Scope and Contents From the Collection: The collection consists of theses written by students enrolled in the Monmouth University graduate English program. The holdings are primarily bound print documents that were submitted in partial fulfillment of requirements for the Master of Arts or Master of Fine Arts degrees.Students become eligible to pursue the Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.) degree if they have obtained a Master of Arts...

Abstract High school guidance counselor and basketball coach, Riley Wilson, is eating a garlic knot and drinking Coke when she’s shot in the chest [Content Warning: gun violence and PTSD], sending her on a difficult journey of physical and emotional recovery. Twenty-seven years of watching her mom burn through relationships taints Riley’s approach to dating. Despite hooking up with her brother’s best friend Austin last year, Riley is still hiding her feelings for Austin, fearing she’ll ruin things...

Abstract

Totally Fine is a coming-of-age novel that follows Phoebe, a twenty-two-year-old woman who has lost her mother a few months before the story begins. In the midst of her grief, she graduates college and is launched into adulthood. She struggles to find her own identity, and drama with her closest friends ensues.

Keywords: Novel, Fiction, Coming-of-age, Female narrator, relationships, grief.

Abstract A brief summary: Failing to Thrive: Coping with a Chronic Childhood Illness consists of seven personal essays about my experience with being diagnosed with Gastroparesis at a young age. Each essay explores different challenges and internal struggles that occur due to childhood illness, like feelings of isolation, loneliness, confusion, and fear. The manuscript depicts my life before, during, and after the diagnosis, and shows the evolution of the illness over time as it impacted me...