Undergraduate winner: 2nd place, 2023, 36th Annual Carl Neureuther Student Book Collection Competitio

Dopke, Ella

English

Washington University St. Louis: Open Scholarship

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University Open Scholarship Neureuther Book Collection Essay Competition Student Contests & Competitions 2023 "One Book, Never Just One Story" Ella Dopke Washington University in St. Louis Follow this and additional works at: https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/nbcec Recommended Citation Dopke, Ella, ""One Book, Never Just One Story"" (2023). Neureuther Book Collection Essay Competition. 82. https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/nbcec/82 This Essay is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Contests & Competitions at Washington University Open Scholarship. It has been accepted for inclusion in Neureuther Book Collection Essay Competition by an authorized administrator of Washington University Open Scholarship. For more information, please contact digital@wumail.wustl.edu. I firmly believe that the books we cherish cannot be reduced to just the words theycontain. The copies we own, read and reread, dogear and toss into school backpacks are neverjust the paper of the binding or the gloss of the cover.A collection that often requires explaining, but still holds pride of place on my bedroom’swhite IKEA bookshelves, is my stack of editions of Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo. On the shelf(second from the top, second from the right) rest eight different copies of the 2015 young adultnovel. The first in a fantasy duology, the book tells the story of an elaborate heist carried out in afantasy Amsterdam by a team of six teenagers, who alternate chapter perspectives as the plotprogresses. Friends would tell you that I am displaying remarkable restraint by keeping mydescription to one sentence. Essays can and should be written detailing the author’s portrayals oftrauma and its effects on relationships, as well as the complex world building and magic system.Ask any reader what their favorite book is and you will find most cannot choose just one.Six of Crows has been challenged for primacy in recent years by other books with characters andwords that make me question my world view, but the fantasy novel still remains my go-to answerto that pressing question. It is not that I think the book has the best plot or characters of all time,though I would argue they are in the running, it is because of the place the book has had in mylife since I first read it as a high school freshman. Eight different copies stand side by side on myshelf. Beyond containing a story I love, each copy contains a host of memories tucked in with theblocks of black text.Copy no. 1: Henry Holt and Co. first edition hardback, red sprayed edgesThis edition, purchased online from a second hand store, is where I first encountered theworld of Ketterdam and the suspense of the Ice Court mission. Squeezed into the five minutepassing periods freshman year of high school, I devoured Bardugo’s tale. During long waits inthe pick-up line, resting in the shade of a yet unfamiliar place filled with people I didn’t know,this book was my retreat. Everytime I see the black and gray dust jacket illustration, I am takenback to fourth period Spanish class. The red edged pages stand out while replaying the beginningof my friendship with Renee, the first friend I made in high school. Bonding over NBC sitcoms,challenging AP World History homework, and pretzel goldfish, our conversations were the firstthing strong enough to tear me from the pages of Six of Crows. Opening this copy teleports menot just to Ketterdam, but to the hours spent breaking out my self imposed isolation of anxiety.Copy no. 2: Special edition hardback, red stamped foil cover, no dust jacket, black sprayed edgesIf the ultimate purpose of any printed volume is to be broken open and read, then thisedition has done a very poor job. Standing face out on the edge of my white shelf, I am tooscared to read this copy. Although also purchased off a second hand book site, the intricate pagesand special character art of this edition are just too precious to risk with the everyday dangers ofreading. It visually represents the work of art I believe the plot to be.Copy no. 3: Henry Holt and Co. original American cover, paperbackSeparated from its companions, this edition is one of the lucky few that made it into mycollege moving boxes. Too scared of marking up a first edition, this floppy paperback is myannotated copy. Beaten up from numerous trips in my tote bag and backpack, this Six of Crows iscrisscrossed with purple and orange highlights and underlines, margins stuffed with black inknotes and reactions. A rainbow of