What’s on my Shelf, with Women’s Editor Rae Coppola

A book lover's bookshelf contains many wonderful, interesting, and intriguing books – some that you may not even have heard of yet! Our new books column, 'What's On My Shelf', allows a glimpse into the bookshelves of our editors here at Kettle. This week, you can find out what lines Women's Editor Rae Coppola’s bookshelf.

Books are, and have always been, a large part of my life. I love to read and have spent many coffee-fuelled nights staying up, in attempts to get to the end of a book. As a Journalism and English student, I feel that reading not only improves my writing, but also motivates me to one day write something as compelling as what I read myself.

Shelf overview

One day I will have a ceiling-high white bookcase instead of wallpaper, but for now, in my student house, I have to assort my collection on top of my wardrobe. It's not the ideal, but it will do. The few books that made the cut are ones I could read over and over again, and will never gather dust from being abandoned.

Image: Twitter/ @immyllew

However, I try to avoid buying physical book copies, and store everything from my to-read list on my kindle. My kindle shelf, although bursting with old favourites and books I have not yet got my teeth into, is carefully organised into classic books, leisurely reads, and my university wider reading. It works out cheaper, and is my most prized possession, but not being able to turn the pages or get that new book smell is a difficult compromise to make.

Favourite books

The Two Towers by J. R. R. Tolkien

Tolkien has a way with words, even if they are sometimes his own made-up ones, and really knows how to bring the adventure to life. The fantastical concepts of Middle-earth, magic and mythical characters are so interesting to read about. Although the whole trilogy was originally meant to be one book, which was split into three by the publishers, I believe that the second is the best. The characters have been introduced, and the plot is beginning to get gritty, plus Gollum is involved. I also love watching the films, but they miss out scenes that add extra value to the adventure.

Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell

Set in a dystopian world, Orwell creates such a plausible future for the human race. The novel is seemingly more like an extensive essay on totalitarianism, and the political thriller really makes readers wonder if surveillance has gone too far, and needs regulating.

Wildthorn by Janet Eagland

This is a favourite from my young adult book collection. It is interesting, dark, and a potential nightmare for any LGBTQ women living in the Victorian era. I was gripped from the get go, and have read it numerous times.

What I'm reading

At the start of the year, I created a book-et list, and am slowly, but surely, making my way through that. However, I enjoyed the first Game of Thrones book so much, that rather than moving onto another book on the list, I instead decided to continue with the series, and move on to A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin.