Reading with Mandy

One of the best things about fiction is that it can tell the truth in ways that nonfiction is unable to tell. I think one of the best things about being a reader is having one book you can return to again and again regardless of your age or what is going on in your life. I consider these “great works of fiction” that are usually taught in schools (high school or college) and are greatly studied by scholars. I think it’s important to have your own go to book for inspiration and as a reminder of what your values or beliefs are. I also think it’s important to have a comfort book that makes you feel warm and cozy. Comfort books are often best when they are children’s books or a book you read when you were younger and can feel a sense of nostalgia for that time in your life or just when life seemed less complicated. For me the book I always return to when I need a reminder of what my foundation is (I kind of think of it as my foundational book) Vergil’s Aeneid. I read it in high school when I was a Senior and just going from being a kid to a legal adult. There’s many themes in the book (in some respects it has a lot to choose from) but for me the way Aeneas seems to accept his fate despite the fact that he did not ask nor want to be responsible for founding a new city is one that I always ponder. I think getting exposed to different books as your coming of age is an important aspect of education for young adults. The technical term is bildungsroman which comes from the 19th century in regards to books that are a coming of age tale but focus specifically on one character and their spiritual journey along with their transition from childhood to adulthood. There are a lot of popular examples of this over the last two hundred years and continue to be a particular genre. They don’t necessarily have to be your foundational book but everyone can usually point to one that had a particular impact on them. I also still insist that if you want to read Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger you really need to read it before the age of twenty-two. Holden sounds so annoying when you are an adult rather than resonating as a teenager. Harry Potter is an excellent example of a series that gives a bildungsroman arc but has become controversial in recent years. There are so many wonderful young adult books out now that you can easily avoid Harry Potter if you want to and there seems to be certain series that are popular for about 3-5 years until a new series takes its place. Dystopian novels have become particularly popular and there are a plethora to choose from. Personally I’ve never been a fan of dystopian fiction but it is worth reading. The Giver by Lois Lowry is extremely popular still and very much resonates but didn’t love that book the way most do. Of course there’s also To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee which is a personal favorite. One of my foundational books from middle school is The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. There is still something about the first line of that novel that speaks to me. Happy Reading!