The Class of 2017 will read Colum McCann’s novel “Let the Great World Spin,” as its official summer reading book.
The novel was chosen by a selection committee comprising faculty, staff and undergraduate students. The committee is working to arrange a campus visit from McCann in the Fall.
The novel is about the impact that Philippe Petit’s 1974 tightrope walk across between the two buildings of the World Trade Center complex had on the lives of several New Yorkers who witnessed the event. The fictional novel conveys the effect Petit’s walk had throughout the protagonists’ lives.
“I actually just heard about the book a few weeks prior,” said incoming freshman Anna Bensley from Grand Rapids, Mich. “The title captivated me instantly. To delve further into the plot of this novel, I am able to find even more connections to the enduring experience of enrolling at Duke University.”
Incoming freshmen will have the opportunity to discuss the novel during orientation week activities.
Junior Valentine Esposito, a member of the summer reading selection committee and co-chair of the First-Year Advisory Council, said that the book was chosen because it has a storyline to which every incoming freshman can relate.
“The book ties together the lives of several very different characters,” Esposito said. “It is a really interesting parallel to when you first come to Duke and you meet so many different types of people, and you dive into experiences that every freshman has, and it really ties everyone together.”
She added that the book was a favorite within the committee because it was “beautifully written.”
Sophomore Madison Moyle, a member of the Duke Summer Reading committee, said that the novel will provide for in-depth discussion in FAC groups because it presents the reader with a wide variety of larger themes.
Other finalists for the summer reading book included “Behind the Beautiful Forevers” by Katherine Boo, “Little Princes” by Conor Grennan, “Crashing Through” by Robert Kurson and “Purge” by Sofi Oksanen.
“‘Let the World Spin’ was hands down my favorite choice,” Moyle said. The novel for the Class of 2016 was Ann Patchett’s “State of Wonder.”
Moyle said that compared to previous years’ summer reading, “Let the World Spin” brings “a greater breadth of discussion.” She added that the themes highlighted in the novel are fear, hope, love and loss.
Incoming freshmen will receive copies from a special printing of the novel in July.
updated at 2:34 a.m. March 27
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