Along with the rest of Western Europe, Germany and Austria are also sweltering under a heat wave. This forces us to constantly seek out lakes, since swimming is the only enjoyable activity in nearly 40-degree heat. In Munich, it's easy—a river flows through the city, and it seems as if half the population gathers along its banks. Spending time by the water also makes me read more, and before I know it, I've finished the book I brought with me. This gives me the chance to compile a list of Munich's top bookstores, since I need to find the next books on my reading list.

Upon stepping into The Munich Readery, there they are—those two books—sitting right next to each other in the biography section, as if they'd been waiting just for me. I mention this to the bookseller, who replies that so much good English-language literature is published that it's incredibly difficult to stock the shelves—you never know what readers want. So, pure coincidence!