AUG. 25—Students got the chance to meet Allegra Goodman, the author of Isola, one of the summer reading books, during a special reading event in the Cherney. 

Isola is about Marguerite de la Rocque, a young French woman, who is abandoned on an island as a punishment for love. She struggles to survive and find hope. The novel explores themes like resilience, faith and personal growth.

The event started with a game of Kahoot about Isola. The final scores of the game ended with freshman Myles Luna in third place, sophomore Maya Nourizad in second place, and freshman Gabriel Irwin winning the competition.

Then Goodman starting sharing her inspiration from a children’s book she read while on a trip to Canada. She first discovered the real story of Marguerite de la Rocque more than 20 years ago, and the idea stayed with her until she wanted to share another version of her. 

She also talked about the writing process and research. She explained how she studied paintings, clothing and the daily life of people on islands like the one in her book, which is set in deserted island off the coast of Canada . Goodman wanted to capture important details and the setting of the 16th century. 

During the Q&A, students asked her about her daily routine and writing habits. She shared how she has set writing hours and described how Isola took three years to finish and revise with her editor’s help.

Sophomore Jion Jung shared, [The event was] helpful to me because it is my goal to become an author as well… It [also] allowed us to have a more personal connection and a deeper understanding of the work.”

Overall, the event had a positive impact on students and was able to share more insight on the behind-the-scenes of the summer reading.