Hamptons Summer Reading: Beaches and Beyond

From the beaches of Sagaponack to the gardens of East End chefs, memoirs to cookbooks, our friends at Books & Books in Westhampton Beach put a decidedly Hamptons spin on their summer book selections this week.

The Hamptons: Food, Family and History by Ricky Lauren

Lauren’s popular cookbook is full of fresh, seasonal recipes that evoke the relaxed luxury of the locale. Combing food with memories of raising a family in the Hamptons, she captures not only the lifestyle but the history of America’s most exclusive resort. An accomplished author, photographer and artist, Lauren includes approximately 100 delicious recipes, beautiful photographs and original watercolors that paint a picture of the Hamptons life, with tips on entertaining Hamptons-style.

The Hamptons and Long Island Homegrown Cookbook by Leeann Lavin

As the local eating movement gains momentum, there is an increasing awareness of how to incorporate this philosophy into everyday life. We can grow our own food and buy locally at food co-ops and markets, but what about eating out? There are dozens of chefs around the country dedicated to using only the freshest local ingredients. Lavin takes the reader on a private tour of the outstanding chefs of Long Island and their gardens. Each profile reflects his or her personal style, cultural background and gardening philosophy. Also included are recipes, plant lists, garden layouts and color photos.

Long Island Wine Country by Jane Taylor Starwood

Starwood, the editor of Long Island Wine Press magazine, takes readers to the North Fork and Hamptons’ more than 40 producers of wine, telling the colorful stories of the wines and those who make them. Also included is a foreword by Louisa Thomas Hargrave, cofounder of Long Island’s first vineyard and beautiful illustrations by award-winning photographer Bruce Curtis. Long Island Wine Country is ultimate guide to all things wine on Eastern Long Island.

Private Oasis: The Landscape Architecture of Edmund Hollander Design by Philip Langdon

The comfort and liveliness of a home depends on what is beyond its walls, but the landscape is what gives a home character and satisfaction. In Private Oasis, two of New York’s leading landscape architects, Edmund Hollander and Maryanne Connelly, guide readers through a series of remarkable landscapes and gardens, explaining their techniques and how to apply them. Hollander and Connelly have designed hundreds of residential landscapes, from palatial to modest. This publication focuses on built elements in the landscape, including entry, seating, outdoor dining, swimming pools and tennis courts, and is lavishly illustrated with over 1000 color photographs. A successor volume focusing on plantings will follow, to give readers a comprehensive orientation to residential landscaping.

Sand Sea Sky: The Beaches of Sagaponack by Tria Giovan

For Giovan, the beaches of Long Island inspired a fascinating attempt to comprehend the vastness of the Atlantic Ocean and beyond. Accumulating roughly 10,000 photographs of the undisturbed beaches of Sagaponack, she charted the change of seasons and shifts of light and atmosphere as the tides rose and receded each day. Sand Sea Sky is a collection of 63 prints accompanied by an essay by ecologist Carl Safina to provide the reader with a meditation on the fragility of nature and inevitability of change.

Still in the Hamptons by Dan Rattiner

Founder and president Dan Rattiner of Dan’s Papers has been covering the Hamptons for more than 50 years, long before the posh parties, paparazzi and glitterati, back when it was a sleepy backwater of fishing villages and potato farms. Still in the Hamptons is an intimate portrait of those who formed and transformed it, straight from an insider’s mouth. From former residents like Andy Warhol, to colorful locals like Frank Mundus (who Quinn from Jaws was reportedly based on), to literary figures like John Steinbeck, to present-day stars like Billy Joel, Rattiner uses dry wit and genuine affection to share a story of the Hamptons that few know.

Check out these books and more great summer reading picks at Books & Books, 130 Main Street in Westhampton Beach. Call 631-998-3260 or visit online at booksandbookswhb.com.