Reader's Fave

I recently interviewed Jenn Figueroa for our 32nd installment of Reader's Fave, a casual interview with someone who shares their favorite book. We met at the town Community Room during her lunch hour for the interview. Jenn is the assistant editor with The Wahkiakum County Eagle.

Jenn wanted to share one of her personal faves, "The Naked Don't Fear the Water," by author Mattieu Aikins, who won the 2025 Pulitzer Prize for explanatory reporting. Jenn came across this book a couple of years ago as a student in her Contemporary Literature class at LCC in Longview.

"It's a memoir of sorts," Jenn said. "Not like any book I've ever read. It dives into the struggles and the journey of Afghan refugees who are in these camps, fleeing from their country for political or other reasons. It challenged my assumptions of Muslims, of Islam. Perhaps I didn't fully understand it all from my Western viewpoint before and I like to question my own views and remain curious. I love a book that changes my outlook. I've always been like that. I want to be open-minded person."

This nonfiction book tells the story of the author, Mattieu, and his friend, Omar, along with Maryam, the matriarch of Omar's family, as they flee Afghanistan and travel through various countries and refugee camps.

One person who stood out to Jenn was the matriarch. "Maryam was this strong person, this one woman with six kids to take care of, who was trying to get out of Kabul," she said. "Mattieu did an incredible job of humanizing of the people and what they went through."

Jenn also appreciated the author's writing style. "It's not like any book I've ever read," she said. "The structure of it was very fast and straightforward. It also frequently shifts between characters. It was a real page-turner for me. It changed my mind on these kinds of books."

Jenn observed an odd response after reading this book: "The professor for my class only got negative feedback on it and I'm not exactly sure why," Jenn said. "The author is very non-agenda. He just describes to the reader what is happening, why the people were fleeing, and why they were immigrants. He just wanted to prompt people to ask more questions."

Along with the book, "The Naked Don't Fear the Water," Jenn shared some of the other book genres she enjoys, "I usually read drama novels, romances, and fantasy," she said. "Novels that invoke a lot of emotions in me. If I'm not crying or blubbering, I'll put the book down. It must be meaningful to me. I'm a reader. Sometimes I'm looking for escapism, for a great place to go, but I also like to see life through a new perspective....I'm not a prolific reader. Being dyslexic and having ADHD, it can take me forever to finish a book, but I never let that stop me." Jenn mentioned her sister, Tab, who is several years older than she is and is responsible for getting her into reading. "She took care of me a lot when I was younger," Jenn said. "She's a voracious reader. It blows my mind how fast she can get through a series. She always inspired me, and she still inspires me. [Tab] will read one to three books a week, every week. And she has four kids, along with a full-time job."

Jenn shared how she usually consumes her books. "I prefer holding a book in my hand, to feel it," she said. "I will do audio, or the Kindle using the OpenDyslexic font, which is a God-send. At any point in time, I'm halfway through a physical, audio, or ebook."

As a busy mom, Jenn has made sure her kids learn the joy of reading, too. Her oldest daughter is currently working on one of her own childhood favorites, the fantasy novel series "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" by Rick Riordan. "They're already prolific readers at the age of nine and six," said Jenn of her daughters. "My oldest won a bike at her school last year for being the top reader, and my youngest won the spelling bee." To ensure her children developed a love of reading, Jenn has this advice: "It's so important that they pick books they like," she said. "If they like it, they'll read it. Let them explore and choose something they are really interested in, and every kid's different." The three frequently go to the library. "We go to the library all the time," said Jenn. "I do my homework there. My kids have their own library cards, so they can search for their own books."

Whether working, being a mom, or a student pursuing her undergraduate degree in Graphic Design and Journalism at Washington State University Online, Jenn gets it done while occasionally escaping through the joy of reading.