Eric Rohmer, Six Moral Tales. Every summer I revisit Eric Rohmer's collection of short stories and the six films adapted from them. Two of the stories and films are my quintessential summer tales: Claire's Knee (Le Genou du Claire) and La Collectioneuse. The cinematography by Nestor Almendros features the French Cote d'Azure and the Alps like you've never seen them before. The stories are all centered on relationships between the sexes. Claire's Knee presents a soon-to-be-married bachelor with wandering eyes and the two young women he fancies; La Collectioneuse presents two men vying for the attention of the coquettish temptress Haydee who seems plucked from Byron's poem, Don Juan, and dropped on a beach in Saint-Tropez.

Sheldon Vanauken, A Severe Mercy. A memoir from one of the most beloved convert couples of the twentieth century, A Severe Mercy is a Christian classic. Their love story begins "angrily, in the dead of winter" and blossoms into the spring and summer, replete with poetry and romantic sailing excursions. Should you find yourself lounging happily on a beach or on a boat this summer, bring this beautiful little book. Sheldon and Davy's love story is a tear-jerker. Don't forget the tissues.

Walker Percy, Lancelot. Walker Percy has been on my reading list for quite some time, so when I found a $3 copy of Lancelot at Second Story Books in DuPont Circle, I couldn't resist temptation. Temptation is a theme in this dark work of fiction set in the South during the hot summer. Should you be anticipating a summer fling this season, prepare yourself for a dark philosophical meditation on sexual sin, as the tortured narrator Lancelot makes a minor discovery that changes his life.

Fulton Sheen, Three to get Married. Summer often means wedding season, especially if you're a young Catholic in your early twenties. In light of the recent Supreme Court rulings, why not reflect on the true meaning of marriage, written by none other than one of the greatest Catholic evangelists of the twentieth century? Fulton Sheen's Three to get Married is by far the best work on marriage I've ever encountered. It also makes a great wedding gift! Sheen presents a vision of nuptial love that is as philosophically brazen as it is poetically beautiful. The chapters include "It Takes Three to Make Love" and "The Dark Night of the Body." I have a digital copy on my iPad, as I always seem to be giving away whatever paperback copy I happen to have on me. It's that good.

Evelyn Waugh, Brideshead Revisited. Nearly two years after purchasing it, I've finally gotten around to reading the trad Catholic classic. Nearly every literary Catholic I've encountered recommends this book. After binge-watching half of the BBC miniseries on Easter Sunday after my Catholic confirmation this year, I found that a nice rose champagne pairs well with the beautiful Catholic aesthetic experience that is Brideshead. And a box of strawberries.

Samantha Schroeder is a freelance writer working for a foreign policy organization in Washington, D.C. You can find her articles for Ethika Politika here.