Introduction-Caroline Graham

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Hi you guys! My name is Caroline Graham. I was born and raised in Spartanburg, SC. I graduated from Broome High School in 2015. I'm a junior secondary education major with a middle level add on and a minor in women and gender studies. I've always toyed with the idea of becoming a teacher. In the later years of high school my decision really solidified through taking AP Lit/Lang and teacher cadet. Now I love my education classes (and professors) at upstate and I love crafting lesson plans for my clinical students. If you've ever taken a look at my coffee tumbler you'll notice that I'm obsessed with NBC's The Office. It's always on in the background and I could probably quote every single episode. I also love Disney movies and every show on ABC family/Freeform. I'm pretty sure my blood has been replaced by black coffee. My boyfriend is a barista which is my basic white girl dream come true. I'm the biggest foodie ever. I love to cook and bake. Whenever a new restaurant opens in Spartanburg, I'm there! I especially love tex mex so Willy Taco is my jam. I also love Cribbs, The Farmer's Table, The Standard, and The Crepe Factory.

Naturally I also love reading although for the past couple of years my schoolwork has become so overwhelming I haven't had much time to read. A few of my favorite books are To Kill a Mockingbird, The Poisonwood Bible, and The World According to Garp. TKAM is special to me because I think of it as the first "real" canonical work I fell in love with. I loved the relatable and funny descriptions of growing up in the south and I developed a real appreciation for Harper Lee's style of writing. As for The Poisonwood Bible, I loved seeing a lifelong story of 5 different women play out and reading multiple POVs. The book helped me question organized religion and see the ills in it, especially in regards to women/gender. Of course, I also think Kingsolver's writing style is so moving and beautiful. The first chapter sucks you right in. Garp is probably my most favorite of all. It has so many amazing elements from the crazy (and somehow believable) plot twists, amazing characterization, the stories within stories, and much more. The book turned a lot of my beliefs on their head. I'm still not sure if I've sorted everything out. Garp examined gender roles and the separation of men and women in an interesting, exaggerated, almost satirical way. It also made me question monogamy and gain new perspectives on love and familial bonds.

As for YA lit, I really enjoyed reading 13 Reasons Why, The Hunger Games, and The Fault in Our Stars in middle and high school. I love reading but movie adaptations of books really get me excited. I love love love seeing scenes from the books play out on the screen. I love seeing who they cast for each character and if the movie adaptation matches what's in my head. I loved The Hunger Games movie adaptations and casting choices for the most part. I also loved the casting in The Fault in Our Stars. I loved being able to see the cigarette scene and the infinity speech play out. As for 13 Reasons Why, I read the book in 8th grade and didn't reread it before the Netflix series came out. I know it sparked a lot of controversy but personally I think it was an extremely successful adaptation of the book. The show added tons of layers to the book by adding the modern day element. Getting to see all the tension between the characters as Clay listens to the story draws you in. I thought the more serious topics and scenes in the show were executed really well and were very moving.

Anyway...that's me! I'm super excited for what we're reading this semester. Out of all the books I've only read 13 Reasons and so far I'm loving Absolutely True Diary!

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