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By Eli Landau

“Misery loves company,” is a well-known quote by Christopher Marlow.  People like knowing that they’re not alone.  Whether it’s not being the only one who forgot to do the homework, or finding out that you're not the only one who doesn’t like your own reflection, knowing that you’re not the only one who feels a certain way gives a sense of comfort.

Everyone has their own taste in books, whether it's fantasy, mystery, fiction, biographies, autobiographies, etc.  For instance, my mom loves fantasy books because she says that they take her away from reality.  They are her form of escapism; a way to remove herself from the misery that is reality.  But not everyone is as connected to books this way.  In books, you can be transported to many different places.  My Dad’s escape from reality is through reading the news; my brother's is through reading manga.  All are ways to escape from reality and be transported to another place.

However, my favorite books are the types that they would never pick up.  My favorite kind of books weigh you down (not in a bad way though--more in a ‘this story will stick with you forever’ kind of way).  The weight of the story limits you--briefly--until you get to the end and realize that there really is a light at the end of the tunnel.  A story like this can make you feel heard. A story like this is one that might say all of the things that you are thinking and feeling, yet don’t quite know how to put into words.

But I’m not just talking about those books that slightly lower your elated mood. I’m talking about books that will make you sob your eyes out: books that put you at risk of dripping snot and tears on your perfect book.  I'll give you an example: one of my absolute top five books is The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky.  I was obsessed with the story the first time I read it, and I knew that once I finished it, I would be left feeling utterly destroyed.  However, only halfway through it, there was one chapter that completely ripped my heart out of my chest--so much so that I had to take a break from reading for a few days.  In fact, I immediately texted all of my friends to tell them that I loved them because of what I had just read.  

I’ve also read books that once finished, I emotionally couldn’t pick up another one for weeks and weeks because I needed to fully process what I had put myself through.

Knowing that you’re not alone is what I yearn for in books.  Often it’s not a happy ending, and that’s okay because that’s life! Reading someone else’s sad story is my own form of escapism because I am reading someone else’s life and am no longer existing in my own for a brief moment of time.

Life isn’t all fun and games--we know this,  There is no list of tasks to achieve in order to have a perfect life. In fact, there is no such thing as a perfect life.  We are mortal, but these books don’t make me feel that way.  They make me feel as if my life is infinite, as if I’ve lived hundreds of different lives simply because I can relate to what they are saying.  Yet they still remind me that our days are limited.  It make me appreciate our pain and suffering, because without it, we wouldn't be capable of feeling happiness.

They remind us of the meaning behind our feelings and emotions--even the ones that we may not feel for ourselves but for others--the emotions we feel nonetheless. 🐾

Books that made me feel:

• The Opposite of Butterfly Hunting by Evanna Lynch

• The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

• The Cat I Never Named by Amra Sabic-El-Rayess and Laura L. Sullivan

• The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

• They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera

• The First to Die at the End by Adam Silvera

• Beautiful Boy by David Sheff

• Tweak by Nic Sheff

• The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne