Sarah Clark, bartender/barista, Lawrence

“Right now I’m reading ‘The Spiral Staircase,’ by Karen Armstrong. It’s an interesting perspective on someone who used to lead a religious life but doesn’t anymore.”

Duncan Eshelman, quality control administrator, Lawrence

“Marcel Proust’s series ‘A Remembrance of Things Past.’ It’s kind of a fictional retracing of the author’s life.”

Gabrielle Iversen, art teacher, Lawrence

“‘Daughter of Fortune,’ by Isabel Allende. It’s about Chilean-American culture.”

Kate von Achen, Kansas University senior, Lawrence

“‘How to Talk Dirty and Influence People’ by Lenny Bruce. It’s a somewhat biographical account of how censorship led to his demise.”