The covers of recent Code Switch summer book picks, including Hijab Butch Blues, Alma y Como Obtuvo Su Nombre, I’m Not Done With You Yet, and The Late Americans.

Dial Press/Penguin Random House/Riverhead Books

Dial Press/Penguin Random House/Riverhead Books

There are race books, and there are beach reads, and never the twain shall meet. You know that old truism, right? Well, this is Code Switch (the show about race and identity and romance and drama from NPR), and we weren’t willing to accept that dichotomy. So on this episode, we’re bringing you a bouquet of our favorite summer thrillers, love stories, memoirs and more — all of which have something to say about race.