20th Century - Chizara

     Mrs. Dalloway is a complex novel that has many interesting themes. There are themes of romance, self-discovery, gender roles, etc. However, there is one theme that stuck out while reading this book. The theme of communication or lack thereof is arguably an aspect that gets overlooked. A prime example of a lack of communication is between Clarissa and her husband Richard. Clarissa often struggles to communicate with Richard and connect with him and vice versa. At the beginning of the book, Clarissa and Richard seem to coexist with one another rather than being a married couple. They sleep in separate rooms and never go out together unless it is for a business matter. Whenever Richard attempts to buy gifts like jewelry for Clarissa, she never wears them or seems to like them. However, the couple never discusses why Clarissa does not wear the jewelry, and Richard does not want to talk to Clarissa about the issue. Instead, Richard takes the easy route and resorts to buy...

     The Mezzanine by Nicholson Baker is an interesting novel about a man in his early twenties named Howie who has many thoughts about everything he experiences. Howie works in the mezzanine where his office is located. On his way to his office, he rides an escalator where he experiences many thoughts about his office and the things around him. He analyzes anything from shoe laces to hand dryers and his experience in his office bathroom. He also talks about and shares opinions about the things he sees. For example, he talks about using a toaster and the different ways that you can put butter on toast (slicing tiny pieces, cutting a chunk of butter, and struggling to spread it). However, he does not stop there. He continues to talk about different aspects of toast like why cutting it diagonally is better than cutting straight across and he gives multiple reasons. At first, I was not a fan of the rants he would go on, but eventually, I realized that this is how many ...