With graduation quickly approaching, I’ve been thinking a lot about what lessons and teachings I will take with me into the world. It turns out, there’s a lot!
As a fourth-year English and Cultural Studies student, I have read many novels, poems, textbooks, and short stories. Now that I am approaching graduation, I have started to reflect on some of these reads, noting the ones that have significantly influenced my life and way of thinking. Here is my list of some of the most impactful readings of my undergrad, the reasons why (no spoilers, I promise), and which course(s) taught them.
- “The Third and Final Continent” by Jhumpa Lahiri
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Courses: ENGLISH 2KK3: Studies in Women Writers / ENGLISH 4CF3: Contemporary Fiction
“The Third and Final Continent” is a short story within Jhumpa Lahiri’s Interpreter of Maladies. It centers around a man who immigrated from India to England, and then to his final stop in Boston. This story opened my eyes to the complexities of diaspora. In the story, we see the narrator develop a hybrid identity unique to him, neither conforming to nor separating from US culture. This story emphasizes how crucial it is that we all grow compassion and understanding: everyone’s experience of life has different challenges, and how we interact and communicate can make that journey easier.
- Nightbitch by Rachel Yoder
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Course: ENGLISH 4ML3: Millennial Literature
I must admit, I wasn’t the biggest fan of this novel in terms of its writing style—I felt it could have been much shorter and to the point. However, this story raises crucial questions and comments regarding motherhood. We see the main character navigate life as a new mom, facing social expectations and challenges. For example, the unspoken troubles of dual-parenting, other moms, work, and identity. This book helped me step into the shoes of a mother and increase my understanding and perspective. Nightbitch is a must-read not just for individuals wanting to be mothers one day, but for everyone! Bonus: the novel was just adapted into a film starring Amy Adams—check that out too!
- Emma by Jane Austen
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Course: ENGLISH 3GS3: Reading the Embodied Past: Gender and Sexuality
I must disclose that this was my first time reading Jane Austen’s work. I found it quite difficult. I think I would have enjoyed the read more had I not been pressured with deadlines or not been focused on interpreting the novel for a future essay. Nonetheless, I absolutely adored Emma. Jane Austen is truly a treasure: the secrecy of her authorship makes you want to read this book more! My favourite thing about Emma is Emma’s perception of love. We see her, as someone who once refused love itself, navigating it on her terms. This was very progressive for her time. Also, we see the differences between lust and love from a historical lens, which is interesting to compare to today’s day and age. Bonus: There are many film adaptations to check out! And all are special and beautiful in their own cinematic ways!
- Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie
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Course: ENGLISH 4CF3: Contemporary Fiction
I will never stop talking about this book. It is one of my favourites—I am completely fascinated by it. First, the writing style is so clean, smooth, and delicately written. It portrays the narrator’s experience and the plot progression in harmony: the book is the perfect length. This is a fictional story about two boys who were re-educated during Mao’s Chinese Cultural Revolution. What makes the novel even more impactful is that the author too was re-educated in his own life, making the fictional story feel more connective and personal. Overall, this story inspires the cruciality of literature and the privilege of reading. Education is not something to take for granted!
- Tangles: A Story About Alzheimer’s, My Mother and Me by Sarah Leavitt
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Course: ENGLISH 3NH3: Narratives of Health
This graphic novel made me emotional. Filled with simple yet telling illustrations, it follows the author’s personal experience navigating life with her mom Midge, who has Alzheimer’s. Between the metaphors, easy-to-read format, and emotionally evolving story, your perspective will rise by the end of it. You might also be in tears. I think oftentimes, diseases such as Alzheimer’s are thought of from single lenses. However, stories like this one show the complexities of illness and how it impacts many lives. This story also does not villainize the disease but rather finds the beauty in it. People are still people, regardless of illness.
- “Red River” from River Woman by Katherena Vermette
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Course: ENGLISH 2KK3: Studies in Women Writers
“Red River” talks about the complexities of rivers by giving them life through a human and metaphoric comparison. As an indigenous storyteller, Katherena reveals the sovereignty of the earth and how we must interact and treat it with kindness, compassion, and respect. By reading her work, I gained clarity and a new understanding about my own interactions with the earth. Our communication matters. Our behaviour matters. Our relationships matter. This is a must-read.
If you take anything away from your studies, I hope it is lasting stories, teachings, or in my case, readings, that inform the way you view and act in the world now. I also hope they are also lessons you can now go forth and teach others!