Summer Reading List: Summer Interns 2021
Ahhhh, summer. This season brings to mind the mental image of grabbing a great book and finding the perfect spot to read—a beach, a sun-soaked chair at home, a local park, a hammock, a comfy bed.
We thought you may be open to some summer reading suggestions, so we asked our incredible summer interns (current students!) to share their favorite reads from classes they took at Tufts. Check them out below:
Name: Emma Sonnenblick
Graduating Class: 2023
Major/Minor: History and Clinical Psychology with a minor in dance
Book Title: The Fifties: A Women’s Oral History
Class it was assigned: Gender and Containment In Post-World War II America
I loved reading Brett Harvey’s The Fifties: A Women’s Oral History for Professor Drachman’s history foundation seminar, called Gender and Containment In Post-World War II America. Through reading firsthand experiences from women who came of age during the middle of the 20th century, I learned so much more than I ever could from a textbook!
Name: Bo Johnson
Graduating Class: 2023
Major/Minor: International Relations and History
Book Title: Under a Cruel Star
Class it was assigned: Global Communism
I read Heda Margolius Kovaly’s Under a Cruel Star for Professor Applebaum’s Global Communism course. This autobiography was one of my favorites in general, not just in a class. Following Heda as she navigates post-War Czechoslovakia, her account of life in Prague as the communist regime begins to take hold (which her husband plays an active role in shaping) introduced me to new stories of life under communism and in the Cold War era that I previously knew nothing about.
Name: RaiAnn Bu
Graduating Class: 2023
Major/Minor: Quantitative Economics/Community Health
Book Title: Being Mortal: Illness, Medicine, and What Matters in the End
Class it is assigned: Healthcare in America
Though this was not assigned, this book was highly recommended in my 'Healthcare in America' class. The goal of healthcare for so long has been to extend the lives of patients, but the field has been oblivious to the strain on patients' mental health and their precious time. The book shares the struggles of Atul Gawande, who dealt with the passing of his father, through his perspective of not only being a son, but also a surgeon. In class, we explored the faults of the American healthcare system in its spending, quality, and access. In order to conquer these problems, it will require reconsidering the role professionals and policies should play.
Name: Payel Islam
Graduating Class: 2023
Major/Minor: Community Health (Pre-Dental Track)
Book Title: The Doctor’s Plague
Class it was assigned: Fundamentals of Epidemiology
This book addresses the many faults within the healthcare system that led to the deaths of countless mothers in the late 1800s. The book emphasized the importance of communication between physicians and healthcare workers. It was very eye-opening to read about as a pre-health student and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking into the fields of medicine or public health!
Name: Blane Zhu
Graduating Class: 2024
Major/Minor: Biopsychology / Spanish
Book Title: Even The Rain (También La Lluvia), 2010
Class it was assigned: Intermediate Spanish
This is a movie instead of a book, but I still think it is worth recommending. Structured as a “film within a film,” the movie follows a film crew that sets out into Cochabamba, Bolivia to shoot a movie about the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the Americas. As the movie shoot takes place, local protests against water privatization erupt, and the crew is confronted with difficult decisions when the extras (hired locals) begin to join the protests. Through its inquisitive lens, the film explores the dynamics of colonization in a profound manner. I would recommend this film to anyone curious about the history, culture, and language of South America.
Name: Emily McMullen
Graduating Class: 2022
Major/Minor: International Relations Minors in Spanish and English
Book Title: Alone
Class it was assigned: Travel Literature
This book follows Richard E Byrd’s 5 months in isolation at Advance Base, Antarctica. His harrowing journey is marked by both physical and mental tribulations. Reading this piece within the context of the COVID-19 pandemic added another lens through which to understand his remoteness. I recommend both this book and Janis Bellow Friedman’s class!
Name: Jenny Lu
Graduating Class: 2024
Major/Minor: English/Econ
Book Title: Shower (洗澡）
Class it was assigned: Intro to Chinese Cinema
Although this is a movie instead of a book, it was one of my favorite works that I have explored here at Tufts for a class. On the surface, Shower is a heartwarming comedy about a son who comes home from his city job to help his dad and younger brother with their family bathhouse that they run in old Beijing. However, underlying themes of fast-paced change and loss dominate the movie, both in the protagonist’s personal life and in Beijing due to rapid urbanization. I thought the movie did a really great job giving voice to the people and cultural practices that are affected by change and modernization. Bathhouses, once hubs for community members to socialize and spend their day in, were replaced by showers- something that most of us never think about. It makes me wonder about other modern practices and the consequences they brought about.
