National Book Lovers Day
In honor of one of my favorite national days (I’m a fan of national days in general), I thought I’d do a little series on some of my favorite books. Admittedly, as a writer, I probably don’t read as much as I should—I usually choose to write as opposed to read when I have free time—but books have meant a great deal to me over the course of my life. And while I strongly prefer non-fiction as a generality (90% of what I read is memoir), I guess it’s funny then that when I think about the books that are most beloved to me, they are all fiction. I think it’s because of the rich worlds created in novels, the kinds you can escape to, the kinds that feel so fully-formed in your mind as you read. And you’ll note none of the books I’ll mention in this series are set in any other world than this one—nothing fantastical, nothing sci-fi—they just do such a good job of creating a reality in which I so enjoy being suspended.
Peace Like a River is exactly this kind of book, one I can picture so clearly. I think my favorite thing is its familial nature, how centered it is on a family, and how endeared to them you become as a reader. It’s the book’s narrator, a spirited little girl named Swede, who will win your heart, but it’s the book’s central drama that keeps you invested. Because, without giving away too much, the book basically follows the family’s travels as they look for and hope to find one of their own, a son and brother who’s on the lam. And this is the crux of the lovely kind of torture it is to read this book—because you want this fugitive to be reunited with his family. You want it so badly. And really, you want it because of them, because of their endearing uniqueness, and because the most just thing—even more than any potential crimes committed—would be for them to be together. Yet as much as you want it, you’ll feel as you read a rather urgent sense of panic over how unlikely it seems that this will happen. Something about this tension is just irresistible to me, and it’s hard to think of a book that makes me feel this same way.
If you like stories with strong families—those that are as likeable as they are flawed—as well as a heavy dose of what’s-going-to-happen tension, check this book out. And come back next time for another favorite book spotlight!