What I’m Reading…
“My Father’s House” by Joseph O’Connor, a novel loosely based on historical events during the Nazi occupation of Italy during World War II. The protagonist of the novel is an Irish priest living at the Vatican, which may have led me to my second book, “Nora Webster” by Colm Tóibín, who is an Irish novelist. He also wrote “Brooklyn,” which I have not read but was a great film. “Nora Webster” is about a woman sorting out her life after the death of her husband and courageously facing blatant sexism in doing so.
I also read “Underland” by Robert Macfarlane, a fascinating work of nonfiction about what lies underground in various parts of the world, including caves in England and catacombs below Paris. An amazing book I read in honor of Black History Month by Ilyon Woo is entitled “Master, Slave, Husband, Wife.” This is the true story of an enslaved couple who escaped by posing as a white “master” and “his” male slave. One of the most compelling books I have read in years.
I read “Back Roads and Highways: My Journey to Discovery on Mental Health” by former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New Hampshire (and former UNH Franklin Pierce Law School dean) John Broderick. In this book, Judge Broderick recounts his hundreds of visits to New Hampshire high schools to promote awareness of and treatment for mental illness.
Do you have a book from your summer reading that you’d recommend to President Dean? Share your ideas with UNH Magazine: alumni.editor@unh.edu