In Chapel on Monday of this week, the English Department recommended some books for the summer break. Mrs Toland shared that, for English teachers, this was a favourite time of year, as they could select books to read during the gloriously long holiday.
A wide range of books was suggested, from thought-provoking narratives to the books we read for self-indulgent pleasure, from poetry to biography.
Dr Wickson shared her exciting choice of ‘Flapper’ by Judith Mackrell, biographies of ‘six women of a dangerous generation’. As well as the allure of the glamour of the era and the strength of these non-conformist females. Dr Wickson spoke of the power of biographies to make you feel connected to others when you might be spending more time alone, as during the recent lockdowns.
Life stories were also featured in Mrs Muir’s choices: ‘Becoming’ by Michelle Obama and ‘Limitless’ by Time Peake. She recommended reading the same book as a friend or family member, to provide a connection and a common talking point, even though you might be far apart. The works of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie were also favourites: the novel ‘Half of a Yellow Sun’ and the short stories ‘The Thing Around Your Neck’ for when end-of-term fatigue might impact on your levels of concentration!
One of Mrs Toland’s suggested reads was ‘Caught in the Crossfire’ by Alan Gibbons: ‘A British Muslim brother and sister, two Irish brothers who take different sides, and two lads out looking for trouble: all of them get caught in the crossfire... It is a chilling account of what is happening in Britain today.’ ‘The Supreme Lie’ is another novel suited to teen readers or young adults and is guaranteed to stay with the reader long after they have finished it, ‘a thrilling look at political corruption and media transparency through the eyes of a teenage girl handed absolute power.’
If girls enjoy escaping into other worlds, Mrs Barrett-Jolley would recommend one of the powerful retellings of tales from Classical Civilisations by the powerhouse of female writers, also recommended by Professor Edith Hall in her evening lecture to girls earlier in the year: Pat Barker’s ‘The Silence of the Girls’, Madeline Miller’s ‘Circe’ and Natalie Hayne’s ‘A Thousand Ships’, the all-female retelling of the Trojan War which was recently chosen as Book of the Week by Mrs Weeden.
I chose my recommendations to demonstrate that reading simply for pleasure can be an enjoyable way to develop a reading habit! With this year marking the centenary of the publication of ‘The Mysterious Affair at Styles’, I shared my love for the Queen of Crime, Agatha Christie. Another favourite for Summer is Poet Laureate, Simon Armitage, whose evocative descriptions of place can be found in his poetry, such as ‘Magnetic Field: the Marsden Poems’ and his prose account of his challenging hike along the Pennine Way, ‘Walking Home’.
For those who missed the digital Hay Festival this year, talks are available on Hay Player and include a magnetic conversation between Simon Armitage and Natalie Haynes on the subject of poetry; https://www.hayfestival.com/p-17805-simon-armitage-talks-to-natalie-haynes.aspx
Foyle Young Poets Competition 2021
During the same Chapel, girls aged 11-17 were encouraged to submit entries for the highly-acclaimed competition, Foyle Young Poets 2021. As Simon Armitage says, poetry is a very democratic art form and anyone can write poetry. This is reflected in the scope of the Foyle competition: poems can be in any form, of any length, on any theme. The deadline for entries is midnight, 31 July 2021 and further details can be found here: https://foyleyoungpoets.org/
Miss Julie Grant