Mr. Shelburne

Math teacher Mr. Peter Shelburne’s top two reads from 2022 were “Cloud Cuckoo Land” by Anthony Doeer and “The Candy House” by Jennifer Egan. 

“Cloud Cuckoo Land” stands out to Mr. Shelburne as “really creative,” he said. “It talks about different time periods from a long time ago, to sort of modern, or even in the future. And it kind of wraps it together really nicely.”

For Mr. Shelburne, this was his first read from Doeer, and the next is already on his list.

Mr. Shelburne would recommend this book to “someone interested in history,” he said. He also said that the book may also interest people who are intrigued by modern themes related to global warming and the state of the planet. “People that are tied to that kind of issue might enjoy it,” he said.

He describes the second book on his list as “a little hard to get into, but it’s very interesting,” as it is an “exploration of modern technology, imagining a future where people put their memories in a public bank, where you can access other people’s memories and even your own memories that you don’t really remember very well,” he said. “So it’s a very probing look at technology and what might come in the future.”

Both books are revolutionary and creatively written, and he especially liked how they could each be simultaneously realistic and imaginative.

“There’s parts of them that are very true to life,” Mr. Shelburne said. “But then there’s parts you’re like, ‘Oh they’re really imagining something different there,’ and I think that’s what I like about them.”

Mr. Shelburne would describe himself as an enthusiastic reader, however “I don’t read as many as I’d like,” he said. “I’ve probably read four or five this year.”