All those crisp Fall days when you’re curled up with a cozy sweater and a pumpkin flavored something-or-other would be so much better with the perfect book. These five are great and pretty fast reads that won’t overtake midterms and homework.
Play It As It Lays by Joan Didion
Written in 1970, this novel is about main character Maria and the sequence of events that led her to a neuropsychiatric hospital. This book is beautifully written, but I must admit very sad. Despite that, it’s a must read for every girl in her 20s trying to figure out life.
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
This book is a memoir written by Jean-Dominique Bauby, a former journalist who suffered from a stroke that left him with complete paralysis. During the time of his stroke, Bauby was the editor-in-chief of French Elle. Since Baby was paralyzed, he wrote the entire book by using a type-assisting machine that operated by him blinking his left (over 200,000 times for the entire book!) eye to choose a letter. This book leaves the reader with an uplifting and inspired outlook on life.
Three Plays
The three short plays in this book, Melissa Arctic, Orange Flower Water, and The Pavilion, were written by Craig Wright, the creator of the show Dirty Sexy Money and writer for the shows Lost and Six Feet Under. These three plays are short, but powerful. They all are a little dark, but are definitely worth the read. My favorite of the three is Orange Flower Water, which may have your jaw dropping at moments.
Into the Wild
Jon Krakauer accounts the tale of Chris McCandless and his retreat-and defeat- into the Alaskan wild. It tells the story of McCandless, a generous and friendly 24 year old who was looking for more out of life than the typical traps that people often find themselves. His story is extreme, but if we all tried to be a little more like McCandless, the world would be a completely different (for the better) place. The non-fiction story was also made into a movie in 2007, and is available on Netflix. But read the book first before you watch it!
I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell
Tucker Max, with zero discretion, tells a few tales of his drinking and sexual encounters in this autobiographical book…I’ll leave it at that. This book is outrageous, hilarious, and one that every college student should read.