The Ramaz Book Review - Issue 1 - April 2023

Dear Readers, Ramaz offers us a plethora of publications on various subjects, from math and science to politics and medicine. However, one subject that has been glaringly absent from our publication pantheon is books! As two avid readers, we felt the need to create a publication dedicated exclusively to the love of reading and critiquing books.

We started this project with the hope of collecting a robust collection of book reviews that would speak to the student body. In the end, we gathered an assortment of content relating to literature, writing, and reading.

We would like to thank all of our writers and contributors who took the time and effort to make this publication special. Additionally, we would like to give a special thank you to Mr. Kuman for overseeing the entire process.

We are proud to present the very first edition of the Ramaz Book Review and we hope everyone enjoys it as much as we loved creating it!

Happy Reading!

Thea Katz and Ashley Behm

Editors-in-chief Thea Katz ‘25 Ashley Behm ‘24

Faculty Advisor Mr. Kuman

Contributing Writers Lindsay Chubak '25 Serena Olshin '25 Sarah Silverman ‘24 Solly Taragin ‘23 Keren Teichner ‘25

Mini-Reviews by Anonymous Penguin Aravah Chaiken '25 Sophie Obstfeld '25 Solly Taragin '23

Special thanks to Mr. Deutsch & Evelyn Landy ‘20 Rabbi Dov Pianko & Yael Frank

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WHAT'S RAMAZ READING? We asked, and (some of) you delivered. While we found that most Ramaz kids claim that they "don't have time" to read, we did find a few exceptions and put together some statistics on what YOUR classmates are reading.

Favorite genres:

Favorite books: ​

Five Survive by Holly Jackson

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"6 people get trapped in an RV in the middle of the woods with someone shooting at them. The shooter tells them someone has a secret, and he won't let them go until it's revealed. Five will survive." - Sophie Obstfeld '25

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The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

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"Such a great read. Was super engaging and informative, and explained its point without direct criticism of a specific race. The plot was excellent, the characters were likable, and the conflict was interesting to read. My only issue was that some parts felt slow or unnecessarily exaggerated. Other than that, such a great book. 9/10" - Anonymous

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Dr. No by Ian Fleming

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"This book was about Nothing. The concept of Nothing. What if Nothing could turn something into Nothing and be used as a weapon? Read it. " - Aravah Chaiken ‘25

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Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling and Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan

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"Four words: Harry Potter, Percy Jackson. Just read them, and try to ignore that it says grade level 4-6 and grade level 3-7 on Amazon. Truthfully, if you say you don’t like it before you’ve read it, I will lose an ounce of respect for you." - Solly Taragin '23

Just try reading this…please A Manifesto by Ashley Behm '24 I have a confession. I like to read. Actually, I love to read, and no, I am not a nerd or whatever stereotypical adjective you’re thinking of right now. Sometimes, I even prefer reading to watching tv. Fine, you can call me a nerd, I don’t really care. Why can’t I find more people like me? I know the stereotypes that come with classifying yourself as a bookworm, but is that an excuse not to read? I, myself, don't like the term bookworm, worms are gross. I prefer Bibliophile, it sounds more sophisticated. If you're reading this then I know you’re capable of reading, so that’s not an excuse either.

Recently in an English class I was in, the teacher proclaimed that they couldn’t expect students to read more than two pages at once. I nearly cried right then and there. Is that really the expectation? As someone who reads a book a week, sometimes more, I was peeved. In a history class I was in, we were told to read a speech and answer certain questions. It was mere moments later that someone behind me shouted in exasperation that they couldn’t get through the first two lines since nothing made sense. So apparently, two pages was a generous assumption. But two lines, only two lines, that can’t be how little the reading attention span is for someone.

