An Interview With: Sara Peak, Work Experience Student

Sara, a year 10 student at Saint Peter's Girls' School, talks about books, her experiences at Wakefield Press, and the differences between boys and girls reading

What is the first book you ever read?

At the risk of sounding generic, the first book I ever read was Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone. Before this, I lamented reading, but I was immediately drawn into the whirlwind of escapades at Hogwarts, and after reading the Harry Potter series, I started consuming literature at what my parents refer to as an alarming rate. As before this, all I had read were the picture books and young children’s novels given to me by my teachers, so Harry Potter showed me that books are more than a chore and are actually an adventure.

What attracted you to doing work experience at Wakefield Press?

Since I started reading, books have been an enormous influence in my life. When friends were few and far between, I always knew that I would have friends in books, and that they would guide me through anything I had to face. It seems only natural to me that I would take this passion for literature with me throughout my life and working as an editor or publisher is the perfect way to do this. I was attracted to doing work experience at Wakefield Press as I wanted to see what it would be like to work in the publishing industry, particularly in a local business, and determine whether publishing is something I'm actually interested in.
At the end of your work experience, what are your thoughts about working in publishing?
I think that I would absolutely love working in publishing. Being able to see publishing in action really highlights for me the incredible process that books go through before they arrive on the shelves, and then into my hands. I would love to be a part of this magical journey, and help make the books that I adore.

Do you think boys read differently from girls? If so, how? If not, why do you think so many people believe that?

I think that, to an extent, boys do read differently to girls, as boys and girls are raised extremely differently. From the moment they're born, boys are encouraged to want to read about superheroes and fast cars, while girls are encouraged to read about fairies and princesses. While many people do break free from these stereotypes that are impressed on us since birth, it still has great influence over our reading choices into our later life. However, this is not to say that boys and girls read completely different books, but different books are marketed to boys and girls. I firmly believe that if boys and girls were raised the same way, reading habits would not vary among genders.

 What’s the last book you read for fun? What was fun about it?

I recently finished The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy by Mackenzi Lee. It is the second in the series, the first being The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue. What I love about these books is that they really question what we have learnt about our history. As our history books are predominantly filled with straight, white men, reading historical books filled with queer people, people of colour, and strong, powerful women really turns history on its head, particularly as the author made the novels as historically accurate as possible.

What’s the last book you read and hated? What did you hate about it?

While I hate to hate books, I really despised Stephen King’s IT. In my opinion, the book is absolutely massive, and it has no reason to be. It was excessively long, with waffling descriptions that were completely irrelevant to the plot line. While there were many genuinely brilliant moments, they were far between, and reading the rest of it simply wasn’t worth it.
How do you find out about books you want to read?
I’m a prolific social media user, and I spend hours scrolling through bookstagrams and the #LoveOzYA tag to find new releases that interest me. I’m also well known in my local bookstores for showing up and looking through all of the new titles that interest me, and spending the vouchers I culminate every birthday, Christmas and Easter on them. As a member of two different book clubs, I also read the new releases that we look at every month.

Name a book or books that changed the way you think- in any way at all, large or small.

A book that changed by way of thinking was The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. It changed the way I considered by privilege, and my activism. Although my white privilege was something, I was always vaguely aware of, I never truly considered what it meant and how it impacts not just my life, but the lives of many other people of colour until I read this book. This book is absolutely essential in shaping the way we think about racism, particularly the institutionalisation of it.

Based on what you see around you, do you think teenagers read more or less than they used to?

I think that teenagers read more than they used to, but in much less conventional ways. With social media increasingly becoming the most-used way to share information, photos are not the only thing shared. People are able to express ideas and writing via blogs, websites, tweets, captions and multiple other platforms. However, in regard to books, I think there always has been and always will a much smaller group of readers. Perhaps this group has expanded or decreased over time, I don’t know, but to me, it always remains very similar.
Who is your favourite author and why?
It definitely depends on the day and the mood! If I’m feeling romantic, then I love Jane Austen; nostalgic and I love F. Scott Fitzgerald; upset and I love both Mackenzi Lee and Becky Albertalli; inspired and I love Margot McGovern and Christina Lauren. I know this isn’t a very good answer, but I love all of these amazing authors, so if you want anything to read, check them out.

If you were banished to a desert island and could take three books with you, what would they be and why?

I would definitely take The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. This is my favourite book of all time, as it’s commentary on capitalism, love and the American dream is absolutely genius. The way Fitzgerald wrote about Gatsby from Nick’s point of view allows the readers to admire Gatsby as Nick does, and as Nick claims to remain impartial and un-judgmental, his judgements on the situation away the author far more than if Gatsby had made his justifications himself. Thinking of another two books is harder as there are so many books I would want to take. I would take The Princess Saves Herself in This One by Amanda Lovelace, which is a beautiful book of poetry about being a girl growing up in a world in which we’re told that we’re to be saved by men. Lastly, I would take Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli, as it’s such a perfect coming-of-age that I know I could read it over and over without ever getting sick of it.

Keep an eye out for Sara's other blog posts, coming soon!

Are you interested in completing work experience at Wakefield Press?  Contact maddy@wakefieldpress.com.au for more information.