Radical Reads & Social Justice
Rating: 3 stars Category: Classics Synopsis: “I am giving an account of what was, not of what ought or ought not to be.” If she's to get on in the world, Moll Flanders must rely only on her own wit, toughness and experience. And, as one misfortune after another is thrown her way, that's precisely what she intends to do...
Should you ever be forced to read this book, or feel some masochistic urge to, I've included a free chapter-by-chapter summary sheet in solidarity with my fellow sufferers. Also, to lessen the pain slightly, this list of funny 1* Goodreads reviews will remind you that you're not alone in this epic, frustrating endeavour. May the odds be ever in your favour.
Questioning the Canon is a new feature in which I hope to bring to light lesser-known books about a certain issue, which can be read alongside or instead of infamous 'classics'.
People are starting to discuss whether the authors we hold up as cultural icons - Shakespeare, Dickens, Wordsworth - should be accompanied by previously marginalised writers. Our idea of what constitutes 'great literature' is becoming broader.
This can only be a good thing, as it means more diversity and social representation in what we read!
Rating: 3 stars
Category: Literary fiction
Synopsis:
Keiko Furukura has worked in the same convenience store for eighteen years. She feels at home in the store with its comforting daily rhythms, but those around her are pushing her to move on in her career, get married, have children. Tired of their interference, Keiko decides, at last, to give "normality" a shot...with disastrous consequences.
The Bonfire of the Vanities is set in New York during the 1980s. When a black student is the victim of a hit-and-run by a white Wall Street stockbroker, the prejudices that lie beneath life in the city are exposed at the quick.
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