As this year comes to a conclusion, the class of 2017 becomes reminiscent over the memories, experiences and people who have shaped and created their high school career.

However, one factor of high school that can be just as integral as the others are the books students have read throughout their four years

Books have the power to impact a student’s career immensely by transpiring new perspectives, guiding students through challenging times and perhaps giving students new appreciation for teachers.

These five have been interviewed on the most impactful books they have read during high school and here are their responses

“Dubliners by James Joyce

It was dark and real and beautifully written.

It taught me to think on my own and pursue my ambitions.

I read it sophomore year for Mr. James and I feel like I didn’t appreciate him as a teacher at the time but I should have.

“His soul swooned slowly as he heard the snow falling faintly through the universe and faintly falling, like the descent of their last end, upon the living and the dead.” -Augie Castellano, senior

“Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk

Fight Club helped me recognize a psychological disorder that I may not have recognized otherwise.

It taught me that people are going through things you may not realize and to respect everyone because you never know what may happen.

“The first rule of Fight Club is: you do not talk about Fight Club. The second rule of Fight Club is: you DO NOT talk about Fight Club!” – Zoe Gholson, senior

“The most impactful has been “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” by Stephen Chbosky.

It wasn’t assigned reading, Caroline Norton told me I should read it and gave me her copy.

It was interesting because I saw many parallels between the main character and my past self. Some were good, some were bad.

Reading it brought me some introspection on what I should change about myself and what needed tweaking.

Things change. And friends leave. Life doesn’t for anybody.

That was my favorite quote because it was during a time where lots of things were changing in my life and I was just trying to make the most out of it.” – Sean Smith, senior

“The most impactful book I have read was during senior year in Mrs. Vaughan’s class and it was “A Thousand Splendid Suns.” By Khaled Hosseini because it allowed me to really see what the culture and life is like in the Middle East without any negative bias. It taught me to contemplate the importance of faith and hope in seemingly impossible situations and inspired me to further want to help those in need. One of my favorite quotes from the novel is, “Some things I can teach you. Some you learn from books. But there are things that, well, you have to see and feel.” – Arissa Canella, senior

“Fight Club by Chuck Palahnuik.

I learned about myself as a reader and realized I loved the challenges of changes in perspective and stream of consciousness writing, which has followed me into the Magical Realism unit of Spanish lit.

More personal insight than a direct lesson from the text, but I actualized my altitude and appreciation for connection. Through writings fillings the margins, arrows circling around, and page numbers demonstrating sporadic elements of a theme, I became entrenched in the overlap between “reality” and Tyler’s “reality.” This concept of intersectionality shaped the colleges I looked into, how I wrote my college admission essays, and my ability to identify and express my academic value.

Cowart’s emphasis on both personal and educational insights definitely motivated me to continue reading and actively participate in Fight Club. We had discussions which I loved because we could voice our theories and connections we’d make, and Mrs. Cowart with her psychology background was an interesting contributor and facilitator.” – Olivia Morris, senior