Great Books
Group 2
M. diMuro, M. Moua, J. Popp, K. Heaslet, M. Hemphill, and R. McNamara
Our website for discussions of the books read in English 260.
Melanie diMuro
Jacklyn Popp
My name is Jacklyn and I’m a freshman. I’m majoring in English Education and considering either a double major or a minor in linguistics. My plan is to join the Peace Corps after I graduate and eventually go back to my high school to teach. I’m originally from Long Beach, but my family moved to Acton the year I started high school. The move from city to country suited me and my family well. My brother and I learned to rope and compete in gymkhanas. I took this course to get me back into reading; I used to read three to four books a week, now it’s hard fitting one per month. I’m so glad I took this course and I've learned so much. I can read without highlighting and annotation every page of every book I read. This class is going to help me in all of my future English classes (aka the only classes I’ll be taking junior and senior years). I tried taking a 300 level course this semester but dropped it the second week because I just didn't feel prepared. Thanks to this class I feel so much better about taking higher level courses and am more prepared than I could have hoped to be.
My name is Melanie and I am currently a junior at Chico State. My major is Interior Architecture with a minor in marketing. I decided to take English 260 Great Books, because I needed it for GE credit, but I chose this class because I enjoy reading. I knew taking this class would force me to set aside time during my busy semester to read and also it would introduce me to books I have never heard of or would have never thought to read. This semester I have read a lot of great books, ones that I probably would have never picked out myself, but all of them were quite interesting and opened my mind to the different types of books out there. My favorite book we read was probably Mrs. Dalloway, and being able to watch the Hours to compare helped a lot. I learned a lot this semester about analyzing characters in books and looking deeper into their characters and relationships with other characters in the books. Doing this really helped to make the books more interesting and understandable.
Hello! My name is Mao Moua. I am currently undecided on my major but am interested in Journalism and thinking of going towards that. On my spare times I like to take photos and listen to music. I choose to take this class because I enjoy reading and I want to read more different types of books out there. I haven't really read books that are older so I think it would be a great experience. I don’t think I would have read these books if it wasn’t for this class. It was something new for me and I really enjoyed it. Taking this class had opened me to new authors and writing styles. In the future, I can see myself reading some books from the same authors or similar books. I would have regretted not taking this class for sure. There are a lot more great books out there that I hope to be able to read in the future too.
My name is Kathleen Heaslet. I am a senior this year and am graduating this May. I am very interested in the health care field, and am eager to enter into this profession post graduation. I am taking this class as a prerequisite for an accelerated bachelor of science in nursing program at Samuel Merritt--a health professional university based out of Oakland. I am very interested in reading though, and am excited to start reading these books. The book I am most excited for is Frankenstein, because it is such a classic novel and I have never read it or even seen the film. Other hobbies that interest me are sports--especially basketball (to play), and football (to watch). I am part of a sorority here on campus as well, and much of my free time goes to that. Additionally, I work at the Campus Alcohol and Drug Education center this semester as part of my internship for my major of Health Education. Other hobbies of mine include hiking, swimming, BBQing--essentially anything that has to do with summer! I am a very outdoorsy person on nice days, but I definitely LOVE my rainy days cuddled up with a blanket, coffee, and movie or book. I grew up in Petaluma, CA, a town in Sonoma County and the North Bay Area. I have an older brother and an older sister, and have great relationships with my parents. I also have two dogs, a golden retriever and a jack russell that live at home who I miss dearly! This semester I learned a lot about literature and how to expand my thought process while reading. I have opened my mind up to different kind of books that are not typically in my comfort zone, such as mystery novels, and plays. This has been a great semester and am thrilled to have chosen to take this course—I would recommend it to all!
Mao Moua
Kathleen Heaslet
About the Group Authors!
Reilly McNamara
Hi! My name is Reilly McNamara. I am currently a sophomore at Chico State. I am majoring in Anthropology, with a focus in Archaeology, and Photography and am minoring in Journalism. I took this class because I really love to read books that are new or unfamiliar to me. In my spare time, I am a lifeguard and Swim Instructor and will be working with Chico Area Recreation Department this summer. Taking this class has opened my eyes to a whole new world of classic literature. The depth of these books was amazing. I really felt I connected with the characters from Mrs. Dalloway the most. I learned a lot from this course and I hope to continue on in my journey to read it all.