Name: Katelyn Young
Graduating Class: 2023
Major/Minor: Biopsychology / Dance and Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
Book Title: The Prince and the Dressmaker
Class it was assigned: Queering Feminisms: Introduction to Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
The Prince and The Dressmaker is a comic book that tells a story of a prince who enjoys wearing dresses and wearing make-up, addressing the topics of androgyny and sexuality. The comic book style made the topics more accessible. I enjoyed seeing the pictures that accompanied the text as it really helped with storytelling. It delved into nuance that helped me better understand the intricacies of the varying topics. I would highly recommend the comic book to anyone, especially if they are interested in women, gender, and sexuality studies!
Name: Tara Bajpai
Graduating Class: 2022
Major: International Relations
Book Title: Les Fleurs du Mal
Class it was Assigned: French 32
‘Les Fleurs du Mal’ (Flowers of Evil) is a collection of poems by Charles Baudelaire which demonstrates his interest in discussing taboo subject matter: aging, disease, poverty. He sought to challenge and mock the french society by demonstrating the beauty in the wretched, as well as the ugliness that lay behind the mask of propriety. My favorite poems of his, “Une Charogne” (A Carcass) and “À Une Passante,” (To a Passerby) both mock traditional love poems by taking their form, but demonstrating their superficiality and lack of realism.
Name: Nora Elhaissouni
Graduating Class: 2023
Major/Minor: Biology and Child Development
Book Title: Gone Girl
Class it was assigned: English 002: Love and Sexuality
In my English 002: Love and Sexuality course, I read Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn and watched the movie as part of an essay assignment. Gone Girl encompassed the complex themes of love and psychology, which I was able to relate to topics learned in class. I recommend both the movie and book to anyone who loves a plot twist!
Name: Eddy He
Graduating Class: 2024
Major: Computer Science in A&S
Book Title: The Things They Carried
The Things They Carried tells the story of a group of soldiers in the Alpha Company and their experiences fighting in the Vietnam War. Many of the characters in the story were eighteen to twenty years old, so they were the same age as many of you who are reading this right now. Not only did they carry physical supplies such as cigarettes, food, and various tools, but by going to war at such a young age, many also carried psychological damage for the rest of their lives. Reading this book gave me a new perspective on the lives of young men several decades ago and made me more appreciative of the situation that I am in right now.
Name: Jack Clohisy
Graduating Class: 2023
Major/Minor: Computer Science and Cognitive & Brain Science, English minor
Book Title: The Great Gatsby
Class it was assigned: English 063: American Fiction 1900-1950
Between middle school, high school, and right here at Tufts, I’ve read The Great Gatsby a total of three times during my academic career.. I can say with certainty that during my time here at Tufts, I’ve been able to gain even deeper insight and knowledge into literature focusing on realism and modernism. It’s an incredible tool to be able to analyze an array of literature in American history, and as a budding member of society, it’s pivotal to be able to understand the progression of literature in this country.
Name: Dameli Utembayeva
Graduating Class: 2023
Major/Minor: Computer Science
Book Title: n/a, just articles
Class it was assigned: Engineering Management
As an engineer, I took mostly engineering core classes which don’t have a formal book to follow. However, we have read a couple of great articles in Engineering Management from the New York Times, as well as the San Francisco Times, that elaborate on styles of leadership, as well as communication techniques of product managers.
Name: Joseph Schmidt
Graduating Class: ‘23
Major/Minor: Spanish/Math
Book Title: Number Theory Through Inquiry
Class it was assigned: Math 0063: Number Theory
Number Theory Through Inquiry is a unique style of math textbook, based on the idea of inquiry-based learning, through which students learn by attempting problems and then presenting them to their peers. I enjoyed the book because it was completely different from any other textbook I had worked with before, and the material, which deals with the study of integers, is very interesting.
Name: Cora Kakalec
Graduating Class: ‘23
Major/Minor: Community Health and Civic Studies
Book Title: No Pasó Nada
Class it was assigned: Spanish 4
No Pasó Nada was assigned in my Spanish class this past year and it was the first book I ever read in another language! It’s about a young boy named Lucho who immigrated to Germany from Chilé, and it detailed the struggles of his adjustment to a new culture. I loved the book because it highlighted personal character development through young adulthood and gave me a new perspective on Latin American culture.