Barbara Kingsolver’s The Bean Trees is a dramatic fiction novel set that illustrates the novel’s main character, Taylor Greer, on her journey to escape her hometown and become a strong, independent woman—one who is not limited by her upbringing. Taylor’s life significantly changes at her discovery of a child in her car—she later discovers the child’s name is Turtle, an abandoned young girl.
Charles Yu’s Interior Chinatown is a domestic fiction novel that exhibits Willis Wu’s quest to break free from the entertainment industry’s expectation for him to play stereotypical roles such as “Generic Asian Man.” His hope is to acquire the role of “Kung Fu Guy,” a highly regarded character on the TV show “Black and White.” On his journey, Wu faces the deeply rooted stereotypes and prejudices held by the entertainment industry and the deficient representation of Asian actors in the media.
Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights is a gothic novel set in northern England. The novel illustrates the complex relationship between Heathcliff—an orphan taken in by the Earnshaw family—and Catherine Earnshaw. Heathcliff’s desire to be with Catherine is made more complicated due their differing desires—Heathcliff’s desire for revenge, and Catherine’s desire to uphold her social status. Their differing desires, individual flaws, and family difficulties additionally stand in the way of their relationship.
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas is a powerful novel following a black teenage girl named Starr Carter who is forced to see two of her childhood best friends brutally murdered at a young age. Starr struggles to fight against the discrimination and police brutality her entire community has faced--she is put in a situation where she must stand up for what is right. She has the choice to either stay quiet to protect herself, or speak up for those she has lost.
“It seemed clear that wars were not made by generations and their special stupidities, but that wars were made instead by something ignorant in the human heart.”
“Female psychopaths, researchers eventually realized, don't present like the males. To which I respond: No shit. We women have an emotional wiliness that shellacs us in glossy patina of caring. We have been raised to take interest in promoting healthy interior lives of other humans; preparation, I suppose, for taking on the emotional labor of motherhood - or marriage; either way, really. Few women come into maturity unscathed by the suffocating pink press of girlhood, and even psychopaths are touched by the long, frilly arm of feminine expectations.
Throne of Glass is a novel written by Sarah J. Maas. The main character, Assassin Celaena Sardothien, is given a chance to earn her freedom from grueling labor in the Endovier mines. Her one shot at freedom depends on her winning a competition that will make her the kingdom of Adarlan’s Royal Assassin. After a year in the mines, she is already weak and malnourished putting her far behind the rest of the competition.
One of Us Is Back by Karen M. McManus is the third and final installment in the Bayview High YA mystery/thriller trilogy. Following the resolution of the previous book, One of Us Is Back opens with a reunion of all of our favorite characters.
Mad Honey is a fiction novel by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan. Olivia McAfee is a beekeeper in a small New Hampshire town, living with her son, Asher. The new girl, Lily Campanello was found dead and her boyfriend, Asher is put on trial. Throughout the book, the perspective switches between Lily and Olivia. Many things are questioned in the book and trust is on the line.
Betting on You, by Lynn Painter, is the quintessential young adult romance novel. Bailey is dealing with her parents’ divorce and move to a new town when she meets Charlie, a witty and cynical boy who doesn’t believe in love. They are forced together on an hours-long plane ride, and by the end can’t be more thoroughly annoyed with each other. They part ways, expecting never to meet again, until they find themselves working together at the same waterpark.
