By: Baarika Suresh

Donna Tartt is an absolute genius. Her use of the English language is absolutely extraordinary. She can write about the most profane subjects without the reader even realizing as her diction blooms over the darkness of her writing. Reading one of her books such as ‘The Goldfinch’ or ‘The Secret History’ is like entering into a world of its own.

She published her first and most famous book, ‘The Secret History’ in September of 1992. It is told from the perspective of Richard Papen, a transfer college student to a liberal arts college in Vermont. He befriends Bunny, Camilla, Charles, Henry and Francis, the only others in his classics class as well as the teacher, Julian, and finds out that they are more than meets the eye.

Henry and his gang live in a world in their heads away from the mundaneness of their lives. Richard is a shell of a man who, like a chameleon, fits in with his surroundings yet he struggles to fit in with this group. He tries to prove himself, but in the end falls into their trap.

‘The Secret History’ is 544 pages divided into only 8 chapters. I think this makes the story flow more smoothly. The characters develop so beautifully and are described so realistically that I could tell you all about my good friend Richard. Tartt gives her characters such humanistic characteristics, and they are so easy to empathize with.

The book is a masterpiece and you should definitely read it. To really understand Tartt’s mastermind, you must read at least one of her books. My first recommendation is obviously ‘The Secret History’ but ‘The Goldfinch’ is also a gem. ‘The Goldfinch’ was also scheduled to become a movie but never became one because the producer Tartt was working with passed away. It is about a boy who comes into possession of a painting after a terrorist attack in an art museum that killed his mum.

I would give ‘The Secret History’ a 10/10.