Chantreau blends investigation and memory to resurrect forgotten victims and expose the brutal extremes of power in crisis. 

L’étranger (The Stranger) by Albert Camus

In this existential classic, Meursault, a man living in Algeria, commits a senseless murder and awaits his trial. Through his story, Camus explores the absurdity of life, the futility of seeking rational meaning in a chaotic world and the moral emptiness of capital punishment.

Feu (Fire) by Maria Pourchet

Feu follows Laure, a disillusioned academic and mother, as she meets Clément, a jaded financier, and starts a destabilizing affair. Both seek escape: her from routine; he from emotional numbness. In each other, they find both exhilaration and destruction. Pourchet dissects the modern malaise of desire, identity and midlife discontent in a bold, electric narrative.

Les hommes manquent de courage (Men Lack Courage) by Mathieu Palain

Les hommes manquent de courage follows Jessie, a struggling single mother who is at a breaking point with her troubled teenage son, Marco. When he vanishes for days and finally calls for help, their fragile bond is tested. Inspired by real events, this novel offers a raw, empathetic look at family fractures and generational pain.

Albertine disparue (The Fugitive) by Marcel Proust

In this introspective sequel to La Prisonnière (The Captive), the Narrator mourns the loss of Albertine, whose departure marks the beginning of a slow unraveling of love. Haunted by jealousy and longing, he embarks on a process of forgetting, that transforms pain into memory. Proust masterfully captures the psychological labyrinth of grief and the eventual liberation that forgetting can bring.

Jeremy Olds, Editor-in-Chief

Within a Budding Grove by Marcel Proust (Volume 2 of In Search of Lost Time)

In the second volume of In Search of Lost Time, Proust traces the narrator’s passage from childhood into adolescence, marked by shifting desires and growing emotional complexity. The first part, set in Paris, focuses on his love for Gilberte and his observations of the now-respectable M. Swann. In the second, set in the seaside town of Balbec, the narrator, traveling with his grandmother, becomes enchanted by a group of girls, signaling a new phase of romantic awakening. Through his rich style, Proust captures the delicate interplay of memory, time and inner transformation.

Conor Manning, Fashion Director 

The Debrist Manifesto by Scott King

Blending raw honesty with wry humor, this unconventional manifesto explores what it means to “fail” in the art world, and why that failure might be the most honest form of success. Far from a traditional self-help guide, the book embraces setbacks as sources of creative energy and unexpected freedom. Written in an unfiltered, stream-of-consciousness style, it challenges the relentless pursuit of external validation, instead championing the value of working with what you have. 

Caity Hennessy, Digital Editor 

Sunburn by Chloe Michelle Howarth

Set in a small Irish village in the early 1990s, Sunburn follows Lucy, a teenager grappling with her identity in a world that expects conformity. While her community envisions a future of marriage and motherhood, Lucy’s world is upended when she falls in love with her friend Susannah. As their secret relationship intensifies, Lucy is torn between the fear of rejection and living her truth. The novel explores her painful choice between safety and authenticity in a society that may not accept her.

Suzy Alter, Visual Editor 

Gabriële by Anne Berest and Claire Berest 

Gabriële tells the remarkable true story of Gabriële Buffet, a pioneering musician, feminist and intellectual who became a driving force behind the avant-garde art movements of the early 20th century. Written by her great-granddaughters, Anne and Claire Berest, the novel resurrects a forgotten woman who helped redefine art and freedom in a rapidly changing world.

Noor Alali, Fashion Editor

1984 by George Orwell

Far from a beach read but a fitting novel for the current state of our world, 1984 is set in a totalitarian dystopia where the Party controls every aspect of life. Winston Smith, a low-ranking official at the Ministry of Truth, covertly begins to question the regime’s endless propaganda and historical revisionism. Orwell’s chilling vision of absolute power and its dehumanizing effects remains one of the most powerful warnings against authoritarianism ever written.

Demian by Hermann Hesse

In Demian, Hermann Hesse traces the psychological and spiritual awakening of Emil Sinclair, a young man torn between the safe, orderly world of his upbringing and the darker, more complex truths of existence. As he grapples with inner conflict and the search for authenticity, Sinclair’s path toward becoming an adult becomes a profound exploration of identity.

Flora Willis Fleming, Editorial Assistant 

Patriot by Alexei Navalny

Patriot is Alexei Navalny’s powerful and deeply personal account of his life, written after surviving a near-fatal poisoning in 2020 and completed during his final years in one of Russia’s harshest prisons. Blending memoir, political testimony and urgent call to action, Navalny, who died in prison in 2024, chronicles his journey from youth to opposition leader, and his fearless campaign against Vladimir Putin’s authoritarian regime. Ultimately the book offers a defiant final message about the enduring importance of freedom.

The Marches: A Borderland Journey Between England and Scotland by Rory Stewart

In The Marches, Rory Stewart embarks on a thousand-mile walk along the borderlands between England and Scotland, weaving together a personal journey with historical inquiry and political reflection. As he retraces the history of Scotland, Stewart uncovers the forgotten Celtic kingdom of Cumbria and the myths and landscapes that shape the borderlands.