The writers of this blog will be reading four books over the coming months to close read and offer our thoughts on. After a group discussion, these are the books we agreed upon.
Book #1: Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Summary: “Seconds before Earth is demolished to make way for a galactic freeway, Arthur Dent is plucked off the planet by his friend Ford Prefect, a researcher for the revised edition of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy who, for the last fifteen years, has been posing as an out-of-work actor. Together, this dynamic pair began a journey through space”
I first heard about The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy during our group reading proposal discussion in class. It was one of the books that Alex had suggested and upon reading his proposal I became really interested in it. It is a comical science fiction novel which is a genre that I am not familiar with. Because I do not have much experience with this genre, it will introduce me to the new readerly roles it entails. As a result, I will be able to, hopefully, read “closer” and bring fewer projections to the experience. I am really stepping out of my comfort zone reading this novel but I am excited to the challenges it may bring.
-Brittany
Book #2: Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
Summary: Cat’s Cradle is Kurt Vonnegut’s satirical commentary on modern man and his madness. An apocalyptic tale of this planet’s ultimate fate, it features a midget as the protagonist, a complete, original theology created by a calypso singer, and a vision of the future that is at once blackly fatalistic and hilariously funny.
I chose Cat’s Cradle after already having read Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five. I deeply enjoyed that novel and found it to be a quick and easy read that had many themes when close read. I enjoyed the wacky quality of Vonnegut’s stories, and the satire and dry humor he inserts in them. His stories are wildly inventive. So Cat’s Cradle is the next book I wanted to read from him. Just by reading the summary, it sure seems like that. Hopefully I can enjoy it as much as Slaughterhouse-Five.
-Alex
Book #3: Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer
Summary: An expedition of four women is sent into an unknown region called Area X, beyond the borders of humanity: a psychologist, a surveyor, an anthropologist, and our narrator, a biologist. The purpose of the mission is to collect data about Area X and report back to the government, the Southern Reach, but circumstances begin to change when the group discovers a tower (or tunnel) that was previously unmarked on the map. Inside the structure, strange writing scrawls across the walls, and a spiral staircase descends downward, beckoning the members to follow. Previous expeditions ended badly, with group members disappearing or returning as shells of their former selves, but little is known about what actually occurred on those trips to Area X.
I chose Annihilation primarily because, while I consider myself to be a fan of thrillers and horror movies, I am relatively inexperienced when it comes to horror and thriller novels. The premise sounds exceedingly interesting, with several burning questions brought to light in just the basic summary. I am eager to see what turns this novel takes with the premise, leaning more towards science fiction or something more akin to a monster movie.
-Jordan
Book #4: Dept of Speculation by Jenny Offill
Dept. of Speculation is about a woman’s struggle in her marriage and life. It is a non-traditional narrative that sparked my interest while I was searching for books to read. The quote that accompanied it on Buzzfeed was what really struck a chord with me, “A few nights later I secretly hope I might be a genius. Why else can no amount of sleeping pills fell my brain? But in the morning my daughter asks me what a cloud is and I can not say.” It piqued my interest and I felt a truth in the line. At first I was not going to suggest the book but after hearing that Laura had already read it and enjoyed it I really wanted to look into it. I don’t normally go for books about normal, everyday life. I tend to want something more when I read, be it fantasy or something supernatural. The real-world is too real. I’m shaken when I read something that mirrors my inner turmoil, or speaks about something I know and experience everyday. I hope that with this book we will be able to explore the structure in relation to the narrative and try to see something surprising that we would not have noticed before.
-Nicole
How Writers Read 