Taking Solace in Literature: Comfort Recommendations

As the Fourth of July rolls by for the 245th time since this country’s first birthday, I know I’m not the only one that feels like a stranger watching the fireworks light up the Manhattan skyline. A stranger in a country that is my birthplace and my home. No matter how many skeletons fell out of the closet, it is easier to cling to hope. My mother’s childhood in the Soviet Union was a childhood tale; a terribly cold and lonely place, where not even utensils could be found on the shelves of grocery stores. I welcome the ancestral tremor of relief at the sight of a fully stocked pantry and an instagram feed full of anti-patriotic sentiments. 

I wonder, though, if the dystopian of my mother’s childhood is not the same as ours. Except in ours, we have the pleasure of distraction. We can shout and complain and curse the powers that be to our hearts’ content. Yet, for all the freedom of speech we so proudly wield, what battles are actually won? Another Fourth of July has passed and women no longer can consider autonomy a constitutional right. Shootings have leaked past the sacred school grounds. Evil takes what it wants, where it wants, how it wants; the lives of six people were taken on the so-called holiday.

There is no shame in seeking an escape from this dystopian reality. We are all only human, and there are only so many hours in the day one can spend mourning or fighting or arguing in Tik Tok comments. While you can continue scrolling, or put on a favorite TV show, a childhood book might be the chicken noodle soup for the aching soul. A book demands not just your full attention, but your heart and soul. Of course, these recommendations are based on what brings me comfort. It might be more beneficial for you to return to the bookshelf of a childhood home or a dusty box in an attic, filled with old Percy Jackson books. The only rule here is that the book must be a childhood favorite. 

Here’s a list for inspiration: