The Curator: the campus novel
It's back-to-school time, let's get re-traumatized by stories of our youth! Featuring Disorientation by Elaine Hsieh Chou plus academia novels for your TBR.
You know the dream. The one where you didn’t attend the class all semester. Where you completely forgot about it - chemistry or literature or math - and never went a single day and suddenly you have to take the final exam. This vague anxiety hangs over your head that not passing this class will doom you in some larger, unexpected way.
Or maybe it’s the dream where you forgot to wear [bra, pants, anything at all] to class. Or it’s the one where you wore glasses and overalls so nobody could see how beautiful you really were. Or hey how about that one dream where your classmates slashed up the school while wearing a creepy mask…
I know I have these dreams for the same reason I have server nightmares (IYKYK) - anxiety and/or loss of control in my waking hours. Perhaps a fear that I am not living up to my or others’ expectations. Or the existential awareness that I am one simple mistake away from ruining my life at all times (a bit dramatic, eh).
Luckily, we can wake up from the nightmare and move on with our lives. And by move on, I mean read books.
And if there is one thing I love, it’s a book about school. High school novels are fine, but boarding schools or college campuses are better - whatever setting requires strangers to live together in a closed-loop game. There are, after all, only so many places to be or ways to escape. It’s the dramatic tension of regular high school but without the parental supervision. Fewer rules, more freedom. What a perfect context to build a story around. It’s why all the teen shows are about functional orphans (Riverdale, Pretty Little Liars, etc., etc.).
(Strangely, I love a good school-related story even though I work as staff at a university and get mild PTSD whenever someone utters the word “faculty”. I just can’t get away.)
This week, I have one book for you about college and a whole syllabus of extra reading. I’ve been slowly working on a deep dive into the subgenre of dark academia, but for now, I present to you a random assortment of recommendations for you to ignore for the next 5-7 business years :)
FURTHER READING 💻→
The Atlantic dives into why adults still dream about school.
Psychology Today hits us with this banger: “They Dream of School, and None of the Dreams Are Good”.
And just for funsies, this article on how the syllabus is the most disrespected document in higher education. Why? Because it has become a bureaucratic tool to hold students accountable and nobody wants that. The student is the customer and the customer can always negotiate.
BOOK REVIEWS📚→
Disorientation by Elaine Hsieh Chou
Well, this was a fun satirical romp through academia! Our MC Ingrid is a Ph.D. candidate going on her EIGHTH year (kill her already) in the East Asian Studies program at Barnes University. Having done almost no work on her dissertation, she is melting down literally (addiction to antacids) and mentally (writing sexy fan fic about her librarians instead of working).
The benefit is that Ingrid’s spiraling is hilarious and entertaining. Through Ingrid’s eyes, everyone is a character or a suspect. With even the tiniest of descriptions, the world is tactile - “Now Darlene, with her mountainous shoulder pads and fuschia lipstick, was suctioning up all the oxygen in the room”. Can’t you just smell the White Diamonds on Darlene??
What is less hilarious but still important is the discussion of Asian American identity. Little Ingrid had my heart - I just wanted to hold her baby face and tell her all those other kids could go to hell. Ingrid’s difficult relationship with her childhood, her Chinese-ness, and her fiance all simmer until boiling over in a torrent of self-loathing. There were moments where the text felt didactic, over-explained, but the humor usually made up for it. I will say that this one, like I Have Some Questions For You, suffers from doing too much. I love my stories with a side of social commentary, but more is not always better.
Unfortunately, the plot. My issues: The stakes feel too low. Ingrid’s illusions are destroyed, sure, but because of an artist she didn’t really care for or about to begin with. I’m not sure that the disintegration of my beliefs about any of my favorite authors would lead me to throw up in a bush. Also, it diverges so far from reality at points it becomes post-satirical - I don’t know if that’s a thing but it feels like it should be. I am not a huge fan of zany antics, so this might just be a personal preference, take what you will.
To really round out the compliment sandwich - I deeply appreciated the academia speak. For all my qualms, I couldn’t help quaking at the neurotic ways academia functions parallel to my real life experience working at a university. The number of times I’ve marveled at the constant equivocation! Because absolutely no one is willing to admit it’s really BS. Honesty doesn’t get you funding! Cheers to Ingrid for exposing the truth.