Why aren’t people reading? Is it that hard to pick up a book? There are over one hundred million books published in the world and not one of them has piqued your interest? That’s impossible, you just haven’t looked for one. One failed attempt at finding something you liked scared you away from ever trying again. That same result of failure terrifies you, but the best way to get over a fear is to face it. Pick up a book, and just go for

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what you might enjoy, whether it be a steamy romance, a gory murder mystery, or the memoir of your favorite singer. There’s no limit on how many books you can test out, if one doesn’t work out you can try again and again. I don’t enjoy every book I read, sometimes I don’t even finish books, and that’s ok, I move on to the next one.

There are endless benefits to reading, it increases focus, memory, and knowledge, just to name a few. It’s not about who or what you’re reading, it’s about the act of reading. No one is asking you to read a school novel or some sophisticated author for fun. I blame school for the hatred of reading that many people feel. Years of boring books picked apart, all culminating in an exhausting essay about a far-fetched connection to a vague underlying theme that will take you hours to write and probably only result in a just passing grade. I get it, I’ve been there, but you have to separate church and state. Or in this case, reading for school and pleasure. Reading for pleasure comes with a tremendous amount of freedom and choice. You have the power to choose what you want to read and you don’t even have to annotate! You are free from laborious homework questions and essays. It’s just you and a book, and that is a connection that cannot be recreated no matter how hard you try.

Recently there has been a resurgence of reading, with people on the internet flouting the most recent books they’ve read and giving honest opinions on them, hoping to find others who have read similar books. If “coolness” is determined by how on-trend something is on the internet then reading is cool! Flashy infographics and memes with book recommendations are flooding social media platforms. When looking for my next book, I often find myself scouring different “bookstagram” accounts for recommendations.

There, I find people who have read the same books I have and have give recommendations based on if they liked them or not. Social media is a proud supporter of reading!

If you’ve made it this far, congratulations, you did it! You can read more than two lines and I am fairly certain you can get through a whole book, otherwise, you would have just tossed this to the side. Reading has transformed my life for the better, it has exposed me to new ideas, and authors, given me an alternate form of entertainment, and has made me a better writer. I have found a group of like-minded people who I can go to for and with book recommendations, and to discuss whatever books I’ve been reading. I’ve also noticed how easy it is to connect with someone over the shared experience of having read the same book. There is no better feeling than hunkering down over a wildly entertaining page-turner and seeing the characters come to life so vividly in front of you.

So, go read!!

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THE MATZAH BALL by Jean Meltzer Review by Sarah Silverman '24 I have read some great books in my life. I've laughed, I've cried, I've screamed into my pillow and awakened my entire sleeping family when I have gotten up to that heart-wrenching scene in a novel. All of this is to say that I have gone around the block and know a thing or two about young adult literature (look at my Goodreads account if you don't believe me).

Getting home on a Friday afternoon, the last thing that should be on a student's mind is reading. Now you may say, "Sarah, that is such a terrible thing to say! You are writing for a book review journal after all…" Well, in life, as I am with my book recommendations, I'm going to be honest.

After slaying the dragon known as honors Talmud, where I winded my way through ancient sources with my 2nd grade Aramaic abilities, to defeating the evil king commonly referred to as Precalculus, my brain is fried. Done. What is there to possibly do but stare blankly into space, sit on my couch, and watch television before Shabbos?

But SARAH, what about that stack of ten books sitting next to your bed that you have renewed seven times from the library and have never gotten around to reading? What about those poor hardcovers? Do you have any pity for them? Well, Friday afternoon Sarah doesn't care about these literary masterpieces' feelings (a particular moment of silence for Les Misérables, which has been sitting on my shelf since September). She needs mindless entertainment. And after this very long-winded introduction, let me present to you your perfect Friday Afternoon book: The Matzah Ball.

Now it may have a corny name, one of those cartoonish rom coms covers(that we all secretly love), and a subpar plot where you know the two main characters will fall in love by the end, but who cares? It's better than 99 percent of the stuff on television.

