I feel that Roxanne Gay’s piece artistically brought together a book review and personal narrative that can spark loads of emotion for anyone who has ever experienced nostalgia. It sends a powerful message that books often mean more to someone than just being a piece of writing. The Sweet Valley High series represented a safe outlet for Gay to survive the difficult aspects of her childhood, and allowed her to have aspirations and goals, despite being brought down by the insensitive comments of ignorant kids. In my own life, I have experienced this type of nostalgia where the situation was bad, but you only remember the good aspects. Although not as severe as the torment that Gay faced, when I was in high school I would have cross country or track practice every day. I hated practice and I hated when the teams would compete at meets, however, looking back I can only recall the laughter with my friends, the funny comments my coach would make, or all my accomplishments while I was improving. Now, when I see my younger teammates post on social media about track or cross country, I feel nostalgic that I can’t be there experiencing it with them. I can also relate to Roxanne Gay’s disappointment in the new book, Sweet Valley Confidential. Gay had high hopes that this new book would fulfill her lofty expectations, however she was disappointed. This is similar to how when I was younger, my friends and I would spend loads time together laughing, playing, and being loud, but now as we have aged, we see less of each other and encounter more awkwardness to continue the conversation. Remembering the entertaining moments we had shared during my childhood, I am also disappointed that things aren’t the same as before whenever we spend time together now. Additionally, I feel that the author makes a good point in discussing how most high school students aspire to be one of the “cool kids”. Younger students are familiar with a certain stereotype for beauty. This gives mass media and marketers an advantage over consumers because they can then try to sell their product in order to make people feel better about themselves and fit into the stereotype.
Comments