to Mr. Somers

Books That Made a Difference

This book is about a teenaged girl

with eating disorders. I had eating

disorders as a teen. This book

gave a name to my experience.

I didn’t seek therapy after reading

this book, but at least I understood

who I was and what I was doing.

The Best Little Girl in the World by Steven Levenkron

I read this in my ENG 111 class.

I could imagine what it must have been

like to grow up poor and black in the South

during the Depression, but this memoir

made it disturbingly real. Maya Angelou’s

writing is honest and poetic, and this

book moved me deeply.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Singsby Maya Angelou

Before reading this book, I hadn’t

really understood that writing is a

practice, and that to improve, I had

to practice. I had to write. And I had

to tell my monkey mind to just shut up

when I wrote. I didn’t have to produce

brilliance. I could write the worst garbage

in the world and it was okay. I didn’t have

to be perfect. It was a real thrill for me

to meet her and be taught by her in

Charleston, South Carolina, this past May.

A definite highlight for me!

Writing Down the Bonesby Natalie Goldberg

There is no way I can describe this

book and do it justice. I will say that

the institution of slavery forced enslaved

women to make some desperate, deadly

choices to protect their children. I had

to read this book twice to really understand

it, and it’s the first book I finished in the bath

tub that made me cry. I cried for at least a

half hour, right there in the tub. I felt devastated,

but in a good way.

Beloved by Toni Morrison

I’ve read many books, but hardly have

I ever been so amazed by a writer.

This book is written in verse – poetry!

Each chapter is a poem. Incredible!

And the story is solid. It’s about a teen

girl who gets hooked on meth, and what

happens to her once she’s addicted is

harrowing and heart-wrenching. It’s

based on the author’s daughter’s life.

It’s the whole art-imitating-life thing,

and it is simply brilliant.

Crankby Ellen Hopkins

Plays are books. Eve Ensler interviewed

women about their experiences being

women – the joys, the pain, the humor –

and the result is The Vagina Monologues.

I am a V-Man, an advocate for ending

violence against women and girls. I

co-directed TVM two years ago as part

of V-Week @ Delta, and our shows were

standing-room only. We raised over $3,000

in one day to donate to local women’s shelters.

This play made it possible. Ensler wrote the

truth, and every time I read the monologues,

I’m moved. Writing has the power of truth in it.

The Vagina Monologuesby Eve Ensler