For many people, summer vacation is the time to sit at the beach or next to the pool and dive into that book they haven’t had time to read all year.

But with so many books out there, and only so many days of vacation, choosing a good book is imperative.

So here are some recommendations from the experts, the people who run a few of the region’s public libraries.

“My definition of a great beach read is not necessarily a book that is set in a coastal community, has to do with the beach, or is light reading. I like something that I can sink my teeth into and chew on,” said Brigitte Hopkins, the executive director of Westerly Library and Wilcox Park.

Her suggestions include “Gone Girl” by Gillian Flynn.

“I have devoured all the books by Gillian Flynn and can’t wait for her next book to be published,” said Hopkins.

Another one of her picks is “Diary” by Chuck Palahnuik which Hopkins describes as a “psychological, dark humor book about a woman’s struggle with her husband’s family’s past on a small vacation island.”

Her third choice is “Myth of You and Me” by Leah Stewart which she calls a “fantastic book about the break-up of a friendship and the tragedy that brings them back together.”

This summer, a few of the books on recommendation lists from across the region are highly anticipated returns of well known authors, leading librarians to recommend not only their new work but their earlier work as well.

Judy Blume, an author known for both her children’s and adult books, released a new novel “In the Unlikely Event,” in early June, and horror writer Stephen King released “Finders Keepers,” a follow up to his novel “Mr. Mercedes,” which he released in January. Harper Lee’s second book, “Go Set a Watchman,” a prequel to her classic “To Kill a Mockingbird,” will be released July 14.

Set in Harper Lee’s hometown of Monroeville, Ala., another novel “Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption,” by Bryan Stevenson, deals with similar issues as “To Kill a Mockingbird,” and has been of interest in light of recent political events across the country, according to Mary Fecteau, communications coordinator for New London Public Library.

“The book details the story of Walter McMillan, a black man accused of murder even though there was much evidence that he did not commit the crime,” wrote Fecteau in an email. “Stevenson founded The Equal Justice Initiative centered in Alabama, to carry on and expand his efforts to reform the criminal justice system. There is a growing interest in reforming our criminal justice system and this excellent book demonstrates the urgency of this issue.”

Also recommended are books with Connecticut ties.

Susan Kietzman, a Mystic resident, has published her third book and with a title like “The Summer Cottage,” Amy Kennedy, the director of Wheeler Library in North Stonington, said the book will be “perfect for beach reading.”

Elizabeth Alexander, a Yale professor best known as the inaugural poet at President Barack Obama’s first inauguration, has a new book “The Light of the World: A Memoir.”

In the book, Alexander “opens her heart to readers in this memoir of life with her husband, Ficre, through their courtship, marriage, as a young family enjoying life in New Haven and eventually her grief at his unexpected death,” said Kennedy.

While Alexander’s book details the bittersweet and complicated nature of love and life, Marie Kondo’s popular book “The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up” coaches readers on how to choose calm over chaos by decluttering and reducing unnecessary possessions by asking the question “does this spark joy?”

Belinda de Kay, the acting director of the Stonington Free Library, said her staff has several recommendations “that have received enthusiastic reviews from our patrons.”

One book, ‘The Lifeboat,” was written by Charlotte Rogan, who will be at the library on Monday, July 13th at 6 p.m. as part of The Connecticut Authors Trail program.

“Lifeboat” is a novel about a newly married woman who in the summer of 1914 finds herself in a lifeboat after the luxury ocean liner she is on explodes, killing her husband.

Other Stonington Library picks include “The Rumor” by Elin Hildebrand; “Tiny Little Thing” by Beatriz Williams, the author of “A Hundred Summers;” “17 Carnations: The Royals, the Nazis and the biggest cover up in history” by Andrew Morton; and “China Rich Girlfriend” by Kevin Kwan, the author of the best selling “Crazy Rich Asians.”

j.wojtas@theday.com

Popular summer books recommended by www.Goodreads.com, a social media site about books, include:

"Paper Towns" by John Green

"The Girl on the Train" by Paula Hawkins

"All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr

"The Heir" by Kiera Cass

"Saint Anything" by Sarah Dessen

"We Were Liars" by E. Lockhart

"A Court of Thorns and Roses" by Sarah J. Maas

"P.S. I Still Love You," by Jenny Han

"Go Set a Watchman" by Harper Lee

"Eleanor & Park" by Rainbow Rowell