Summer Reading: Twins and Multiples in Fiction

There's nothing like a good book in the summertime. Whether you're reading on the beach, while traveling, or staying indoors to escape the heat, summer is prime time for digging into a juicy story. Do you ever read books about twins or multiples? I've always got my eyes peeled for fiction about twins. I guess I hope that the stories will give me some insight into the intricacies of the twin relationship, or maybe that I'll recognize some element of my twins' personalities in the characters.

If you're looking for a good book, here are some recommendations:

• The God of Small Things (compare prices) by Arundhati Roy: Twins Rahel and Estha are the central characters of this 1998 set in India during the 1960's.


• The Thirteenth Tale (compare prices) by Diane Setterfield (read review) : Full of secrets and lies, this is a ghost story with a twin twist.


• The Girls (compare prices) by Lori Lansens: A novel about a pair of conjoined twins, told from their alternating viewpoints.


• Fanny and Sue (compare prices) by Karen Stolz: The eponymous twin sisters take turns narrating this story of their childhood in Depression-era St. Louis.


• The Third Twin (compare prices) by Ken Follett: This contemporary thriller from the author of The Pillars of the Earth pits nature against nurture in a story about the genetic manipulation of human embryos.


• Chang and Eng (compare prices) by Darin Strauss: A historical novel based on the lives of conjoined twins, Chang and Eng Bunker, the original "Siamese twins".


• The Memory Keepers Daughter (compare prices) by Kim Edwards (read review): A bestselling novel built around on the story of two twins born one stormy night.


• The Twins (compare prices) by Tessa de Loo: A story of twins separated at birth, growing up during the tumult of World War II, who meet again as elderly women.


• Feather Crowns (compare prices) by Bobbie Ann Mason: In 1900, a rural wife gives birth to quintuplets. The babies soon attract national attention and change the lives of their mother forever.


• Three Wishes (compare prices) by Liane Moriarty: Adult triplet sisters share the pitfalls and passion of their complicated relationship in this chick-lit novel.