Jacob and Sarah are two Jewish young adults and former summer camp rivals who, due to the magical air of rom-coms, find themselves placed in renewed and frequent contact with one another. Throughout the novel, they learn more about each other, their personal struggles, and the mysterious event(or should I say misunderstanding….) at summer camp that led them to hate one another. Sarah, for one reason or another, as the stand-in traditional manic pixie dream girl in this romance novel, has a weird, but not too

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weird, to make her unlikable, quirk about her; she is obsessed with Christmas. To understand why this is such a problem, pick up and read this book!

If you are looking for a quick read, which is splashed with a multitude of Jewish jokes that confirm that sending your child to an incredibly expensive Yeshiva so that they could learn to understand the aforementioned Jewish jokes was, in fact, a good idea, this is the book for you. This novel may not win the Pulitzer Prize, but it will make you laugh and feel closer to the Jewish community. And maybe (a very big maybe) that's worth not turning on the television for.

A GOOD GIRL'S GUIDE TO MURDER by Holly Jackson Review by Lindsay Chubak '25 Rory Gilmore once said, “I live in two worlds. One is a world of books.” In my ten years as a fairly obsessive reader, there has been no world I have fallen in love with more than that of Fairview, Connecticut. The town in the book A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson.

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder follows one of my all-time favorite protagonists, Pippa “Pip” Fitz-Amobi, as she solves the cold case of the murder of Andie Bell for her senior capstone project. Five years ago, popular high school senior Andie Bell was murdered by her boyfriend, Sal Singh, who, out of guilt, committed suicide the next day. That's the story that everyone knows. Done, settled.

But Pip cannot come to terms with the fact that Sal, who she was convinced was a good person, could ever do something like that. Something must not add up. So, with the help of Sal’s younger brother, Ravi, Pip decides to reopen the case until she discovers what actually happened, both to Andie and to Sal. While it normally takes a while for me to become fully invested in a book, in this case, I was hooked from line one. From start to finish, I was absolutely engrossed in this small town in Connecticut and all the secrets lurking behind each closed door. With each page, I felt a murderer creeping up closer and closer behind me as if they would get me if I didn’t solve the mystery along with Pip. With this book, you are not just reading a story, you are along for the ride of emotion, and suspicion. You are so desperate to know who did what that you are tempted to assemble a murder board just as immaculate as the one Pip and Ravi create together.

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While the plot itself is enough reason to adore this book, all of the amazing characters take this book from just an incredible mystery to so much more. Pip is everything a mystery protagonist should be - headstrong, bold, intelligent, and keeps red string in her drawer. She is the type of girl who murder mystery fanatics such as myself can only dream to be, but not so perfect that she comes off as a Mary Sue type. For all of her strengths, she also is obsessive to a fault, willing to give up just about everything, including her own safety, in order to solve this case.

Ravi is what the reader doesn’t come into the book expecting, but comes out knowing that none of it would be the same without him. The perfect partner for Pip, the perfect comedic relief, the one who will somehow worm his way into your heart. After all, how could anyone not love someone who believes that “real men wear floral while trespassing”?

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder is the perfect book for those who grew up reading Nancy Drew, for those on the hunt for the next big Young Adult crime novel, or for anyone who needs a mystery that will leave them biting their nails and sitting on the edge of their seat until the final page.

It’s the type of book that will leave you staring at your wall wondering “Could that really have just happened?” The book that will leave you dying for a reread just so you could find all the clues you missed. A book with so many twists and turns that once it is in your hands you will not be able to put it down until you have finished. A book containing so many hidden gems and unusual elements that make it special, it’s no wonder it is one of my all-time favorite books.

THE OUTSIDERS by S. E. Hinton Review by Solly Taragin '23 Soul piercing soul-piercing. soul-piercing? soul-piercing; I'm hoping if I say it enough times then the right piece of art will come to mind. The Outsiders is a truly inspiring piece of artistic work for me on many levels. Firstly/mainly, the story is incredibly moving. "Stay gold, Ponyboy, stay gold." You can't get more emotionally moving than that. Johnny Cade is an extremely sad character who you just want to hug.

