Grace Haupt ’20:
Looking to get some reading in this holiday season? Here are some of the best books of the year!
Turtles All the Way Down by John Green
John Green returns to the bestseller list after his smash-hit The Fault in Our Stars. Turtles All the Way Down is an honest exploration of mental health, drawn from Green’s own experiences with OCD. The protagonist Ava Holmes struggles to sustain friendships, be a good student, and find her first love while battling the demons that control her thoughts. The novel is extremely well-written, full of honest and heart-wrenching accounts of Ava’s anxiety.
The American Spirit: Who We Are and What We Stand For by David McCullough
A collection of speeches given by two-time Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winner, David McCullough shares the wisdom he’s learned in his 83 years. Impassioned, learned, full of historical antidotes, and encouragingly optimistic, McCollough his view on American values. A wonderful and quick for anyone interested in history, philosophy, literature, and life.
We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy by Ta-Nehisi Coates
A collection of essays taken from The Atlantic, We Were Eight Years in Power chronicles the Obama administration (2008-2016) from the eloquent perspective of this black man. These essays arguably launched Coates’ career and grapple with the issue of race and identity. Controversial in nature, the book even discusses then President-Elect Trump. Coates provides an empathetic read to help anyone understand.
The Daily Show: An Oral History as Told by Jon Stewart, the Correspondents, Staff and Guests by Chris Smith
Any fan of Comedy Central’s The Daily Show will enjoy this hilarious history of the two-decades the show has aired. Including the writings of Samantha Bee, Stephen Colbert, John Oliver, Steve Carell, Lewis Black, Jessica Williams, John Hodgman, Larry Wilmore, John and Cindy McCain, Glenn Beck, Tucker Carlson, and Jon Stewart himself, this oral history takes the reader from the show’s inception with host Craig Kilborn to the legendary seventeen-years of Jon Stewart to Trevor Noah’s succession. The Daily Show: An Oral History will keep the reader laughing. You might even want to start watching after reading.