If you find yourself feeling overwhelmed by what’s in the news, it’s tempting to turn to books for escape. You might pick up, say, a hot thriller like “In a Dark, Dark Wood,” a great new novel such as “I Almost Forgot About You,” or this summer’s beach read “The Girls.”
But what you are looking for in these challenging times may be found in deeper waters. Reading outside our comfort zone at moments like this will ultimately determine both our comprehension — and perhaps our mettle.
For the final weeks of summer I’m recommending some books that will require a little more of you than your Pokemon Go, but what readers find within may ultimately provide deep insights into our world.
The Underground Railroad
By Colson Whitehead
At a time when a discussion of race is central to understanding the current climate in America, this book should be required reading. It isn’t a highbrow history lesson, though. Whitehead takes on the historical topics of slavery and the underground railroad system with imagination and literary finesse in this extraordinary novel. In his capable hands, the railroad isn’t just a metaphor but a literal subterranean tunnel complete with trains, tracks, and engineers. And his protagonist Cora’s tale of escaping slavery in the antebellum South isn’t just her story, but an adventure story covering time and space, a hero’s journey and an up-close look at the origin’s of today’s racial divide.
Carousel Court
By Joe McGinniss Jr.
Taking on a more recent chapter in American history, McGinniss Jr. offers an unflinching and engrossing look at one young couple’s experience with the recent mortgage crash and recession. Nick and Phoebe Maguire’s American dream becomes a nightmare when they find their Southern California house underwater, their neighborhood on fire, and the postcard perfect life they imagined further and further from their reach. As the undertow of the financial crisis pulls them deeper under, the pace and tone of this powerful novel leave the reader gasping for air. A scathing commentary on contemporary life and a painfully honest portrait of a drowning marriage.
Ghettoside: A True Story of Murder in America
By Jill Leovy
You’ve probably heard about this critically acclaimed best-seller, but you may not have gotten around to reading it. Read it now. Los Angeles Times reporter Jill Leovy has delivered a compelling piece of literary journalism that reads like a crime novel while illuminating an urgent statistic: Black men make up 6 percent of the American population but represent nearly 40 percent of murder victims. Leovy tells the stories behind the numbers, and those of the victims, their families, their communities, and those pursuing justice for them. She’s written an important book about violence and race in America and she’s somehow infused it with hope and compassion for all sides.
The Shepherd’s Life: Modern Dispatches from an Ancient Landscape
By James Rebanks
Perhaps the antidote to the world’s ills can be found in this quiet book about simple things in a complicated time. Rebanks, a shepherd from Northern England, takes us through a year in a shepherd’s life on the Cumbrian fells. You might not feel compelled to pick this book up. There’s no unsolved mystery or unreliable narrator. There’s no over-arching metaphor or urgent social message. It’s just a simple story of work and community, friends and family, continuity and simplicity in a changing and increasingly complex world. Hmm…maybe there is an urgent social message here after all. I will leave it to you to determine. In the meantime, amidst all the noise, Rebanks’ elegant prose and quiet commentary is worthwhile and welcome.
Much can be gained by stepping outside our reading comfort zones and seeing what we can discover about the world and about ourselves. A good place to start is with this eclectic list of bold, brilliant books.
Allison K. Hill is president and chief executive officer of Vroman’s Bookstore in Pasadena and Book Soup in West Hollywood, and a contributor to The Huffington Post book section. Reach Hill through her website, www.AllisonKHill.com, or follow her at readingalovestory.tumblr.com.