Reading The Outsiders, I want to trade my life for Johnny's.

He deserved so much more. I've read The Outsiders probably around 5, 6 times since I was a little kid. It always gets me.

S.E. Hinton is such an inspiration to me. She is such a 8

brilliant storyteller, and she is one of the reasons I love to write. She wrote The Outsiders when she was 16! That fact has pushed me to try and produce work. It's made me realize that you don't necessarily need a Ph.D. to tell a great story.

There's action, there's girls, there's love, hate, sadness, humor -- there's everything I want from a piece of art.

The novel is so entertaining to read. S.E. Hinton has a way of bringing a reader in like nobody else. I identify as a greaser while reading from the comfort of my bed on the Upper East Side. It's hilarious and incredible. For me, the character relationships are the best aspect of The Outsiders. There's anger and hostility between friends, but there's also so much love and loyalty. Speaking as a greaser myself, Dallas Winston is a tricky case. You hate him then you love him then you hate him then you love him then you cry over his dead body. The variety of feelings I feel throughout the novel for Dally is similar to how I feel reading the novel. That's why I love it so much. If I'm happy I can read it, if I'm sad I can read it, and if I'm not feeling anything too much at the moment, I can read it for some life. The characters in The Outsiders–despite portraying themselves in a certain light to the public–have a lot of depth. I love riding the rollercoaster with them, it's truly soul-piercing.

THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER by Stephen Chbosky Review by Thea Katz '25 Why is it that Stephen Chbosky’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower is the most beat-up paperback on my shelf? Why do I keep coming back to it? After much thought, the answer that came to me was surprisingly straightforward: The Perks of Being a Wallflower proves that you don’t need fancy vocabulary words, complicated metaphors, or crazy plot twists to tell a story. In its short two hundred pages, this novel can tell a more moving, addictive, and beautiful story than most novels can in five hundred pages.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower tells the coming-of-age of a boy named Charlie, and the story of his freshman year of high school. Charlie relays his experiences as a “wallflower”living a life fueled by nothing but observations and sensitivity. As the novel opens, Charlie is coping with the recent deaths of his best friend and aunt. He begins high school as a loner but quickly befriends Sam and Patrick, seniors who pride themselves on being different from everyone else. He is incorporated into their group of friends and spends his first year of high school learning how to “participate” in life.

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Uniquely enough, this story doesn’t feel the need to use too many words to convey its messages. In one of the novel’s most memorable scenes, in which Sam, Charlie, and Patrick drive a pickup truck through the tunnel with music blasting, Charlie writes, “Sam sat down and started laughing. Patrick started laughing. I started laughing. And in that moment, I swear we were infinite.” Other authors would have expressed this to the reader in a long paragraph, or even a full chapter. Chbosky seems to understand that this isn’t necessary. The best way to convey pure emotions is simply, and The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a perfect example of this.

Charlie, the main character and narrator, has a unique voice unlike that of any narrator I’ve encountered. He, in no way, is generic or dull. Reading Charlie’s thoughts feels almost like being confided in by a real person. He has a distinct voice that is naive yet nuanced. Because of this, he is able to provide a new perspective on mundane aspects of life. For example, when watching a football game, Charlie writes, “I think about the boy who just made the touchdown. I think that these are the glory days for that boy, and this moment will just be another story someday because all the people who make touchdowns and home runs will become somebody’s dad.” It is statements like this that make Charlie’s voice stand out.

The plot is full of sentimentality in all forms. The sad moments are as heartbreaking as the author intended them to be, but these moments are balanced out with happy moments so as not to make the book overly depressing. This story will have you smiling to yourself on one page, sobbing on the next, and leave you with a message full of subtle optimism and courage.

