Books to Read as We Survive Trying Times

I recently saw an observation that when Barack Obama was elected, sales of guns spiked...and now with the election of Donald Trump, we are seeing a resurgence in the sale of books. As a Reading for Pleasure teacher, I find that fascinating...and hopeful. Especially since I surrounded myself with books and readers for my entire career. I was the luckiest teacher in the world.

There are multiple research studies that point out the benefits of reading: This National Endowment for the Arts blog post mentions several: reading literary fiction makes us more empathetic, reading may help us resist the effects of dementia, reading helps reduce stress, and reading just flat-out makes us smarter. I, myself, would love to see a citizenry that is empathetic, stress-free, and as smart as we can be. And as the daughter, granddaughter, and niece of dementia patients, I read to keep my mind strong. So, I am proposing we set about reading our way through the next several years...novels (they, especially, contribute to making us more empathetic to others), narrative nonfiction, and straight-up informative nonfiction.


My idea for this blog started small...two books, in particular, have shot up to the top of the Best Sellers' lists: Representative John Lewis's graphic novel trilogy, March, and George Orwell's 1984. I just recently read book one of Lewis's trilogy and was moved by his memories of the Nashville lunch sit ins, and his training to be a nonviolent demonstrator. And, I read 1984, long before 1984! I decided I needed to revisit the classic, and it's waiting on my to-be-read stack.

I asked my online friends what books they would recommend to others and suddenly I lost control over my own project. NINE pages of titles...books I've read and loved, and many books I've not read...some I'd not heard of before.

My plan is to present four lists -- Novels I've read and agree would be important pieces to read and reflect on...nonfiction I've read and recommend. Then I will share the novels suggested by my friends, books I've not gotten to read yet...some again, on that teetering stack to be read, and finally the extensive list of nonfiction I've not read. The two lists that were largest were the novels I HAVE read and the nonfiction I have NOT read. A perfect reflection of my reading habits.

I'll star books that have especially moved me, and I recommend highly.

So, in alphabetical order by title, is a list of novels my friends and I think would be especially thought-provoking and appropriate for us to read and consider over the next years. Please feel free to recommend others, or add your thought on the books here...would love to start a real dialogue. I love talking about books, and my friends know that.

Novels I’ve Read -- literary novels, young adult novels, popular fiction. 

**1984 – Orwell

A Farewell to Arms – Hemingway

**All American Boys – Reynolds

**All Quiet on the Western Front – Remarque

**All the Light We Cannot See – Doerr

Animal Farm – Orwell

Anthem – Rand

Bell Jar – Plath

Beloved – Morrison

**Book Thief -- Zucak

**Brave New World – Huxley

Catch 22 – Heller

Center Ring – Waggoner

Chocolate War -- Cormier

**Christian Nation – Rich

Cloud Atlas – Mitchell

Dark Tower – King

Divergent  Series – Roth

Dune -- Herbert

East of Eden – Steinbeck

Esperanza Rising – Ryan

**Fahrenheit 451 – Bradbury

Go Set a Watchman – Lee

**Grapes of Wrath – Steinbeck

**Handmaid’s Tale –Atwood

**Harry Potter – Rowling

Heart of Darkness – Conrad

**Hunger Games Series – Collins

Invisible Man – Ellison

**Kite Runner – Housseini

Lonesome Dove – McMurtry

**Lord of the Flies – Golding

Lord of the Rings – Tolkien

Matilda -- Dahl

Moby Dick – Melville

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest – Kesey

Parable of the Talents – Butler

Pinocchio – Collodi

**Poisonwood Bible – Kingsolver

Ready Player One – Cline

Slaughterhouse Five – Vonnegut

**Small Great Things – Picoult

**The Crucible – Miller
The Goldfinch -- Tartt

The Grinch Who Stole Christmas – Seuss

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter – McCullers

The House of the Scorpion – Farmer

**The Jungle -- Lewis
The Nightingale – Hannah

**The Reader – Schlink

**The Storyteller -- Picoult

**To Kill a Mockingbird -- Lee

Uglies Series– Westerfeld

**Unwind Series– Shusterman

Watership Down – Adams

We Were Liars – Lockhart

Where the Heart Is – Letts

**Wonder – Palacio

I have starred titles I think are especially important to read and consider. 

Three more lists to follow.

And in case you need more ideas, here is my Top Ten reads of 2016...and my friend Nancy Flanagan's Top Ten for last year. Her lists always mean new books on my TBR stack. 

What books would YOU recommend for us all?