Armana Aradom
Berkeley High School senior Armana Aradom read “Persuasion,” a novel by Jane Austen. “I really liked the way that the main character, Anne, doesn’t conform to the societal norms about what it means to be a woman during the time period that she lives in. Her own beliefs about love were very contrary to what society pushed on her. She’s a very confident woman who knew what she wanted, in her career and her life, and she wasn’t willing to let other people sway her away from that,” Aradom said.
Meredith Irby
“My favorite book this summer was called “The Ministry of Time,” by Kaliane Bradley,” BHS Librarian Meredith Irby said. The novel follows a woman that works for the Ministry of Time, a mysterious and newly established organization. “It’s incredible. It’s like a time travel romance. It’s also like a spy thriller and like a workplace comedy in some ways, too. It’s so well done, so compelling, and I learned a lot about history. Awesome. And I read it in, like, a day. I can recommend it,” Irby said.
Nina Garling-Rai
BHS junior Nina Garling-Rai read “In the Freud Archives” by Janet Malcolm, a nonfiction psychoanalysis based on psychologist Sigmund Freud’s writing collection. “I liked that it wasn’t actually Freud’s writing, because Freud’s writing is really difficult to understand, and it was kind of more in a story context than paper context. It was fun to read, which I didn’t think it was going to be fun to read about,” Garling-Rai said.
Sterling Murphy
BHS freshman Sterling Murphy read “Beautiful Creatures” by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. “Beautiful Creatures” is the first of four novels about a young man, Ethan, that falls for a young woman named Lena with supernatural powers. The series follows the story of their paranormal adventures as they tackle family legacies, prejudices, and curses. “It’s a really good fiction book. I liked how it was written, and it was a long series,” Murphy said.
Greyson Grubb Smith
BHS junior Greyson Grubb Smith read “Where Men Win Glory” by Jon Krakauer this summer. “Where Men Win Glory” is a biography of football player Pat Tillman describing how after 9/11, he left his career as a professional athlete to join the U.S. Army and fight in Afghanistan. “It was really inspiring, and it was really cool. It was like an investigation of what happened,” Grubb Smith said.
Kaelo Hickman
Kaelo Hickman, a BHS junior, read “Neverwhere” by Neil Gaiman this summer. “Neverwhere” is a novel about an ordinary Scottish businessman who has an unorthodox encounter with a mysterious girl and gets sent down a dark and fantastical spiral. “I liked that it was very spooky and very otherworldly, and I think it had nice world building. I would recommend it,” Hickman said.