BOOK LOVERS by Emily Henry Review by Keren Teichner '25 Is it possible for the unfeeling girl to get a happy ending? That is the question that the novel Book Lovers by Emily Henry tries to answer. Nora Stephens is not like other girls. She is a hustling literary agent, who works, rides her peloton, and checks up on her sister. Repeat those same actions every day and you get Nora Stephens. The novel begins with Nora’s boyfriend, Grant, breaking up with her for being too unfeeling, and going to live his life in a small town with a girl he instantly fell for. Unfeeling as she is, Nora recovers quickly and meets with Charlie Lastra. Nora’s day only gets worse when Charlie rejects Nora’s book. The book jumps to two years later when Libby, Nora’s sister, asks Nora to accompany her on a 10

trip to a small town called Sunshine Falls. Nora would rather do anything else, but she loves her sister more than anything and agrees to go. However, there is one problem, Charlie Lastra, the editor who rejected her book years earlier is also there. Throughout the trip, Nora continues to see Charlie and they evolve from enemies to friends, to more than friends. But can the unfeeling girl get the man? Or is the unfeeling girl destined to always watch from the sidelines as everyone around her gets their happy endings?

Book Lovers is an undeniably quick, lighthearted, and not to mention funny, read. The humorous style keeps the book engaging while allowing the writer to explore some more profound ideas, without making the book heavy to read. One of the main conflicts in the book is Nora trying to deal with her obsessive work habits, which makes her seem unfeeling, and emotionless, which society deems unbecoming for a woman. In the book, this belief is countered humorously. For example, Charlie says to Nora “You’re in books. Of course you don’t have a life. None of us do. There’s always something too good to read.”

Book Lovers gives the reader what they came for, a contemporary romance. Nora’s and Charlie's romance is swoon-worthy. Not to mention it is very realistic, there is no insta-love, but rather a slow buildup of trust, passion, and love. Both Nora and Charlie feel like real people, not just letters on paper. They both have so much depth, both struggling with their identity of who other people want them to be and who they want to be. This causes the reader to fall in love with them and their stories. One thing that separates this book from other contemporary romances is its strong subplot of family relationships. This book is not just about Nora and Charlie’s story but it is also about Nora, and Libbby’s story, and Charlie and his parent’s story.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a contemporary romance with real depth and life lessons to be learned. The story is sweet and entertaining. The characters are likable and relatable. And lastly; the book teaches two different, but important life lessons. The importance of family, and the importance of staying true to yourself.

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THE CATCHER IN THE RYE by J. D. Salinger ​

Review by Solly Taragin '23

At the risk of sounding like a phony–which is the last thing that I would want to do while bringing up Holden Caulfield–I feel like I should hand some praise to the late J.D. Salinger for writing The Catcher in the Rye. The word that I would use to describe The Catcher in the Rye would be “real.” Everything just felt SO real.

It’s crazy. I’ve read it a few times, and it’s funny because the first two times I read it, I honestly didn’t appreciate it at all. Overrated is what I kept thinking. I don’t understand what all of the hype is about. The third time I read it though, I almost wanted to punch Salinger in envy, because I kept thinking how I would never be able to write a story with such authenticity. It’s hard to explain. The book is written in a way that’s not writing. It feels more like it was transcribed or something by a natural force. Like the wind, or maybe sign language or something. I don’t even fully know what I’m trying to say. The funny thing is that Salinger wrote in a way where he included things that don’t feel necessary because they may not directly relate to the story, but then you think about it and you’re really glad it was included, because in real life, nothing is a straight line, and Salinger found a way to express the racing of people’s brains without confusing the reader too much. I feel like a phony for praising practically the most praised novel of all time, and Holden hates phonies, but I feel like I should anyway.

