Freya's Nook: Summer Reads

My first pick is a contemporary 'Jane Eyre' novel. With many mirrored elements of the original classic, this story is told from the point of view of a half-Korean, half-American woman from Flushing, New York, as she takes the position of Au Pair for a family in Brooklyn. The story is narrated beautifully by the main character, in the same way that Jane Eyre narrates her own story, and we learn of her challenges of fitting in to a society where she must try to marry both of her cultures and deal with the pressures of each one. It's romantic and feminist, a real page-turner, and if you liked the story of Jane Eyre you will love it!

I absolutely had to include a novel by George Orwell, and this one is probably one of my favourites of his work. This book is one of Orwell's own memoirs, an account of his experience as a struggling writer in his 20s, as he faced extreme poverty. I find that Orwell has a style of writing which makes you physically feel his words; you can't help but feel as if what he is describing is happening to you! In this way you get totally absorbed in his story - it's one of those books which makes you lose track of time and the real world. This book has really stayed with me; although I read it a few years ago, I think of passages from it often. Perhaps it's not a laid-back, chilled kind of read, but it's real and emotional and I would highly recommend it.

During the summer, I often like to read books that somehow I feel like I don't have the time to read during the year. Therefore, I wanted to include a classic in this list, something a little longer (but no less enjoyable). 'Emma' might be a book that is already familiar to you - maybe you saw one of the film adaptations of it, and now would be the perfect time to read it! It is the romantic story of a young woman from the English countryside, her life as she attends balls and hosts dinners, the gossip flying amongst her friends, and her role as matchmaker between them. It is a truly lovely story; romantic and funny, indulgent and gorgeously written, and really one of those 'feel good' books.

Something, again, a little different here. This is definitely not a 'nice' or 'fun' read - it is quite harrowing and intense, but it is amazing! This is a dystopian story about a repressive state, where everybody has been put into a different category, and the function of the 'handmaid' category, to which the main character belongs, is to have children. If one does not obey the rules of their category, they face an extreme punishment - to be publicly hanged or to die from radiation. But as usual, a society like this will never work as it does not incorporate the human feelings of it's people, or it's leaders. This is a gripping and haunting read, and will certainly give you a lot to think about.

On a totally different note, here we have a very lighthearted and funny book. The book is an exploration of what it means to be a psychopath, delving through many different kinds of situations and meeting lots of different characters along the way. In a funny way, Ronson makes us question whether we are actually secret psychopaths! But at the same time, a lot of light is shed on this whole area of society, and that perhaps people are judged all too often by their extreme edges, which are not truly them. This was a very enjoyable read, not too long either and I think would be perfect for the summer.

I have always been very interested in World War 2 stories, and this one is slightly different in that it comes at this theme from a different angle, which is definitely refreshing. It is told from the point of view of a little German girl from a small town in Southern Germany. It describes her confusion over what is happening in her country, and this is extremely poignant. There are so many books written about what happened to the Jews or what happened to those soldiers who fought and their families, but I, for one, had never considered that German children really had no idea what the whole thing was about, what Jew even meant, or why their friends were being taken away and killed. The book is absolutely beautifully written; beware that you may need some tissues.

For my last choice, I have picked this work of non-fiction by one of my favourite female writers; Simone de Beauvoir. I find her life and her relationship with Satre incredibly interesting and have read a lot about both of them. These letters, which were published after her death (you might find this agreeable or not - this is a personal choice), shed a totally different light, though, on what we thought we knew about these two figures, and particularly about her own feelings towards him. While everything that was published by consent when they were alive shows that they were a revolutionary couple, exploring new boundaries of relationships which were both shocking and awe-inspiring, here we get a closer look at how she really felt about their lifestyles, and it is not always so positive. This book is great because it is the type of book that doesn't need to be read in one go - it can be picked up and put down over the course of the whole summer. It really is fascinating to delve into her personal mind and I really recommend this, especially if you have enjoyed any of her other works of fiction.