As the holidays approach, many of us are going to be taking flights home to see our families or use our time off of work to take much-needed vacations. If you’re anything like me, which books you take on the plane is a well-thought-out decision that requires a lot of planning and consideration. I always try to take books with me that I know I can finish on a single flight, so I’m not left wondering what’s going to happen if I don’t have time to read while I’m away (and it just so happens those fit more easily in my carry-on). To make your book packing go a lot faster than mine usually does, here is a list of books that you can absolutely finish in one flight!
12 Addictive Reads You Can Finish in a Single Flight
Elevation
As one of the smaller Stephen King novels, this book will fly by! You’ll be captivated by the story of a man whose mysterious affliction brings a small town together despite their differences. This story is sure to lift your spirits and keep you gripped for the entire flight.
Elevation
Close
And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer
This novella from beloved author Fredrik Backman is incredibly moving and might have you shedding a few tears (and getting a few odd looks from your neighbor) before it’s done. It portrays an elderly man’s struggle to hold on to his most precious memories and his family’s efforts to care for him even as they try to find a way to let him go. This is a little book with a lot of heart that you will finish in a flash!
And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer
MENTIONED IN:
Close
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
This short but sweet story of Charlie, a young high school student in the strange world between adolescence and adulthood, will definitely take you on an emotional rollercoaster ride from start to finish. This coming-of-age story is a modern classic that might leave you feeling nostalgic for your own high school days and is sure to be a quick, unputdownable read! Even though I’ve read this book so many times my copy is falling apart, I still find myself grabbing this any time I’m going on a short flight!
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
MENTIONED IN:
Close
Turbulence
Set on an airplane when two passengers begin a conversation after some turbulence, this book is perfect to read when going through turbulence of your own! Written to display the complex and beautiful series of human emotions that connect us all, TURBULENCE is a dazzling portrait of how one life can impact another, and the ripple effect that meeting can have. This book might even prompt you to start up a conversation of your own with the person sitting next to you.
Turbulence
MENTIONED IN:
Close
The Alchemist
For those wanting to spend their flight tucked into a thought-provoking book, THE ALCHEMIST, although short, is a brilliant choice. Telling the magical story of a shepherd boy named Santiago as he yearns to travel in search of a world treasure, this book can teach us a thing or two about following our dreams, no matter what the cost (or the distance), and offers essential wisdom on listening to our hearts.
The Alchemist
Paulo Coelho’s universally admired masterpiece tells the story of Santiago, an Andalusian shepherd who yearns to travel in search of a worldly treasure. The story of the treasures Santiago finds along the way teaches us, as only a few stories can, about the essential wisdom of listening to our hearts, learning to read the omens strewn along life’s path, and, above all, following our dreams. With more than two million copies sold around the world, The Alchemist continues to change the lives of readers forever.
Close
The Woman in Cabin 10
Although this book is slightly longer, I read thrillers extremely quickly, since I’m dying to know how they end! This exciting story follows a travel journalist named Lo who has just been sent to an assignment on a luxury cruise line. When she witnesses someone being thrown overboard, the search is on to discover what exactly happened and who could be missing. With surprising twists and spine-tingling turns, this book will make you happy you decided to fly to your destination instead of sail!
The Woman in Cabin 10
MENTIONED IN:
Close
The Old Man and The Sea
This short classic is the perfect length for you to finish on a shorter flight. At just over 100 pages, it is one of Ernest Hemingway’s most enduring works, relating the tale of a Cuban fisherman and his agonizing battle with a marlin out at sea. You’ll be done with this short, simple book in no time and can knock this classic off your TBR!
The Old Man and The Sea
Read with a Mojito
This classic is the story of follows an old Cuban fisherman who is down on his luck and engaged in a relentless and agonizing battle with a giant marlin far out in the Gulf Stream. Pair this one with a classic mojito in a nod to papa Hemingway’s Cuban home.