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The Lying Life of Adults (translated from Italian) by Elena Ferrante Mini Review by Anonymous Penguin Elena Ferrante’s prickly coming-of-age tale unfolds in 1990s Naples, Italy, ranging from that city’s azure ocean vistas to its decrepit outlying slums. The teenage Giovanna’s idyllic, book-filled life with her professorial parents abruptly sours as she grows into self-consciousness about—everything: her face, her body, her intellect. When Giovanna’s father cruelly compares her to the notorious estranged Aunt Vittoria—a paragon of ugliness and sin who Giovanna knows only by reputation—he awakens a hunger in her to discover the truth about this legendary relative. What she learns will fracture the image of the family she thought she saw so clearly, and irrevocably redraw its lines.

The novel charts an exhilarating course through Giovanna’s self-awakening, as she picks through the debris of the past and of her own increasingly destructive impulses. Though the goings-on are frequently sun-drenched, the story’s heat and fire come principally from Giovanna herself, who, like any good teenager, alternately sulks and explodes with intensity, ultimately becoming as adept at analyzing the lies of others as formulating lies of her own. You will scream at her and you will cry with her, and despite the tears, you’ll finish the book with something like hope.

From Scratch by Tembi Locke Review by Ashley Behm '24 With a small wooden box of her husband’s ashes in her hands, Tembi Locke rolls under a barbed wire fence on the coast of Italy to fulfill her late husband’s dying wish— for his ashes to be scattered off the coast of Sicily. In From Scratch, Tembi Locke recounts the best and worst moments of her life.

The memoir will make any reader shed tears. With the past and present seamlessly woven together, you are taken on a rollercoaster of emotions, both sad and joyous. You will find tear stains on the pages long after you finish.

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When a young Tembi Locke goes to study abroad in Florence for a semester in college, she bumps into a handsome Italian on the streets of Florence. He asks her out that day, clad in a graphic tee with the word “destiny” printed on the front. Thus begins their whirlwind romance. They fall in love and their lives become increasingly intertwined.

Unfortunately, Saro’s traditional Sicilian family disapproves of him marrying a black American woman. Eventually, they move to the United States together and Saro is diagnosed with cancer for the first time. Their lives continue as they adopt a daughter and Saro recovers from cancer, until he is diagnosed again. Saro succumbs to the evils of cancer, forcing Tembi to adapt to life without him. From Scratch documents the three summers following Saro’s death that Tembi and her daughter, Zoela, spend in Sicily with Saro’s mother. Tembi forms a strong relationship with Saro’s mother as they overcome past differences and work together to preserve the memory of their beloved Saro through cooking and companionship.

A unique aspect of this memoir is the way the timeline is arranged. The chapters alternate between the early stages of their relationship and the summers in Italy. Writing a narrative in this manner has the potential to give readers emotional whiplash, in addition to making the narrative incoherent. Locke manages to avoid these missteps and the transitions between past and present make the story even more powerful. Chapters about their young love and about Saro growing as a caring father offer a blissful reprieve from the dark pages of his sickness and subsequent death. It is also refreshing to see how Locke and Zoela grow and move past the tragedy. Despite the back and forth, the narrative is clear and concise. Unfortunately, there were times when the storytelling felt tedious and overdone with long paragraphs about nothing in particular but the fruit on the trees.

Even with the beautiful writing these parts were still boring at times.

The most compelling part of the narrative is the characters. Each character’s essence is impeccably laid out on the pages. Details about face shape, distinct character traits, and style choices make the characters come alive from the pages. It is easy to step into each character’s shoes and feel empathy for what each one goes through. Throughout the novel, I felt increasingly connected to Tembi and Saro. Their pain became my pain and I could not help but weep on their behalf. The tears I shed during the story are a testament to the incredible storytelling skills of Tembi Locke.

Locke is not asking to be pitied or comforted, she is asking readers to listen. To keep the memory of her beloved Saro alive while she learns to live life with the memories of him. She tackles tough topics with grace. Through food, found family, and the bright Italian countryside, Tembi Locke rebounds from one of the worst things that could happen to a person. By the end of the book, you feel like you have forged a friendship with the author. You can not help but feel her happiness and sorrow and feel proud of her strength and resilience.

