This week our Book Editor, Taposhi selects some books to read that you shouldn’t miss out on. Don’t forget to read them out.
Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney ****
Beautiful World, Where Are You is a new novel by Sally Rooney, the bestselling author of Normal People and Conversations with Friends. The book was released in September 2021 and became an instant bestseller. In the novel, Rooney explores the world through two young couples or rather four friends. this novel is very “comfortable” to read: it reflects, feeds, and also fulfills our longing for the good old beautiful world, as we have never known it, in the middle of our collective value crisis. This atmosphere of “familiarity” of the novel can make this kind of literature artistically bad. Does the fact that it feels so good to read it, say more about us/the literature industry which Alice despises so much?
Me Before You By Jojo Moyes ****
Life goes on at its own pace. No one knows when fate will take a turn. ‘Me Before You’ is a story about personal redemption and self-worth, about finding courage, about knowing what to hold onto and what to let go. Jojo Moyes tells a story about embracing all that life has to offer because anything can change in an instant. It’s a truly moving tale that manages to remain lighthearted while delving into the more serious issues of debilitating disabilities and the controversial argument surrounding assisted suicide. Moyes handles the intense subject matter with ease and keeps the mood of the novel both light and thought-provoking while remaining respectful to the topic at hand. Louisa Clark is stumbling through her monotonous daily routine when life throws her a curveball. The café where she works is going out of business and she suddenly finds herself unemployed and unqualified for almost any other job putting her family’s financial stability at risk. Louisa goes job hunting until she lands a gig as a caretaker for a paralyzed man named Will Traynor. The story goes on since then.
The Sentences That Create Us by PEN America ****
The Sentences That Create Us draws from the unique insights of over fifty justice-involved contributors and their allies to offer inspiration and resources for creating a literary life in prison. Centering in the philosophy that writers in prison can be as vibrant and capable as writers on the outside, and have much to offer readers everywhere, The Sentences That Create Us aims to propel writers in prison to launch their work into the world beyond the walls, while also embracing and supporting the creative community within the walls.
