“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” The line is infamous in English literature as Charles Dickens’ 1859 novel, A Tale of Two Cities, to frame the motif of duality throughout the seven monthly installments of the novel to-be.
Posts published in “Book of the Week”
Book of the Week is an Opinion culture column created by Keenan Yates ‘23 used to give weekly book recommendations in the form of short blurbs and reviews.
There is a deep-seated love for speculative fiction, which means stories where we can recognize ourselves, if not the world that we are in.
Human genetics remains a largely unexplored frontier in which our dabbling becomes an ethical debate of playing God. Before CRISPR gene editing technology was mainstream, the 1993 sci-fi novel Beggars in Spain by Nancy Kress is set between 2008 to the 2030s and offers social and ethical commentary on present-day genetic engineering.
Brandon Sanderson has, over the past few years, become a very well-known figure in the fantasy community. His expanded universe, which contains several best-selling book series, Cosmere, has become one of the standout pieces of fantasy fiction in recent years.
The experimental novel “Corduroy,” written by Don Freeman in 1968, follows the biographical tale of a lone teddy bear named Corduroy.
Since 1964, the Torch Bearers, an iconic sculpture located in front of the S.C. Williams Library, has served as a pedagogical symbol with painstakingly accurate equine anatomy.
The oldest continuous trophy in sport that is still being competed for today is the America’s Cup. In 1851, an American-designed and built schooner, ‘America,’ began to compete in various regattas in the United Kingdom.
What does it mean to have a home, an address, or a hearth? While witnessing displacement and the desperate seek for refuge abroad, should we reflect on domestic insecurity?
It’s a sweltering summer day in England, 1935, and the teetering Tallis family drape themselves across their upper-class country house. Like dolls being perfectly positioned throughout the home, we meet the Tallis children—Leon, Celia, and Briony—from oldest to youngest as they linger between a misspent summer and a scandal that will alter their lives and scatter their bonds forever.
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas is a classic. A story about a man, Edmond Dantes, who was falsely accused of treason by his “friends,” Danglars and Fernand Mondego.