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Fighting For Us by Claire Kingsley Review by Serena Olshin '25 What would you do if your fiancé and love of your life was sent to prison for protecting you? Do you wait for him for 10 years until he gets out? Or do you listen to him when he tells you to move on with your life? For most people, this would be an almost impossible decision to make, but for Grace Miles, it’s not. Grace has loved Asher Bailey since she was a little girl, and the moment she agreed to marry him meant forever, so she waits, even though everyone thinks she’s crazy for doing so. But when Asher is finally released and comes home, he’s not the same person he was when he left. Unfortunately for Grac, this means they can’t just pick up where they left off with wedding planning, but it’s going to take some time to convince Asher that they can be together, despite both of their demons.

Overall I did enjoy reading this book. There were so many fun elements, like the Bailey Haven town feud, which led to so many pranks, obviously all of the Bailey brothers, and just the fun small-town vibes and shenanigans. But the aspect of the story that was the most disappointing was the romance itself. I really like the premise and the setup for this book, and I would definitely read another book with the same trope because what fell flat for me was the chemistry between Asher and Grace. In their prologue book, Asher and Grace were really cute. You could see how they cared for each other and had great chemistry! I know that Asher is supposed to change in prison, but it felt like I was reading about a whole new character. And sometimes I would question why they even liked each other. It seemed like they kept telling themselves that they were in love with the other person when maybe they weren’t.

All that being said, I have read romance books with far worse chemistry where I wasn’t even rooting for the two main characters. But while in Fighting for Us I was rooting for them, I just wanted to be rooting for them a little more. Despite the fact that they didn’t always have the best chemistry there are some cute moments between Asher and Grace, and I can see potential with the rest of the series. And I can’t wait to read about the brothers!

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Reading and Ranting…

An interview with Mr. Deutsch Interviewed by Ashley Behm ‘24 and Thea Katz ‘25

What is your favorite book?

I don't really have "favorite" things, because different things appeal to me at different times and in different ways, but I recommend the Sandman comic book series by Neil Gaiman. Really beautiful.

Who is your favorite author?

Again, don't know about "favorites," but lately I'd throw in Bernard Cromwell, Joe Abercrombie, and George MacDonald Fraser.

What is your favorite genre?

So when I was a kid, I read lots of fantasy and sci-fi, then I read a lot of literary fiction, until one day, it hit me--"I don't care about your stupid unhappy family, or stupid crumbling marriage or stupid mid-life crisis" or whatever motivates characters in literary fiction. So I've been happily ensconced in genre fiction—mysteries, sci-fi, fantasy, comic books, and the like. You give me a good murder, some aliens, an ogre, or a superhero, and I'm happy as a clam.

If you were to write a book, what would it be about?

I have a tradition, in which every summer I write one or two novels, and every fall and winter my agent fails to sell them. So far I've written a

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bunch of historical mysteries, some fantasy, some horror, and a little bit of sci-fi. I'm a multi-genre failure.

If you could ban a book. what would it be?

Fat Man in an Ill-Fitting Suit--the Unauthorized Biography of Mr. Deutsch

An Interview with Evelyn Landy ‘20 Interviewed by Ashley Behm ‘24 and Thea Katz ‘25 Evelyn Landy graduated from Ramaz in 2020, and by the time she graduated, she had already published her first novel, The Lie In Our Hearts.

What have you been writing since you published The Lie In Our Hearts?

I actually wrote a couple of novels after The Lie in Our Hearts. I finished one of them right before COVID hit, and I wrote the other over the summer after I graduated high school and the summer after my first year of college. While I really enjoyed the process of writing them, I don’t plan on doing anything with them right now. They helped me grow a lot as a writer and I’m very grateful for that. In the past couple of years, I’ve definitely been more interested in screenwriting and, in college, I’m double majoring in creative writing and film and media, so I’ve had the chance to write several scripts– both for film and television– which I’m very proud of.

