Spring is On Its Way – Here Are Some Book Recommendations
By Jade Fehlen
Spring is on its way — and with it, all the birds, bees and butterflies one could hope for.
Across Dewdrop Pond, the ice thaws, leaving cracks, little ruptures of water here and there. The ducks gather together, giggling and chattering about the warm times to come, about all of the toasty places they will fly.
The grasses struggle to break free from the snow, whispering amongst themselves about how very much snow has fallen this year, and hadn’t it better melt already?
The trees look at one another with wearied tolerance, each knowing how much the others’ branches must ache from bearing the weight of the chilly snow. Their nights are filled with dreams of breaking the many-monthed fast, of feeling the warmth of the sun on their limbs.
The birds fly in over the remnants of a long, dark winter, and wonder how everyone survived. A dull fledgling has the nerve to ask, and one of the ducks smacks him atop the head, dunking him under Dewdrop Pond’s treacherous waters.
Meanwhile, the campus deer merely sits back and relaxes: As far as winters go, this one has been pretty snazzy. No bobcats, wolves or coyotes on a college campus. Jackpot.
Even the very buildings look up at the sky in anticipation, waiting for the day when their sore bricks can stretch in the unwavering heat of the sun.
As for the students, the coming of spring can mean different things. Some students welcome the coming of spring and the end of winter, excited for days of warmth, days outside in the greenery. Some students may exclaim, “It’s about time!” to the months of snow finally coming to a close. These students may enjoy the following for their mix of fun spring vibes with serious themes:
“Little Women” (Louisa May Alcott)
“The Great Gatsby” (Scott F. Fitzgerald)
“1984” (George Orwell)
“The Joy Luck Club” (Amy Tan)
“Homegoing” (Yaa Gyasi)
“A Tale of Two Cities” (Charles Dickens)
“Les Misérables” (Victor Hugo)
“The Color Purple” (Alice Walker)
“The Bluest Eye” (Toni Morrison)
Other students might feel ambivalent about the coming of spring and think it’s nothing to get overly excited about. These students may say nothing really changes in their lives, so it would not be logical to get excited about the changing of the seasons. Some of these students may be said to take a more practical, even guarded approach. Some students may not feel anything at all, much less care about what season it is. For these students, I would recommend epic tales, enjoyable in any season and sure to bring out a love and appreciation for any season one reads them in, including spring:
“The Lord of Rings” trilogy (J.R.R. Tolkien)
“The Hobbit” (J.R.R. Tolkien)
“Jane Eyre” (Charlotte Bronte)
“Untouchable” (Mulk Raj Anand)
“Frankenstein” (Mary Shelley)
“Their Eyes Were Watching God” (Zora Neale Hearston)
“Oliver Twist” (Charles Dickens)
“Beloved” (Toni Morrison)
“Sing, Unburied, Sing” (Jesmyn Ward)
“Joplin’s Ghost” (Tananarive Due)
However, for some, the coming of spring may be a mystical thing. The trees are instruments of ancient lore, each twig the remnant of a long-lost prophecy, the budding flowers symbolic of life’s renewal. These students might enjoy books with beautiful imagery and prose, such as:
“Anne of Green Gables” (L.M. Montgomery)
“The Chronicles of Narnia” (C.S. Lewis)
“Poet Warrior” (Joy Harjo)
“The Collected Songs of Cold Mountain” (Han Shan)
“Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” (Lewis Carroll)
“Ceremony” (Leslie Marmon Silko)
“Through the Looking-Glass” (Lewis Carroll)
“Sea of Poppies” (Amitav Ghosh)
For many, the coming of the birds and the bees is associated with *romance.* These students may have a crush, or might have started dating someone, or might just be in the romantic feels. Whatever it may be, these students might enjoy reading:
“Pride and Prejudice” (Jane Austen)
“Emma” (Jane Austen)
“Crazy Rich Asians” (Kevin Kwan)
“Mansfield Park” (Jane Austen)
“Sense and Sensibility” (Jane Austen)
“The Tale of Genji” (Murasaki Shikibu)
“Anne of Green Gables” (L.M. Montgomery)
“Song of the Golden Scorpion” (Alma Luz Villa Nueva)
“Little Women” (Louisa May Alcott)
“Courting Samira” (Amal Awad)
Some students may feel a new or rekindled drive for social justice upon the coming of spring. Some good books for these students include:
“The Hate U Give” (Angie Thomas)
“There There” (Tommy Orange)
“Ceremony” (Leslie Marmon Silko)
“Beloved” (Toni Morrison)
“The Bluest Eye” (Toni Morrison)
“Homegoing” (Yaa Gyasi)
“The Handmaid’s Tale” (Margaret Atwood)
“Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America” (Ibram X. Kendi)
“The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness” (Michelle Alexander)
It is possible some students are feeling all or none of these categories, depending on the hour, or even the minute, of the day. Some students might say, Screw your list, I can pick my own books! Both are perfectly valid responses.
This spring, may you, dear reader, immerse yourself in wonderful tales, and have a splendid season.
