<p>It might sound kind of silly, but I was wondering if any of you had any favorite Barnard alumnae?</p>
<p>Of course I’m a big fan of Lauren Graham and Martha Stewart. </p>
<p>I LOVED The Glass Castle and There Eyes Were Watching God (by Jeannette Walls and Zora Neale Hurtson), even before I knew about Barnard. I hope to read Walls’s sequel over Winter Break. </p>
<p>I really want to read The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri (and eventually her short story collection that won the pulitzer prize). Have any of you read any other alumnae books that you recommend? </p>
<p>Ok so, she’s not exactly an alumna, but I totally ADORE Debora Spar. One of her speeches is the reason I decided to apply ED (instead of RD) to Barnard. She really sealed the deal for me and made me feel that I belong at Barnard.</p>
<p>What excites me more than alumnae about (hopefully) attending Barnard is the literally awesome women I will meet there. I might be attend school with the next Hurston or Walls or Stewart!</p>
<p>I want to become a novelist, so I agree with you on all the writers, particularly Lahiri. The Pulitzer short story collection is marvelous! I also love Mary Gordon (part of the English faculty). Can’t forget Ann Brashares (The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants) - I love the series.</p>
<p>I also love Cynthia Nixon (Sex & the City actress).</p>
<p>I can’t explain how much I would love to be a part of the literary talents that often come from Barnard - I’m working on signing with a literary agent now and it would be remarkable to be at Barnard while publishing my (eighth completed) novel.</p>
<p>Otherwise, I definitely can’t wait for all the great women! I’m sure the class of 2014 will be a powerful bunch.</p>
<p>Whoops, I definitely meant to capitalize Pulitzer. wej, if we both get it, I’d be honored to be your classmate. Can I ask what your novels are about/ what genre you write?</p>
<p>Have you read Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl? It was the Barnard summer reading for incoming first years this summer and my favorite english assignment from sophomore year.</p>
<p>I’m going to read that over X-mas break (I haven’t had the time). I’ve definitely heard of it, though.</p>
<p>And, chocolat, same goes for me. (I’d be honored to be your classmate as well! What particular Spar speech did you like so much?) Sheesh, I’m incredibly nervous.</p>
<p>I write literary YA and general fiction. This particular novel is set in 1980s Poland and is about a 17-year old artistic genius who must deal with the constant violent father-daughter relationship at home.</p>
<p>gloria- I looked it up (I’ve heard of it before, but never looked into it) and it sounds good! Right now my winter break is devoted to apps, but if I get into B, I think my goal will be to read as many alumnae books as possible. Can we start a list going?</p>
<p>wej- that sounds really cool. How did you choose that interesting setting? What is the main plot? Sounds like it’ll be good.</p>
<p>Yes! Can we please start an alumnae reading list? If all goes well, winter break is my time to catch up on so much reading…</p>
<p>Special Topics is excellent! You must let me know what you think of it after you finish. It has been compared to “The Secret History” by Donna Tartt in terms of plot and thematic concepts, so I’m hoping to read that as well. (Random: in sophomore year our assignment was to write an intensive compare/contrast paper on Special Topics and any other piece of literature/movie/poem/etc. I compared it to The Perks of Being a Wallflower and it is still one of my favorite high school assignments to date!)</p>
<p>You know what is so exciting about Barnard? Freshmen summer reading!</p>
<p>“My job is to ensure that the women who come to Barnard receive all the advantages of choice; that they leave here even stronger and more beautiful than they were before, ready to tackle the world and change the world and choose excellence in all they do.”</p>
<p>gloriachristmas, I LOVED The Secret History! It was such a good book, sort of disturbing but also terribly funny in the darkest way possible. My Latin class this year is based around Comparative Lit studies, so we compared it to Daphne and Apollo in Latin and The Bacchae in Greek and it just made it all the more epic. I even bought my whole Latin class Secret History related gifts for the holidays, haha. When you read it, please tell me what you think!</p>
<p>As for Barnard Alumnae, my favorite is definitely Twyla Tharp. I’ve seen a few of her choreographed shows, and her work is incredible. Movin’ Out was the last show I saw choreographed by her and it was breathtaking, especially all the ballet/pointe work. For a show that told its story without actual dialogue–it was great. I hope I can dance like she does one day!</p>
<p>Jhumpa Lahiri!!! She’s probably my number one. I went on a big thing for a while where I learned about all the alum, and got really excited because I had just read The Namesake and absolutely adored it.</p>
<p>So now that I have no more apps to do and my Winter break is completely free, I’m compiling a to-do list!
Thanks for your book suggestions, I’m just about to order them. Do you know if there’s a list somewhere of every book written by a Barnard alumna?</p>
<p>Do any of you have any other movie/book suggestions for Winter Break? :)</p>
<p>Her newest book, the collection of stories Unaccustomed Earth is amazing. If you’ve read any of her previous work or like short (or long) stories or don’t like short stories, you should definitely read it.</p>