Moodometer: For when you want to be thankful you never got a Ph.D. Or do you already have that?
Rating: I give this a 3 Hijinxed Stars
For Your Never-Ending *TBR* 💖
Syllabus - ENG 303: The Campus Novel
Course Description: Offering a smidge about why I think each of these campus books is worthy and/or on my TBR. Click the link to see the full blurb or to buy from Bookshop.org.
Prerequisites: A nostalgic reverence for the ‘80s/’90s and/or the unsettling & weird.
Objectives: By the end of this course, you should be having school-related nightmares on the reg.
Required Texts:
Batuman, Elif, The Idiot - I read the first few chapters before pivoting to Disorientation for this newsletter and I can’t stop thinking about it. It’s deadpan and hilarious. Can’t wait to pick it back up.
Tartt, Donna, The Secret History - a true condescending classic. Henry Winter might be my most favorite villain of all time. Plus East Coast aspirational clothing - think Hannibal Lecter in a turtleneck (minus the cannibalism).
Easton Ellis, Bret, The Rules of Attraction - if you’ve been here for a minute, you know I love me some BEE. This one is Reality Bites but college, a satirical black comedy that documents a love triangle gone absolutely bonkers.
Eugenides, Jeffrey, The Marriage Plot - from one of my favorite authors, it’s a story about (another!) love triangle set against a backdrop of classic English novels. It’s gorgeous, but I recommend to major English heads only.
Choi, Susan, Trust Exercise - on my TBR, it’s about a highly competitive performing arts high school. As someone who spent their entire HS career on the dance team, I imagine this to be the National Book Award version of my own high school experience. I’m sure I’ll be completely wrong.
Makkai, Rebecca, I Have Some Questions for You - another recently reviewed, I appreciated it for the social commentary, incorporation of podcasting, and self-centered drama, even if it was a bit muddled from doing too much.
French, Tana, The Likeness - One of my most favorite and criminally underrated police procedurals/mysteries of all time. When a young girl is found dead, a cop goes undercover as her own doppelganger to discover what happened. One of the most unique plots in all of crime, this happens to be the only title on this list that is set post-2000s.
Miro, J.M., Ordinary Monsters - Historical fantasy building us a new world that also feels familiar - a mash of Stranger Things psychic kids, Holmesian detectives, Dickensian orphans, and X-men all starring in Penny Dreadful the Series of Unfortunate Events. The world-building was a little clumsy but I loved it regardless.
AND ONE LATE ADDITION
In revisiting this list, I realized I made the most egregious error in leaving out one of my all-time favorite authors from this list. Please welcome
Pessl, Marisha, Special Topics in Calamity Physics - the closest thing you will ever find to The Secret History, it’s both a satirical comment on academia and a murder mystery full of cult-like professors and unwitting students. What could be better?
READING 📖→
I picked Notes on An Execution by Danya Kukafka back up on audio and for whatever reason I am appreciating it more than the first time I attempted it. Perhaps it’s the speed (1.2x), or that I’m getting to the good part of the story, but I’m now hooked after listening during my hurriquake-laced walk to the coffee shop on Sunday.
Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen for a future masterpiece on witchy reads. I hope to cram as many in as I can before spooky season.
BUYING💰→
Even though I own more sweatshirts than a Goodwill, I desperately want every single thing in this Aspen & Co Halloween collection. If I don’t have all of these, how else will strangers know I am a quirky ‘90s Halloween girl???
WATCHING 📽️→
The Other Black Girl based on the book by Zakiya Dalila Harris premieres September 13 on Hulu. It’s about Nella, the only Black employee at a publishing company, who gets sucked into a strange web of weird when a second Black woman joins the company. I had issues with the way the book was marketed (thriller, when it felt more like contemporary) so I am interested to see where they take the show, and if it irks me the same way. Maybe I need to just get comfortable with ambiguity because the trailer looks spectacular.
I am so excited about the Mike Flanagan version of The Fall of the House of Usher that I plan to discuss it at least two more times before the premiere on October 12 on Netflix. Flanagan is responsible for The Haunting of Hill House (a reimagining of the Shirley Jackson novel), The Haunting of Bly Manor (a reimagining of The Turn of the Screw), and a couple other campy gothic shows that give me hope this iconic story is in good hands.
