Top Ten
I recently did a writing prompt that asked for a reflection on our top ten favorite books. I let the titles come to mind, and without much deliberation, I listed my top ten. I didn’t include childhood favorites. Instead, I chose books that resonated with me starting in high school. And because 11 is my lucky number, and Haruki Murakami is my favorite, I chose 11 titles. Next time, because there are so many good books, there will probably be 111.
Top Ten
1. Jane Eyre
2. Tess of the D’Urbervilles
3. A Man Called Ove
4. Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine
5. The Girl on the Train
6. The Searcher
7. The Candy House
8. Homegoing
9. Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls
10. On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft
11. What I Talk About When I Talk About Running
After listing the books, I went through an exercise to identify the theme of each book per the activity from Your Story Matters by Nikesh Shukla. I arranged the post-its on my desk to map the themes in clusters based on similarity.
Reflections
At the center, there were themes of loss, memory, and history. More loss, including the question, “What is lost when we live our lives online?” (The Candy House)
There’s a cluster about social misfits, society’s ideals for how a person, a mother, an independent-minded person, should be. (I wonder what a conversation between Ove and Jane Eyre would sound like. 🤔)
Another segment of the map is about injustice. The horrors of colonization and slavery and the idea that these systems harm everyone. Isolation, loneliness, youth and aging, undoing the patriarchy, and seeking justice. The freedom to think and feel. #rebel
At the outskirts of the theme map are ideas of love, family, independence, freedom, and healing. There are ideas like “how to endure life’s absurdity with a light heart” (thank you, David Sedaris) and “writing is about enriching the lives of readers and enriching your own life.”
The theme map doesn’t surprise me. These have been topics I’ve cared about since I was young. (This does, however, make me wonder about my list of my top ten before ten yrs old — I’m sure that would be just as insightful.) I write because the process is healing for me, so it makes sense that there are themes of grief, loss and healing here too.
What’s Next?
This activity makes it clear that these are ideas I want to write about. While I’m unsure how the next story will unfold, I know these themes will be close by. ✍️📚
Top Ten
1. Jane Eyre
2. Tess of the D’Urbervilles
3. A Man Called Ove
4. Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine
5. The Girl on the Train
6. The Searcher
7. The Candy House
8. Homegoing
9. Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls
10. On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft
11. What I Talk About When I Talk About Running
After listing the books, I went through an exercise to identify the theme of each book per the activity from Your Story Matters by Nikesh Shukla. I arranged the post-its on my desk to map the themes in clusters based on similarity.
Reflections
At the center, there were themes of loss, memory, and history. More loss, including the question, “What is lost when we live our lives online?” (The Candy House)
There’s a cluster about social misfits, society’s ideals for how a person, a mother, an independent-minded person, should be. (I wonder what a conversation between Ove and Jane Eyre would sound like. 🤔)
Another segment of the map is about injustice. The horrors of colonization and slavery and the idea that these systems harm everyone. Isolation, loneliness, youth and aging, undoing the patriarchy, and seeking justice. The freedom to think and feel. #rebel
At the outskirts of the theme map are ideas of love, family, independence, freedom, and healing. There are ideas like “how to endure life’s absurdity with a light heart” (thank you, David Sedaris) and “writing is about enriching the lives of readers and enriching your own life.”
The theme map doesn’t surprise me. These have been topics I’ve cared about since I was young. (This does, however, make me wonder about my list of my top ten before ten yrs old — I’m sure that would be just as insightful.) I write because the process is healing for me, so it makes sense that there are themes of grief, loss and healing here too.
What’s Next?
This activity makes it clear that these are ideas I want to write about. While I’m unsure how the next story will unfold, I know these themes will be close by. ✍️📚
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