Like every year, this year I have become engrossed in my academics, along with the relentless pursuit of attempting to have a simultaneous social life to “balance it out” as the wellness side of my social media feeds preach. Protecting your mental health as a college student is breaks and timers and campus activities and de-stressing and nature walks and movement and water and breathing!
While all of these trends, practices, and general advice are by no means wrong or even unhelpful, I personally determine whether or not my life is too overwhelming based on whether or not I have the time and energy to read a singular book. I am someone who reads recreationally, so when my obligations grow into a hideous, consuming thing that devours any time I might have to read, I know that it’s time to slow down, get organized, put my work aside, and read a book.
I love knowing what everyone else is reading, so I asked my Her Campus Chapter what they’ve been reading lately and listed ten books and series below, with a few additions of my own. This compilation of reads will hopefully assist in steering us toward a calmer, slower direction during a time when academic life can speed too far ahead.
Inseparable by Simone de Beauvoir
Pages: 176
Topics: Feminism, France, Historical Fiction, Queer Fiction
Brief: An autobiographical story of how two young schoolgirls with different ways of life and aspirations find company in one another. Intimate and thoughtful, “Inseparable” was based on De Beauvoir’s relationship with her best friend, Zaza. De Beauvoir paints beautiful portraits of adolescent thought, the post-World War I landscape in France, and the complexities of same-sex relationships.
Clytemnestra by Costanza Casati
Pages: 435
Topics: Greek Mythology, Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Retelling
Brief: Following villainess Clytemnestra, Casati writes of the queen’s life and the infamous sequence of events that solidified her reputation as a murderess. While humanizing the commonly despised protagonist, this book immerses the reader into the era, allowing one to feel and understand Clytemnestra to a never-before-seen level.
Next Year in Havana by Chanel Cleeton
Pages: 356
Topics: Historical Fiction, Contemporary, Romance, Cuba
Brief: A rich dive into the heart and soul of one family told through dual timelines, centered on two women trying to find their identity in the scope of love and their country.
The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang
Pages: 545
Topics: High Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Adult
Brief: Inspired by China’s violent past, The Poppy War takes the reader along Rin’s journey as she enters a war academy to escape her life of poverty. Through the prejudices she faces for her gender, social class, and color, she finds she has magical gifts and is called to save her nation amidst geographical and political turmoil.
Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah
Pages: 479
Topics: Romance, Historical Fiction, Chick Lit
Brief: Readers follow the tale of two polar-opposite childhood best friends who make their long-term friendship last, even when they have different desires, goals, and paths in each of their lives. Aspects like geography and certain events pull them apart at times, but a childhood pact to remain best friends forever twines their fates together again and again.
Nightbane by Alex Aster
Pages: 384
Topics: Magic, Fantasy, Romance, Love Triangle, Young Adult
Brief: Following the first in the series, Lightlark, Nightbane follows Isla Crown in the aftermath of the Centennial games, exploring both her complicated past and how she navigates her powerful, seductive present.
The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
Pages: 288
Topics: Magical Realism, Fantasy, Mental Health, Parallel Universes
Brief: Between life and death, there is the Midnight Library, where there are an infinite number of books depicting your life had you chosen or acted differently. In this library is where we find miserable protagonist Nora Seed, who explores each of her regrets and the endless opportunities that amending them would bring, as well as the consequences that might follow.Â
Of Women and Salt by Gabriela Garcia
Pages: 207
Topics: Historical, Contemporary, Cuba, Feminism
Brief: A non-chronological collection of stories about women throughout different generations that depict their lives, environments, and impossible struggles that are heartbreakingly accurate to their time. Each tale is intricately woven with another in the novel, creating an atmosphere readers will not be able to leave.Â
Content warning: includes mentions of abuse, war, addiction, immigration, deportation and ICE, and strained mother-daughter relationships.Â
Throne of Glass Series by Sarah J. Maas
Books: Seven (Excluding novellas)
Topics: High Fantasy, Magic, Fae, Heroine, Romance
Brief: Follow assassin Celaena Sardothien through the trials and tribulations she is served to ensure freedom and safety for herself, her loved ones, and her kingdom. Immersive worldbuilding, entertaining banter, and thorough plots will accompany readers through this series.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians Series by Rick RiordianÂ
Books: Seven* (Excluding novellas)
Topics: Young Adult, Greek Mythology, Magic, Fantasy
Brief: Demigod Percy Jackson and similarly-fated friends detangle webs of mythology, monsters, and teenhood as they discover themselves under the preening eyes of the self-serving Greek gods.
*As of the time of this article’s publication