tabs stick out from the sides, with an elaborate color codingsystem available behind the front cover.Though I am always quick to shove my recommendations into the hands of friends andacquaintances, this copy is one I consider too personal to share. Documented in messy penstrokes are a record of my life from every time I return to read it. Every flip through evokessomething unique, a new reaction or connection to my life, each new thought added alongsideold notes. At this point, the copy is more an autobiography than a fantasy novel.Copy no. 4: French Poche Jeunesse paperback, translated by Anath Riveline, 2017I can blame my sister for this edition. For my sixteenth birthday she tracked down thisedition as a novelty gift, knowing full well my knowledge of French can be reduced to bonjour.It is small, almost square in its dimensions, with leaf-thin pages and a unique white and grayillustrated cover. I find the upside down spine lettering fascinating, if a bit off putting. Theperfectionist in me is willing to override the discrepancy for the sake of the collection.Copy no. 5: Shadow and Bone TV show tie in cover, paperback, 2021Another gift from my sister, the brown-green photographic cover of this book remindsme of my friend Persephone. An art class table mate turned best friend, our mutual love ofBardugo’s “Grishaverse” world was an early source of conversation. From the announcement ofthe television adaptation, to casting news of our favorite characters and animated promotionalvideos, this book is a memento of my relationship with her. The pages contain two years ofshared anticipation. All caps text rants over leaked behind-the-scenes footage, screams let outwith every trailer rewatch, and pizza shared during an all-night release day binge watch, thispaperback reminds me of a bond that even a writer like Leigh Bardugo can’t describe.Copy no. 6: Czech translated paperbackThe one that solidified my obsession. While on a school trip to Europe I dragged myfriend and traveling partner Paige to the city square bookstore during our two hours of free time.Differences in publishers means that many books have different cover designs depending on thecountry they are printed in, and the nerd in me had that fact at the forefront of her brain whilemaking a Prague itinerary. Browsing the fantasy shelves I found this copy sealed in plastic andknew I just couldn’t leave it behind. While the rest of our tour group reconvened with t-shirts andmagnets, I considered my book a superior treasure.Copy no. 7: Slovenian translated paperbackOnce I decided that Six of Crows was to be my souvenir of choice, I was on a mission. Afamily trip to the Adriatic Coast the week after graduation provided the perfect opportunity forexpansion. The second of my travel additions, this one was found in the back shelf of a secondfloor bookstore a stone’s throw from Ljubljana’s famous Dragon Bridge square.Copy no. 8: Italian translated hardcoverI think the sweat I shed to get this book might still be smudged on the cover. Anothercopy I owe to my sister Jane, a 95-degree afternoon was braved to complete perhaps the most indepth tour of Pula, Croatia’s bookstores that has ever been undertaken. Several air conditioningand gelato pit stops into the day, this volume was acquired. Unwrapped from its plastic in theshade of the largest Roman amphitheater outside of Italy, the Italian hardback was worth thetesting of airplane weight limits on the plane ride back.Books never contain just one story. The emotions that I have tied to Six of Crows are notjust the ones I felt when encountering the characters, plot, or cover. Rather, my relationship withthe book is ever heightened by the accumulation of memories and relationships that LeighBardugo’s novel evokes. Those pages hold 2 a.m. text conversations with my best friend overcasting and hours spent navigating high school for the first time. Contained in the binding isevery small bookstore I have visited in my hunt for different editions, tucked down cobbledroads in European neighborhoods older than any American city. My collection of Six of Crowseditions tells the story of my youth, written in echoes of laughter and frustration between everyline of typed text.Bibliography:CITEBardugo, Leigh, and Anath Riveline. Six of Crows. Le Livre De Poche Jeunesse, 2017.CITEBardugo, Leigh, and Julie Žemlová. Šest Vran. Fragment, 2017.Bardugo, Leigh, et al. Sei Di Corvi. Mondadori, 2019.Bardugo, Leigh, et al. Vranja Šesterica. Mladinska Knjiga, 2019.CITEBardugo, Leigh. Six of Crows. Henry Holt and Company, 2015.

One Book, Never Just One Story

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One Book, Never Just One Story

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Washington University St. Louis: Open Scholarship