WORDS Jennifer Duffy and Kathleen Girvan
First up we have Mary Ahern, a 3rd year Science student who is currently reading comedy writer Danny Wallace’s debut novel “Charlotte Street”, an unusual, humorous version of the traditional boy-meets-girl story. Jason Priestly, the down-on-his-luck protagonist, shares a fleeting moment of romantic possibility with a mysterious girl on the eponymous Charlotte Street. Left with only her disposable camera, Jason desperately wants to track her down and is faced with the dilemma: should he develop the photos? Mary found the novel to be a light-hearted, enjoyable easy read.
The classic, Pulitzer Prize winning Harper Lee novel “To Kill a Mockingbird”, a staple text on the reading lists of many Junior Cert English pupils, is currently the book of choice for second year Law and German student Karen Long. Karen is thoroughly enjoying the novels engaging and complex themes, from race and class, to gender roles and inequality, and finds that she can appreciate these much more as a college student, than a fifteen year old probably would. Karen found it ‘ahead of its time’ and recommends it to anyone who hasn’t got around to reading it yet.
Next we headed to the VisArts stand, where we spoke to Michelle MacDonagh, fourth year History of Art student and VisArts chair. Having read “1984” and “Animal Farm”, she is currently enjoying George Orwell’s lesser known autobiographical work “Down and Out in Paris and London”. The memoir follows the author’s descent into poverty in the French capital; his experiences of unemployment, hunger and destitution, and his foray into the exhausting work of dish-washing to support himself. The book then moves to London, where Orwell finds the job he’d been expecting has not materialised, and he is forced to assume the life of a vagrant, moving between hostels and homeless shelters. Interspersed with unusual characters and humorous anecdotes, Orwell paints a vivid picture of his early experiences and Michelle is finding the book different and enjoyable. Michelle also gets bonus points for having the book with her!
Moving on from the downward spiral of a destitute writer, our next interviewee is currently reading a novel chronicling the collapse and decline of an entire family. Second year BESS student Michael Scholz is enjoying the 1901 Thomas Mann novel “Buddenbrooks”, a vast, sprawling story of a wealthy, bourgois German family, over the course of four generations, from their prominence to social decline. The family saga was so well-received and critically lauded that it received the Nobel Prize for Literature, and Michael finds Manns study of the German bourgeoisie both fascinating and highly readable.
Second year Law and French student Marie-Claire is currently reading the “Gone Girl”, the bestselling debut novel by Gillian Flynn. This tense and engaging thriller revolves around the mysterious disappearance of Amy Dunne, on the fifth anniversary of her marriage to her husband Nick. The contrasting narrative viewpoints, both of which reveal themselves to be highly unreliable, alternate from Nick in the present day, and Amy in the past. This effectively makes for a particularly gripping read especially when combined with the novel’s constant plot twists and turns.
Finally we interview third year English and Spanish student, and TN2’s deputy Film editor, Sarah Lennon Galavan, who is enjoying Peter Biskind’s “Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex, Drugs and Rock N’ Roll Generation Saved Hollywood”, focusing on the New Hollywood era of the 1970s and its impact on the world of film. The book documents the embarrassing stories, raucous anecdotes and scandalous gossip of the movie industry in detail, and gives the reader a valuable insight into the lives of Hollywood legends such as Martin Scorcese, Francis Ford Coppola, Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson and Robert de Niro. Sarah finds its honest depiction of 1970s Hollywood to be both informative and entertaining.
