Recently my mother complained about my taste in books, calling them difficult or weird books to read. This led to her saying that she wouldn’t trust me to recommend her a book because she wants light and frivolous books. I’ve recommended her two books in the past; one was The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón which was not really light or frivolous but it is just a brilliant story and it has something for everyone in it; everyone except my mother. The other book was a lot lighter and easier to read, it was the exciting debut novel, S.J. Watson’s Before I Go To Sleep; which she didn’t like either. So what do I recommend to someone that doesn’t want to think or feel any sad thoughts?
Light reading is an interesting concept. While some people read too many romance novels that it can’t be healthy (Yes, you know who you are but at least you try my book recommendations), others turn to fantasy, science fiction and thrillers in the hopes to escape reality. Everyone has a different concept of light reading. For me; I think I do a lot of light reading but my concept of light reading normally involves pulp fiction or a dark thriller. Then again I seem to enjoy reading all types of books and find great pleasure in reading literary fiction, classics and others books people might think isn’t light.
Which brings me to an interesting article, found on Book Riot about The Problems of Reading for Pleasure, which talks about people’s favourite books and how they are never the type of books they actually read. The author of this article tries to understand why crime and romance novels are so popular but they never seem to on people’s favourite books list. Also he mentions the fact that maybe diversity in reading will lead to a richer and more diverse reading life. I love this article because it pleases the book snob in me and it also raises a very interesting point.
While I hope people are willing to try new genres and willing to listen to recommendations from fellow bibliophiles, I wonder; do people know a reader like my mother? What do you recommend and do you secretly try to help expand their minds with great literature that may also be light and enjoyable for the reader.
I thought about this for a long time and I think I’ve found some books I would recommend to my mother;
- Looking for Alaska by John Green
- The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
- The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
I think most people are unwilling to admit that they prefer say Stephen King over HP Lovecraft because there is a stigma involved in about the worth or value of some types of books over others (ie literary vs genre).
I don’t recommend a book to an individual without first getting an idea of what they read (I ask them the last 5 books they have read). Then I will recommend both something I am sure they will be comfortable with and something that maybe stretches them a bit but has enough of what they like to capture their interest, usually something that blurs the boundaries of genre a bit. If they like that and come back to me then I will push them a little more.
I think insisting that someone who is not a book lover reads for any reason other than enjoyment is a sure way to crush interest.
I think reading for enjoyment is great and I often try to tell people to read whatever interests them. But I do also like to push people into reading books that I think are a bit more literary and in the same sort of style as what they like