As finals season commences, it’s easy to fall into routines of sleeping late, and awakening with dread as a long day of studying awaits. Believe me, we’ve all been there.
But, it’s important to remind yourself that it’s only temporary, and with one final push, winter break is upon us. Whether you’re traveling, staying at home, taking winter classes, or other restful activities, we encourage you to take time for yourself and fall back into hobbies and habits that you may have set aside at school, or even take up new ones, and specifically, open up a good book!
To give us a reprieve from our assignments and projects, I asked my fellow Career Assistants what books they’re planning on reading post-finals and here are our responses!
Sydney: Night Sky with Exit Wounds by Ocean Vuong. I had previously read Vuong’s On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, and enjoyed it—he’s a really good poet and writer. He also writes about the experience of being Asian-American and having immigrant parents, which I feel like is very resonant.
Sophia: M Train by Patti Smith. Set in New York City (my hometown), M Train is Smith’s memoir, where she reminisces on her travels, literature, and life in general. It’s a slow-paced poignant book, which I feel I will need after the rapid, chaotic semester. This book has been on my TBR for a while, so I’m excited to have time to read it!
Sammie: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. It’s a great book that teaches you how to look at how you react to other personalities in the world and avoid judging before you get to know a person’s character.
Ella: Dune by Frank Herbert. I watched the first movie a while back and I enjoyed it a lot, so I want to read the book because I have been told it is even better than the movie!
Celena: The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin. It’s a Chinese dystopian novel about humans interacting with aliens, and I’m excited to re-read it, because I first discovered it in 7th grade.
Deanne: Summer Fridays by Suzanne Rindell. I read this heartfelt romance novel over Thanksgiving break! It takes place in New York City in the summer of 1999 and then after the September 11th attacks in 2001 and follows Sawyer through her entry level job in publishing and her unsteady engagement to her college boyfriend. I thought the writing was good and I found myself returning to it again and again when I had a few moments of downtown. For romance novel fans, it’s a must read!
We encourage you to take care of yourselves, and that you take a moment over break to delve into a few books!