MENTIONED IN:
Close
Brooklyn
When Eilis Lacey, a young Irish immigrant, comes to Brooklyn in the 1950s and finds work in a department store on Fulton Street, the last thing she ever expects is to fall in love. Tony, an Italian with a big family and love for the Dodgers, wins Eilis over with his patient charm and gentle understanding. But when Eilis gets devastating news from Ireland that threatens the promise of her future, she is faced with a tough decision. When I go on vacation, I love reading stories about a character who goes on their own journey from home, making this book the terrific read for a flight.
Brooklyn
Acclaimed character actress Saoirse Ronan takes center stage as Eilis Lacey, a young woman who abandons small-town Ireland and the comfort of her mother's home for the anonymous shores of New York City. In Brooklyn, she finds a city in flux—a city where immigrants from Ireland and Poland live amongst Jewish and black communities—and just as she is beginning to fall in love with a young man, devastating news from Ireland threatens the promise of her new life.
Release Date: November 6, 2015
MENTIONED IN:
Close
Heads of the Colored People
Grappling with race, identity politics, and the contemporary middle class, this collection of short stories is an excellent fast read. While some stories are darkly humorous, others are devastatingly poignant, having something everyone will love. In the title story, when a cosplayer, dressed as his favorite anime character, is mistaken for a violent threat, the consequences are dire. This book is a fearless take on the simmering tensions and precariousness of black citizenship.
Heads of the Colored People
Longlisted for the National Book Award for Fiction and Kirkus Prize Finalist
Calling to mind the best works of Paul Beatty and Junot Díaz, this collection of moving, timely, and darkly funny stories examines the concept of black identity in this so-called post-racial era.
A stunning new talent in literary fiction, Nafissa Thompson-Spires grapples with black identity and the contemporary middle class in these compelling, boundary-pushing vignettes.
Each captivating story plunges headfirst into the lives of new, utterly original characters. Some are darkly humorous—from two mothers exchanging snide remarks through notes in their kids’ backpacks, to the young girl contemplating how best to notify her Facebook friends of her impending suicide—while others are devastatingly poignant—a new mother and funeral singer who is driven to madness with grief for the young black boys who have fallen victim to gun violence, or the teen who struggles between her upper middle class upbringing and her desire to fully connect with black culture.
Thompson-Spires fearlessly shines a light on the simmering tensions and precariousness of black citizenship. Her stories are exquisitely rendered, satirical, and captivating in turn, engaging in the ongoing conversations about race and identity politics, as well as the vulnerability of the black body. Boldly resisting categorization and easy answers, Nafissa Thompson-Spires is an original and necessary voice in contemporary fiction.
MENTIONED IN:
Close
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
This short modern classic that has been adapted into a Broadway show makes for a quick read on your flight. In this novel, Christopher John Francis Boone knows all the countries of the world and their capitals and every prime number up to 7,057. He relates well to animals but has no understanding of human emotions. He cannot stand to be touched, and he also hates the color yellow. On his quest to investigate the suspicious death of a neighborhood dog, Christopher is put to the test in every way imaginable, making this a captivating book you won’t be able to put down.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Now adapted into a Tony Award-winning play, this captivating novel is told through the eyes of a fifteen-year-old autistic boy who relates well to animals but has no understanding of human emotions. This powerful story of his quest to investigate the suspicious death of a neighborhood dog makes for a captivating read.
MENTIONED IN:
Close
The Handmaid's Tale
Graphic novels are extremely quick and engaging reads, which make them great books to bring on a plane. Following the story of Offred, this is a dystopian novel about a society where women are prohibited from holding jobs, reading, or forming friendships. If you love the TV show, you’re bound to love this graphic novel edition where you see the iconic flaming red capes come to life.
The Handmaid's Tale
Close
Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Recently made into a movie with Melissa McCarthy, this is a short memoir about Lee Israel’s shocking forgery of more than 300 letters by notable authors such as Dorothy Parker, Edna Ferber, and Noël Coward. CAN YOU EVER FORGIVE ME? is a story about the lengths someone would go to to make ends meet—and if you finish this book early, you can get started on the movie!
Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Close