This winter has been a very cozy one for me, because of the good books I have read. It’s so much like a friendship when you meld into the characters’ thoughts and fall into a story. I have done it again and again with Laura Ingalls Wilder (entire series), Jane Austen (Sense and Sensibility and now Pride and Prejudice) and The Hobbit by Tolkien. I am struck by the relaxation I feel just settling my mind on another family or friend group, a challenge I read about, and then becoming so immersed.
I guess it’s my psychology background that makes me analyze my love for books so much. I find that what I read influences my day, just like what I put in my belly influences my energy levels. I can relate to Austen and Tolkien characters so much, because they go through female troubles and woes (Austen) and challenging trials (Tolkien) and yet somehow the authors weave entertaining features into the tales, to the end that the reader is able to learn and grow from the stories without a soaring stress level. It’s amazing, because it’s the same thing we teach in therapy; helping clients to be able to take life seriously, and yet laugh at it also. If books can teach as well as entertain, and still be fiction, I think they’re golden. I can find a million and one self help books that teach but I am bored to pieces or find my shoulders carrying the weight of the book. When I read a narrative that gels with me, the author and the character are with me for life, or at least as I reread the books each season. I am learning, this week, about Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett’s pride and almost lost love, as well as a host of other people, especially the deliciously ridiculous mother. Happy winter reading!