NEW BOOKS 📚→
This must be a dead week for publishing because I could only find a couple of titles on the new release list. Below, one new and two summer releases we might have missed.
After That Night by Karin Slaughter - The newest installment in the Will Trent police-crime-drama-thriller series, I had to have this on pub day. Why? Well by the time you read this, I will have attended an author book signing with Madame President Karin herself and perhaps expired from fangirling so hard. This newsletter is on automatic schedule so I’ll be sure to check in with you on Notes after I don’t literally die. If you like dark psychological fuckery, make sure you know about KS.
All Night Pharmacy by Ruth Madievsky - “Rachel Kushner meets David Lynch in this fever dream of an LA novel about a young woman who commits a drunken act of violence just before her sister vanishes without a trace.” A book set in LA about family dysfunction that includes weird mysticism, unidentified pills, and risky interactions? I can’t believe I didn’t order it sooner!
Mobility by Lydia Kiesling - "…a truly gripping coming-of-age story about navigating a world of corporate greed that's both laugh-out-loud funny and politically incisive." It’s 1998. Not a cell phone in sight. And Bunny is a lonely teenager just trying to make it through life. I will read almost anything set in the ‘90s because that’s my nostalgia button.
BOOK NEWS 📰→
Lit Hub discusses how to capture the emotional center of a novel with a book cover.
Tana French has a new novel coming March 2024 about “revenge in its various forms”.
This piece of fiction writing about a 14-year-old in the Hamptons by David Gilbert has major White Lotus/The Guest vibes.
RESTACK OF THE WEEK ♻️→
Well, I just spent an hour of my life on Bama RushTok that I’ll never get back but no ragerts because Anne crafted sensational commentary on each one. The entire series is saved in her Instagram highlights if you too want to experience awe and body dysmorphia (linked in the post below). The shocking amount of bad dancing involved did make me physically cringe though.
Even better than the videos themselves? The analysis: “Greek life appeals to students who were popular in high school and want to reproduce that feeling of power and ease (whether they realize it or not).” We all knew it, Anne said it!
LET’S CHAT☺→
A Quick Programmatic Note:
I’ve almost got 100 of you here now! And I am so dang thankful that I save every email notification that pops into my inbox when you sign up. As I learn more about you, I also want to know your favorite part of the newsletter so I can give you more of that and less of the stuff you scroll past. Take this poll; it only takes three brain cells and one click to do :). It only lets you select one, so if you feel this poll limits you as a person, drop your unrestricted feelings in the comments instead.
This week: leave a comment with your worst recurring nightmare and what you think it really means. Other than the college/server nightmares, I dream I have to run and lock every window and door in the house before an intruder can get in to hurt me. When I tell you that I’m an enneagram six…
Or per ush, let me know what you’ve been reading in the comments. I’m always game for a good rec (or warning, grievances, etc. ). If you tell me your favorite TV show or movie lately, I’ll give you a book recommendation.
In Case You Missed It 🖤
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See you around the bookshelf!
Natalie
In a moment of vulnerability my worst occurring nightmare happened during my a levels (exams to get into university). I was trapped under a cows head in a field (the cow was alive, just led motionless on me across my neck) and people I knew walked past and I asked for their help and no one did. The entire dream was just me trapped under this head with hot cow breath on my face. Clearly this speaks to my mental state during exam time. Happy to report I got into my university of choice and the dream never surfaced again.
Entire post, chefs kiss 🤌🏻 and slightly unnerved because I was thinking about how I wanted to read a story about school because clearly I miss the direction so much? Are we the same person? You should add ‘Babel’ and ‘If We Were Villains’ to your list - both very dark academia coded and both brilliant. I think you’d LOVE. Think my next school orientated book will be ‘I Have Some Questions For You’ - been in the fence but your endorsement pushes it as a read for me. Also thanks for flagging that TV show on Hulu I didn’t know it was being released sounds great! AND I have also been infatuated by Bama Rush tiktok even though I live in London and don’t fundamentally understand what a sorority is. How is Bama Rush tiktok so enchanting? So immense gratitude for flagging that great article can’t wait to finish this comment and read it! Okay. My immense praise is coming to a close now. You’re great xx love this newsletter