“How ’Bout if I’m Mr. Purple?”

Perhaps you know him as the frustrated indie director in Living in Oblivion; the high-strung kidnapper who meets the wrong end of a wood-chipper in Fargo; Garland “the Marietta Mangler” Greene in Con Air; Mr. Pink in Reservoir Dogs; or, more recently, the rumpled private detective Lenny Wosniak on 30 Rock. Steve Buscemi has played these and many other memorable roles, as well as directed film and TV—and he’s a Brooklyn native who enjoys a good book.

Buscemi shared his favorite warm-weather reads with BPL as part of our Summer Reading Celebrity Booklist series.

For Children

Harold and the Purple Crayon, Crockett Johnson

Two Bad Ants, Chris Van Allsburg

Uncle Wiggily, Howard Roger Garis

Where the Sidewalk Ends, Shel Silverstein

Lizard Music, Daniel Pinkwater

For Adults

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Rebecca Skloot

Just Kids, Patti Smith

Invisible, Paul Auster

The Lone Surfer of Montana, Kansas, Davy Rothbart

Hex, Maggie Estep