Sky's the limit for reading outdoors

Summer — or what passes for it this year — is fleeting. But that stack of books you set out to read (or that Kindle list) hasn't shrunk a bit.

Relax. There's still ample opportunity to soak in your prose or poetry the way so many other Minnesotans love to do it: outdoors.

On a deck or a dock or even a blanket. In a hammock or an Adirondack or even a boat.

While it might be too late to plan another summer vacation, it's seriously easy to transport yourself to another place via the written word while soaking in what remains of this summer.

We talked to locals who relish al fresco reading about when, where and how to make the most of our remaining open-air opportunities.

• No pressure: When reading outdoors, "the book is a detail to the setting," says Nick Hayes of Minneapolis. "The book is there to be part of a conversation and it also doesn't have to be read from first page to the last."

• Comfort zone: "You need to be very comfortable," says Hayes. "I hate heat, so this is always a morning or evening activity for me. You don't want the sun beating it out of you. And there's nothing wrong with combining it with a little nap."

• The greenway between Loring Park and the south end of Nicollet Mall, an urban oasis.

• The grotto on the University of St. Thomas' south campus — until classes start Sept. 4.

• Noerenberg Garden, Wayzata, perhaps the most serene spot on sprawling Lake Minnetonka.

• Maplewood Nature Center's wetland area, which has several bump-outs with benches.

• Forgot your blanket? Worry not. "Read in the grass," Rylander says. "Minnesotans take this for granted. But after living in Florida for five years where most yards had fire ants or just 'Florida grass,' it's not suitable to lay back just anywhere and take in a few chapters."

• Crack open a book wherever you find yourself: "I almost always have a book along with me in hopes that I'll have time to sit with it somewhere," Ann Avant of St. Paul says.

Some genres that work especially well when there's a sky instead of a ceiling above you:

• Works by Minnesota authors, past and present: "The seasons of the year provide us a rhythm of life," says Erikka Grose of Grand Rapids, "and we who live here know that best."

• Science books: Christine Bonovsky of Brooklyn Center likes them "because there is no shortage of visual aids. The shape of the trees is right there for evolutionary reference. I might look to the sky to ponder an analemma or air currents. Or a car will drive by and I'll note how the Doppler effect illustrates cosmological redshift."

• Travelogues: "In summer we all think of journeys," Hayes says, "so travels are a perfect summer read." His favorite: Patrick Leigh Fermor's "A Time of Gifts," about a walk from Holland to Constantinople.

• Anything: "Whatever I'm currently reading is fair game," Avant says, "whether it's a library book or the New Yorker magazine — just nothing too old and fragile."

• What not to read: Hayes advises against thrillers, "because you start looking behind the trees and shadows around you." He also eschews Russian novels and any work that falls in the "eat your peas" category.

• Tune out: "No phone!" Rylander says.

• Critter control: "I recommend a citronella candle for mosquitoes," Bonovsky says. "And you need to have an umbrella because squirrels tend to throw things. And don't get me started on blue jays, they are the worst."

• Go with the flow: "I take frequent breaks from reading to enjoy nature distractions," Olson says. "If I am reading in the house I'll be distracted by my never-ending 'to do' list. When I am reading outside I'm distracted by the beautiful puffy clouds moving across the sky, or the leaves rustling in the trees, or a chipmunk running by, et cetera. But those are welcome distractions that don't take away from the book I happen to be reading. If a lawn mower or leaf blower starts up, that's another story."