Like the majority of you reading this, I am a lover of books. Books were and are my friends and mentors. Even at my lowest (think chubby pre-teen riddled with cystic acne, adorned with headgear, and harboring an unquenchable passion for Fall Out Boy) they did not forsake me and for that I am forever grateful. But recently I feel like my relationship with literature has hit a rough patch. See, right now I am not a girl, not yet a woman and due to these Britney-esque qualities I feel like my book options are severely limited.
Sure, there are always the classic options that I know I should read because all the cool kids are doing it: Tolstoy, Joyce, Faulkner etc. etc. etc…Don’t get me wrong, I love masochism as much as the next southern Californian Catholic school girl but SERIOUSLY people some of this is uncouth. It’s either long, complicated, thoroughly depressing or all of the above. When did my relationships get so serious?!? I’m young dammit! I just want someone to hold me on those cold nights and tell me I am pretty, I DON’T DESERVE THIS!! But then again, I also don’t think I am at age where it is still socially acceptable to read the Twilight series and Princess Diaries (this doesn’t mean that I haven’t – don’t judge)…. hence I am stuck at a crossroads, I want something entertaining without being juvenile and something challenging that doesn’t make me want to self medicate. Hmph.
Luckily, after some long and arduous searching, I have a few books that match these criteria. (HAZZAH!!) Some (many) of them you have undoubtedly heard of, but others you may have not. So let me conclude now, Gentle Reader, by imparting you with my knowledge for I am feeling altruistic…
In no particular order:
- – Stiff by Mary Roach
- – Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell
- – Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris
- – Kalahari Typing School for Men by Alexander Mccall Smith
- – Too Close to the Falls by Catherine Gildiner
- – Anonymous Rex by Eric Garcia
- – Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand by Helen Simonson
- – The House at Sugar Beach by Helene Cooper
Happy Perusing!
The Comparative Literature Undergraduate Journal 