For some readers, the summer break is prime time to catch up on the most challenging volumes they haven’t had a chance to read in their daily lives, while others crave distraction. Our curated list of art and art-related books below should deliver – for those who like their lighthearted novels laced with self-aware art-world satire, as well as those ready to delve into something meaty and memorable.

Writings and Interviews, Marc Camille Chaimowicz
A year after the French-born, London-based artist’s passing, this anthology of Marc Camille Chaimowicz’s writings and musings feels like an apt way to eulogize him: Like his work, it is eclectic and profoundly autobiographical. The 700-odd pages contain his own reviews of 1970s performance art (penned during a stint as a critic), performance scripts, statements, and plenty of interviews, as well as a previously unpublished letter to Wolfgang Tillmans. All the texts allow a glimpse into Chaimowicz’s profound but spirited persona. Everything is diligently annotated and introduced by editor Alexis Vaillant. (Sternberg Press)

To Smithereens, Rosalyn Drexler
The unlikely overlap of the art world and the female wrestling scene in 1970s New York is riotously explored in Rosalyn Drexler’s rereleased 1972 novel, To Smithereens. The two spheres actually coexisted for the author herself: a professional wrestler, eminent Pop artist, and prolific writer. In the book, depressed Rosa meets mediocre art critic Paul at the movies after he creeps up on her; he has a fetish for strong women and fantasizes about her becoming a wrestler – which she does. In the rest of this rollicking, hilarious, feminist story the plot is only half as absurd as the characters plucked from both domains. (Hagfish)

Perfection, Vincenzo Latronico
Reading Vincenzo Latronico’s runaway hit novel, now shortlisted for the International Booker Prize, may feel as performative as much of its protagonists Tom and Anna’s existence – as well as that of every aging millennial. It charts the tale of a couple of creative Southern European expats leading a life in Berlin where attending gallery openings bears the same weight as putting pumpkin seeds on a kale salad or stuffing their apartment full of monstera plants. Latronico’s portrayal of this generation is on-the-nose, ruthless, and irresistible. Amidst the satire, though, is also a sense of genuine nostalgia for the German capital’s turn-of-the-millennium ‘golden era’, when rent was cheap, aspiring artists omnipresent, and galleries were where the city’s social ebb and flow played out. (Fitzcarraldo Editions)

Liquid Reflections, Liliane Lijn
In the 1968 artwork that lends its name to American artist Liliane Lijn’s memoir, two acrylic balls chase each other in a mesmerizing dance atop a transparent disc covered in water droplets. That same sense of fluid motion infuses this autobiography, a whirlwind of encounters – with fellow creatives, men, and artworks – mostly set in late 1950s and 1960s Paris, with escapades in Athens, Geneva, and Venice. Lijn traces her artistic evolution and influences with a limpid diaristic prose, which lends a nonchalance to her life’s extraordinary events, from an enthralling but complex relationship with Greek artist Takis, to the relentless exploration of materials that made her a pioneer in melding art, poetry, and science. (Penguin Books)

24-Hour Interview, Charles Moore
Charles Moore’s marathon art-interview project warrants the uninterrupted focus that only a vacation afternoon can afford. In 2024, during a residency at the Betsy Hotel in South Beach, Miami, Moore staged 24 back-to-back interviews with artists, curators, and creatives over 24 consecutive hours, running a schedule that navigated multiple time zones and disciplines. He talks ceramics with En Iwamura in Kyoto, activism with Pia Lindman from her farm in Finland, and womanhood with South Africa’s Turiya Magadlela. The conversations remain remarkably coherent (and poignant) all the way to the final, painful 5am to 6am slot with Ana Prvački in Berlin. At breakneck speed, Moore manages to create a snapshot of today’s artworld. (Mousse Publishing)

Medium Hot: Images in the Age of Heat, Hito Steyerl
A dense tome of theory may not be everyone’s idea of holiday reading, but German artist Hito Steyerl’s latest book feels particularly relevant in a summer of heatwaves and technological anxiety. This time, Steyerl takes aim at AI and its political and environmental consequences, dissecting where the energy and labor fueling its rise come from – and which conflicts it might be complicit in. The book is also a meditation by a practitioner who has used plenty of technologies in her image-making over the years, and now ponders questions not only of authorship and ownership, but also on the disappointments and joys of ‘poor’ images. (Verso Books)