COLUMN: 7 Books that Will Change Your Life 

Books you should read as a college student and the lessons they offer,in case you don’t have time to read them, from an English major’s perspective.  

For some context, there is one definitive book for almost every genre, no matter what anyone says there is a tier list of books. 

Books have the power to teach you life lessons that will actually stick with you because you devoted so much time to them. Meanwhile movies and shows allow for brain rot experiences. Nothing wrong with movies by the way, don’t come at me.

Some authors can write amazing stories with all the important elements that make books different from movies, while others write books that feel no different from movie scripts. Is that mean?

Anyway, here are my favorite books:

“Songs of Solomon” by Toni Morrison uses Morrison’s folklore culture to portray stories of the need for healing from generational trauma. According to Morrison, in order for individuals to fully become who they want to be, they should take a self-discovery journey to heal from past burdens. 

“A Little Life” by Hanya Yanagihara speaks on the fragility of childhood and the necessity of love   in friendships to counterbalance emotional pain. Friendships may look different but it’s only when individuals are themselves can it truly be experienced. 

Oscar Wilde’s “The Picture of Dorian Gray”, is a looking glass experience to the society Wilde once lived in. The book showcases the errors of a society forcing individuals to live a double life because of unacceptance eventually causing a sacrifice of sanity for death. 

The wonderful Virginia Woolf wrote “Mrs. Dalloway” as a stream of consciousness melted together to reflect on the past, present and future. The story aimed to make the reader guess the characters’ regrets they could personally relate to.  

“The Secret History” by Donna Tartt has dark academia and gives readers the sophisticated yet fictional discovery of human impulse during tough times. Sometimes, finding friends can be everything to people, but sometimes friends can cost us everything. I believe this book will be taught in future classes due to all the literary allusions Tartt is able to teach readers.

A non-fiction for those who really want to be wrecked emotionally is “The Hiding Place” by Corrie Ten Boom. The plot takes place during World War II in a concentration camp, with only her sister and her savior, Ten Boom endures until she receives freedom. Revealing the capability of humans in hard times with strength by faith alone. 

Now, I wouldn’t be true to myself if I didn’t mention this last book. It not only got me through the semester but through the hardest and most challenging times of my life, The Holy Bible. The story of Jesus Christ and the beginning of all things gives me hope, peace and joy.

Knowing  whatever life throws at me whether it is, trauma, unacceptance, or hard times can never amount to the suffering that Jesus Christ endured on that cross or the love he has for everyone.