Ah, summertime—the perfect season for reading, picnics, and reading while enjoying a picnic. (It’s probably why July is National Picnic Month!) To help you decide what to pack in your picnic basket, we at Writer’s Relief have made a list of the best book and food pairings to create a feast for the eyes and the palate!

6 Great Book And Food Pairings For Your Literary Lunch

Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh – Tea, Crumpets, and Cucumber Sandwiches

In this epic story of Britain between the two world wars, author Evelyn Waugh has included so many descriptions of the foods his characters eat that we had a hard time picking just one. So we decided to go with a British tradition: tea, crumpets, and cucumber sandwiches! Because nothing says “English tea time” like that delicious combination.

Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel – Chicken Tortilla Soup

With a mouthwatering title such as Like Water for Chocolate, you’ll need a dish that will quench all sorts of appetites—and not necessarily the obvious choice of chocolate! Esquivel’s gorgeous tale of love, magic, and cooking also features so many descriptions of food that we had a hard time selecting just one. However, this light yet satisfying read should be matched with something also light and satisfying: Chicken Tortilla Soup!

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt – Southern Fried Chicken

John Berendt’s best-selling memoir about the eccentric town of Savannah, Georgia, calls for southern comfort food with a bit of a kick. Along with fried chicken, why not pile some okra, corn on the cob, and cornmeal biscuits onto your plate to have the full southern picnic experience. You might even consider substituting fried catfish with a nice tartar sauce in place of the chicken.

Little Children by Tom Perrotta – Goldfish Crackers

Tom Perrotta’s darkly comic suburban satire is an addictive read that burrows into the dark underbelly of American family life. It’s hard to stop reading the book—and it’s pretty hard to stop eating tasty little Goldfish crackers! It also helps (or maybe it doesn’t) that there are goldfish pictured on the cover.

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt – Wine and Cheese (any kind!)

Donna Tartt’s Dickensian story of a young man and a rare painting of a bird is a thrilling saga that really took off with readers. This is the perfect book to read with a plate of cheese and a glass of wine! We’ll leave the specific selections of wine and cheese up to you.

Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan – Ice Cream

You can’t forget dessert! For our final read, we’re matching one of the sweetest high school romances we’ve read with something that is sweet and the perfect ending to your picnic. If you don’t have an insulated cooler for your frozen treat, hopefully there’s an ice cream stand nearby—it’s a prerequisite for the perfect picnic spot!

Question: What are some of your favorite book and food pairings?