When/how did you realize that you actually enjoy writing?

I’m not sure if I can pinpoint one exact moment, but I’ve always enjoyed writing stories. I guess the most memorable moment was my eighth birthday when I wanted a notebook which I could write stories. I also remember that

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same year, in the second grade at Ramaz, we wrote our own books and I remember writing that I wanted to be an author when I grew up in the bio at the back of my book. From then on, I built up a collection of notebooks and wrote more short stories. This eventually evolved into a Google Drive folder on my computer, but to this day, I still have these notebooks, and it’s awesome to be able to read the stories I wrote (no matter how terrible) from over a decade ago.

What's your favorite genre of writing and why?

I talked about this a little earlier, but I’d have to say screenwriting is my favorite genre/format to write. I’ve always really enjoyed writing dialogue and, with screenwriting, the format really highlights that part of a story. I also think that when I write, I see things very visually, so it is a more direct form of writing in which you write exactly what you see and don’t get too bogged down in emotions or stream of consciousness. Recently, I’ve also really enjoyed trying to play with my audience’s perception of what is happening on screen through dramatic reveals and pointing out small visual details that will play a bigger role as the story progresses, and screenwriting is the best format for that. Within screenwriting, genre-wise, I enjoy dramatic stories with some comedy.

How do you overcome writing slumps and stay motivated?

I have several strategies that I think work well for me. The first is knowing that it’s okay to take a break from writing and allow the story to ruminate in your head. Go out into the world and experience things that can hopefully serve as inspiration for the solution of whatever you’re stuck on. The answer

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might come from a place, person, or conversation when you least expect it to.

Another thing I like to do is write from a character other than my protagonists’ perspective. This allows me to be able to see the story from a different angle that I otherwise would not have seen or thought about. My last suggestion is to write on a deadline. I’m not great at setting deadlines for myself but I’ve found that, in college, if I’m working on a creative writing assignment and my deadline is approaching soon, the inspiration strikes, and sometimes it’s just a matter of waiting. Of course, don’t wait until the very last minute, but just let your solution come to you naturally and a deadline might be the push that you need.

Do you read a lot to strengthen your writing?

I do! I don’t have as much time as I want to in the school year, but last summer I probably read more than I have in a long time. I was reading a book every weekend for fun. I also interned for a couple of film/tv production companies where I read either a book every two days or 2-3 scripts a day and then had to analyze the stories for their strengths and weaknesses, so I was reading a lot. Since then, I’ve definitely seen an improvement in my writing from this year to last year and am much more convinced that in order to be a good writer, you have to be a good reader. I also think being able to identify what worked in a book and what didn’t helped me become a much better writer.

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What advice would you tell high schoolers trying to find a unique voice in their writing?

My advice would be to set aside time to just write because you need to have written something in order to have a unique voice. One great way to do that is to either join a club or publication where you get to write on a regular basis and really hone in on your writing skills and develop your own voice. In high school, I was a part of Parallax and really enjoyed having a space where I would get to write for half an hour or so and get to know other students who also enjoyed writing. Similarly, having a friend who is also interested in writing is great because you can keep each other accountable and offer feedback on each other’s work. In my junior year of high school, after I finished writing The Lie in Our Hearts, I made a goal with a friend of mine for each of us to write a book and write a specific number of words a day. I actually ended up finishing that project and am not sure I would’ve had it not been for that challenge. Ultimately, I think the best advice is to write, write, write, write, but the first step is making the space and time to do so, and having someone there to encourage you definitely doesn’t hurt.

Rapid fire questionsJust to preface, my favorites are constantly changing, but right now…

Favorite book The Most Fun We Ever Had by Claire Lombardo Favorite writer Celeste Ng (she wrote Little Fires Everywhere) Favorite genre Any kind of multi-generational family story

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