Summer days lie ahead and some of you may be lucky enough to enjoy a holiday (or maybe a holiday-at-home) over the next few weeks! If you are looking for some reading to occupy you why not check out the following picks? All available to borrow here in the Library.
Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby is, in our book, the ultimate summer classic. The story takes place on Long Island in 1922 and follows Nick Carraway as he moves to the fictional residential area of 'West Egg' and experiences a life-altering summer with his new neighbour, the fabulously wealthy and fabulously mysterious Jay Gatsby. Throughout the novel it becomes clear that Gatsby has an ulterior motive in his pursuit of Nick's friendship, and her name is Daisy. This book is packed full of debauched Jazz Age parties, loathsome characters and total tragedy. What's not to love? You can find this title in the Library (on the second floor) at 813.52 FIT or find Baz Luhnrmann's adaptation of it on DVD in our Multimedia collection at 791.4372 GRE.
Would you like to spend the rest of your summer sobbing uncontrollably over two fictional characters? If the answer is yes then you should definitely read Normal People. Sally Rooney's second novel was released in 2018 and has since received much critical acclaim and been adapted into a TV series for BBC3 starring Daisy Edgar Jones and Paul Mescal. The novel is set in Ireland and follows the complex relationship between Marianne and Connell, two teens who come from very different worlds. Marianne is wealthy and intelligent, but deeply insecure and unpopular amongst her peers at school, Connell is equally as intelligent, as well as being handsome and popular, but is embarrassed that his mother works for Marianne's family as a cleaner. Rooney uses their relationship to explore class divisions and how they effect the power dynamics of relationships, amongst other issues. The author also tackles themes such as emotional and physical abuse and depression, so whilst this is a really great read, bear these themes in mind before picking this one up. This one is in the Library at 823.92 ROO.
Literary retellings have been an obvious publishing trend for some years now, and that trend doesn't appear to be dying out any time soon. Much of the credit for this trend can be laid at the feet of Madeline Miller, whose novel The Song of Achilles arguably helped popularise the genre. The novel reframes the story of Homer's The Iliad from the perspective of Achilles' childhood friend Patroclus, the relationship between the two and how it develops during the Trojan War. Find it in the Library at 813.6 MIL.
The Secret History is probably the perfect choice for you if you're actually looking forward to the end of summer and the beginning of the Autumn term. The Secret History was released in 1992 and has gained a resurgence in popularity on 'Booktok' 30 years on. The novel tells the story of Richard Papen, who leaves his home state of California to study English Literature at Hampden College, an elite university in Vermont. When Richard arrives in Vermont, he falls in with a crowd of upper-class Classics students and quickly realises the group are hiding a terrible secret. It's an excellent thriller to read on the lead up to Halloween, and the setting and dark academia vibes are perfect for the fast-approaching transition into autumn. Find it on the second floor at 813.54 TAR.
If none of these take your fancy, why not take a look at our Reading for Pleasure collection online to see what other fiction we have in the Library for you to peruse? Or alternatively, check out our Book Exchange located on the ground floor in the Costa cafe area, where you might discover a hidden gem!
Happy reading!
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