By: DeeDee El-Hage
As a third-year English student, I’ve had to complete lots of required readings that have either been a complete drag, or changed my life in a way. Here’s a spoiler-free review of three novels I’ve read from first, second, and third-year level classes that left a positive, lasting impression on me, should you ever find yourself questioning whether or not to complete these course readings, or take these classes.
English 1027F: The Storyteller’s Art: Introduction to Narrative with Dr. Christopher Keep
Novel: Normal People by Sally Rooney
Sally Rooney’s second novel, Normal People, was published in 2018, but after the success of the television adaptation in 2020, it went viral on BookTok garnering hundreds of new readers. I read this novel at the end of 2023 and connected to it on a more personal level than some of the classmates in my tutorial, which made my reading experience more enjoyable. A few of my classmates stated that they ‘didn’t understand the hype’ around this novel, or why people connected so deeply to it. Some readers prefer relatable content, and others don’t, but if you can relate to, or are interested in any of the following topics, I think Normal People is worth the read.
The novel explores the dynamics of ‘hookup culture’ and how casual sexual intimacy in heterosexual relationships is usually more damaging for the woman than it is for the man. In the age of situationships, Rooney, through Marianne, communicates how emotionally and physically draining it can feel to be desired through a sexual, patriarchal lens (as situationships directly benefit the patriarchy) rather than a romantic, innocent one.
Because the novel is heavily centred around Marianne and Connell’s no-strings-attached sex lives, Rooney also includes how these kinds of sexual relationships that aren’t necessarily romantic—meaning the people involved aren’t dating—can quickly turn abusive. Sexual and physical abuse, manipulation, coercion, and a negative change in mental health come as a direct result of some of Marianne’s relationships with men throughout the four years the novel spans.
I’ve seen my classmates, friends, and other young women on BookTok completely misinterpret the novel and pine for a relationship resembling Marianne and Connell’s. It’s concerning considering that the relationship was mentally and physically damaging for Marianne, and Connell played a big role in it, so, whether you’re reading this in Dr. Keep’s class or just for fun, you must pay attention to what Rooney communicates in the subtext. Normal People also allows for discussions about class, peer pressure, mental health, navigating post-secondary, and coming-of-age. A brilliantly simple novel with incredible writing from Rooney, that led to my purchasing her latest novel Intermezzo.
English 2601E: Global Literatures in English Survey with Dr. Nandi Bhatia
Reading: A Small Place by Jamaica Kincaid
A Small Place presents as a genre-bending story. Spanning roughly 80 pages, it’s simultaneously a fictional-nonfictional-memoir-essay-confrontation piece. Jamaica Kincaid was born Elaine Potter Richardson before changing her name in 1973 because she didn’t want her family in Antigua to discover her writing, seeing as they disapproved of her career choice. The text takes place in pre and post-colonial Antigua and is a call-out to first-world tourists visiting the island, where Kincaid is from. She writes in a bitter and sarcastic tone, making a mockery of ignorant Westerners whose five-day getaway in her home causes more harm than good. The text is meant to make us readers uncomfortable, and it left me questioning whether I’ll ever book an all-inclusive resort vacation again.
Antigua and Barbuda didn’t gain independence from the English and French until 1981, leaving centuries of colonial history dating back to 1493 when Christopher Columbus first landed on the island. The West Indies were economically exploited for decades, being the main reason the natives have a negative attitude towards tourists (and rightfully so).
Kincaid directly addresses the reader as ‘You,’ creating a more personal and confrontational effect with her words. She takes us through the average absent-minded tourist’s day in Antigua and shows us the perspective of the natives, how they really feel about tourists, and why there’s so much distaste and hatred for them. Kincaid also highlights the beauty of her home and the community within; she understands why so many people would want to come to visit such a beautiful island, but also makes it abundantly clear why we shouldn’t, and holds a metaphorical mirror up to show us how much we contribute to the life-long, generations-long effects of colonialism. In class, Dr. Bhatia relayed the infamous quote, “The sun never sets on the British empire,” which is evident in Kincaid’s text.
English 3490G: American Drama with Dr. Alyssa MacLean
Play: Our Town by Thornton Wilder
When I sat at my desk to start reading Wilder’s play, I did so with the intention of reading the first act, then moving on to other homework. An hour and a half later I had finished the play and was in complete shambles.
Our Town was a controversial and experimental play for its time. It includes invisible props, and a Stage Manager as a character who narrates, communicates with other characters, and breaks the fourth wall throughout the play. The realism in this play highlights the beautiful rarity of the mundane everyday tasks the people in the American town of Grover’s Corners take part in, and plays with death and nostalgia in a realistic, yet somehow magical way. The first two acts of the play set up the town and introduce the characters, ultimately preparing us for the heartbreaking final act where one of the protagonists passes away, and wishes to revisit their childhood.
As someone who’s always feared death, especially death before ‘achieving greatness,’ the play serves as an emotional reminder that every day spent with loved ones, or participating in something we love, is the ‘great achievement.’ To have such intense nostalgia for brief periods of your life, or past versions of your younger self is to realize you’ve lived a full life; that you’d be more than happy to linger on seemingly banal moments, for these seemingly banal moments are the best parts.
The character who passes in the final act of the play wishes to return to the morning of their twelfth birthday. A perfectly uneventful day where, besides their birthday, not much happens. Once they’re there, all they want is a few moments to look at their mother and their childhood home. They say, “I can’t bear it. They’re so young and beautiful. Why did they ever have to get old? Mama, I’m here. I’m grown up. I love you all, everything.—I can’t look at everything hard enough” (Wilder 100).
The newly-passed character interacts with other characters that have been dead for some time, as well as the Stage Manager, who can interact with both the living and the dead. They talk about how the living don’t understand the beauty of life while they live it, and expand on the saying ‘you don’t know what you have until it’s gone’ without seeming cliche or repetitive. The characters, and the small American town bring new meaning to love, loss, nostalgia, and eternity.
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