American Author Thesis
Now that you have written your essay, we ask that you reflect on the reading portion of the experience and write 100-150 words about your author.
Think of what you write as advice for someone next year and beyond, someone who (like you were doing last fall) is thinking about choosing your author - and maybe even the same three books - to read for the assignment.
3 comments:
I chose Jhumpa Lahiri as my author because although there were multiple layers to each character that were at time difficult to understand, her books were easy to read. Most of the themes are pretty apparent and it wasn't too hard to find connections between her books. I read her collection of short stories, The Interpreter of the Maladies, and her two novels, The Namesake, and the Lowland. I enjoyed reading all three of the books however when it came time to write the paper, I felt that it was tough connecting The Lowland to the other two books. Because The Lowland is a historical fiction book, a lot of the plot surrounded around political movements in India, it took some time and a bit of research to fully grasp the setting of the book. I would recommend reading Jhumpa Lahiri because she has an easy to follow style of writing and interesting plots throughout her books.
I chose Jhumpa Lahiri because of her simple and elegant style of writing that flows well and engages the reader. Some of the books were relatable to me because of their settings in Boston and India. There are very clear themes, especially identity and where one belongs/home. The Namesake was by far my favorite, and also had the clearest themes. It follows Gogol, a very accessible character, throughout his life, starting off as he grows up in a Boston suburb, through his college years, until he’s an adult. Interpreter of Maladies is a collection of short stories, and the majority of the stories connected easily (there were one or two that did not fit in, but you don’t have to mention each individual short story in the final paper - only a few). The Lowland, which is the most complex, was a little harder to connect to the other two books at times as it follows several different characters living in different countries, but was a good read as you discover many different characters from many walks of life.
When I was searching for my author, I was looking for contemporary writers, whose novels were interesting and held your attention. My teacher suggested Jhumpa Lahiri to me, which turned out to be the perfect author to fit all my criteria. I read the novels The Namesake, The Interpreter of Maladies, and The Lowland. My favorite of the novels was The Namesake because it was an intriguing story full of clear themes that kept you coming back for more. For those interested in Jhumpa Lahiri, I would suggest not reading The Lowland and instead reading a collection of short stories by her called Unaccustomed Earth because The Lowland is a very slow paced novel that does not display themes as clearly as The Namesake and The Interpreter of Maladies. For those who enjoy realistic fiction and stories that focus on character development more than action, I would strongly recommend Jhumpa Lahiri.
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