By: PAIGE FOSTER
Staff Writer
By November, students are settled into the rhythms of their classes and the cool weather necessitates long hours indoors. This makes November an ideal time to expand one’s literary horizons. For anyone else looking for books to read this fall, below is my reading list for the month of November:
The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls:
The Glass Castle may have a rather fantastical title, but it is in fact a work of nonfiction about author Jeanette Walls’ own upbringing. The memoir details the dysfunctional dynamics of the household Walls grew up in. While Walls’ book is a celebration of human resilience and redemption, her work also contains scenes dealing with topics such as sexual and substance abuse. Readers with particular sensitivity to these issues should be advised.
The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis
Every month I strive to read at least one book dealing with Christian theology, philosophy, or history. This month, it is the classic Screwtape Letters – one of Lewis’ most popular books. It is a work of religious satire which follows Lewis’ ironic (yet profound) speculations as to the nature of hell. The main character is Monsieur Screwtape, a senior demon who is writing letters to his nephew – a junior demon. Both are under the direction of their “Father below”. This book is my second C.S. Lewis book, the first being Mere Christianity. I am particularly excited for this one because of the poignancy, clarity, and conviction with which Lewis writes.
Hamlet by William Shakespeare
Mrs. Jolly’s AP Literature classes are reading the play Hamlet this month, a play wrought with corrupt politicians, sabotage, and – of course – a few fights to the death. Hamlet is about a young prince whose father (the king) dies when the kingdom is on the brink of war. The king’s brother takes over the throne instead of Prince Hamlet and marries his brother’s widow. The late king’s ghost then returns to haunt the castle, and Prince Hamlet is left to pick apart the mysterious circumstances of his father’s death and haunting, discovering corruption, deceit, and betrayal in the process.
The Surrender to Love by David G. Benner
This book is another related to Christian spiritual formation, and it is also the shortest at just over 100 pages. In The Surrender to Love, Benner discusses how seeing God as a loving father rather than an indifferent, disapproving man in the sky transformed his relationship with Him. Benner offers a lifeline of the spiritual sort to those who feel that God’s love is something to be earned, justified, or reasoned.