Why Reading for Pleasure is Serious Business

When I was a teen, my preferred reading material was Star Wars or Wonder Woman comic books, and anything I could find in the spinning paperback rack at my town's library that featured a girl on the cover who looked like she was running away from trouble.

Caught up in dangerous political intrigue on a planet far from ours? Yes, please. Secret wife locked in the attic? Excellent.

What I didn't want to read was anything remotely related to what was happening in my own life. Why would I want to read about some girl who had the exact same kind of problems I did when I was already dealing with them on a daily basis?

What I wanted was a mini-break from my problems, and books--provided they were the right kind of books--never failed to offer me that.

I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who feels this way. I once heard that, during peace negotiations with Israel, Anwar Sadat read a Barbara Cartland romance novel in the bathtub every night to relax. Why not? How much further can you get from politics than a runaway bride?

So it probably isn't that surprising that when, as a teen, I stumbled across a book with a girl running away from a guy in a chariot--a copy of Edith Hamilton's Mythology--and read the myth of Persephone, I glommed onto it hard.

There aren't many Greek myths in which the female character doesn't get turned into a plant, tree, or animal after a run-in with a god.

But after being kidnapped by Hades, the Greek god of death, Persephone manages to end up both the goddess of the dead, Queen of the Underworld, and goddess of springtime. Pretty dark stuff . . . but then, whoever said high school is the best time of your life didn't know what he was talking about.

Many people perceive Persephone to be a victim, but I never saw her that way. In fact, I think some people underestimate Persephone, just like they underestimate the value of reading as an "escape." There are numerous versions of the myth indicating that Persephone was complicit in consuming the pomegranate that dooms her to spending six months (or four, depending on the retelling) of the year in the Underworld.

I won't say this myth is the one that turned me from a reader to the writer of over fifty published books, because it isn't. I've been writing (and drawing) stories as an escape from my problems for as long as I've been reading (since around the age of seven).

But the minute I read the myth of Persephone, my life was changed forever. I may not have known it at the time, but the proof is incontrovertible. It's memorialized in the Algebra notebooks I saved from the time (circa 1981-1985). You can see the actual doodles I made based on Edith Hamilton's Mythology (and the myth of Persephone) in my high school algebra notebooks, which I dug up not long ago. Instead of paying attention in class, I was apparently plotting out my own version of Persephone's story, which I planned on writing someday:

Not surprisingly, I flunked Algebra (I and II). This was particularly upsetting for my father, who was a professor of Quantitative Business Analysis, and who did a lot of pleasure reading of his own (spy novels), which is probably where I learned my love for books. I did eventually retake Algebra--remedially, at Indiana University--where he taught, and where I graduated with a B.A. in art.

But I've never been cured of my love for books featuring strong female protagonists (still often found in the spinning racks at local libraries, and also happily now in bookstores and on e-readers everywhere), and the men who love them for their strength. I adored reading about these women so much that, after moving to New York City post-college graduation, I spent years trying to get my own stories (and illustrations) published. I wanted to give girls who felt the way I had as a teen the same kind of "mini-break" from their own problems for which I had always longed.

That's why I'm especially excited about my new novel, Abandon, a re-imagining of the myth of Persephone, but with a twist: it's set in a modern day high school.

Today, some people look down on so-called "escape" reading, especially when it comes to teenagers--particularly girls--and the books they choose to read.

But I think it's important to understand that what may look like "escape" reading--whether it be a comic book, a romance or graphic novel, sci-fi or mystery--is actually serving an important and complex purpose. The troubles these girls seem to be running away from--and I don't mean the girls on the covers--may be more overwhelming than they're letting on. By giving me a chance to escape from them for a little while, the books I read as a teen about girls with even bigger problems than my own helped me deal with them.

So who has the right to say which books are "just for fun," and which ones will end up changing a life forever?

All I know is, those books in the spinning racks at the library helped me through some of the toughest times of my life, and sent me down the path on which I'm still traveling today.

And for that, I'll always be grateful.

 

 

 

Comments

[yinkadlb8]

10:05 AM on 04/28/2011

I can relate with you that some books can mark the turning point in our lives, though I didn't appreciate the value of good books that can influence one's pattern of life or thoughts invariably increasing the value of opinions or contributions to serious situations until after high school and in a tertiary institution. Though I started with novels of adventure, spying and with biographies of great men of the time, my focus then shifted to books that have spiritual inclinations and/or inspirational messages that could lift one's level of thinking to a higher phase and providing solutions to intractible problems. However, I've not stopped reading novels that expand one's views of life in general because I derive personal enrichment intellectually from them.

[JustThisGuy]

06:28 PM on 04/26/2011

It is nice to see someone writing about books outside the literary fiction category can be powerful and fulfilling reads. Read people read all sorts of books to find the ones they find personally appealing.

[homer winslow]

04:24 PM on 04/26/2011

Reading has been a major part of my life since I was 4 years old and my older sister taught me to read. By the time I started first grade I was reading at the third or fourth grade level and was always ahead of the majority of my class mates. I read every word on cereal boxes, billboards, traffic signs etc., usually out loud which would drive my mother crazy. I was also lucky to have teachers who recognized my desire for the printed word and who encouraged me and recommended great authors to enjoy. I can't think of a single day when I haven't read and learned from what I read.

[Vlady]

03:50 PM on 04/26/2011

There are good books and bad books pertaining to any subject. The most important is the gratifying process of reading and cutting off reading bad books as soon as you identify such.

[sarakhan35]

02:43 PM on 04/26/2011

it does matter when what you are reading is authentic or not...especially if its a true story based on simple innocent people and the author fabricates the story to earn millions at their expense and doesnt fulfill his promise in return. its awefull! 'Three Cups of Tea' and One Cup of DECEIT!http://whats-news-dot.blogspot.com/2011_04_17_archive.html

[M4dwoman]

01:44 PM on 04/26/2011

I've read just about every book my favorite authors have written, so now I'm re-reading some things I first read in school.
I never liked most of what I was required to read, and I never read non-fiction in my free time.
I, like the author, read for entertainment.

[LivJamesBooks]

01:22 PM on 04/26/2011

I've discovered two tonics for the buzz of today's multi-tasking world: Off-the-grid camping and diving into a novel. Here's to the escapists among us!

Liv James, author of The Trouble With Green

[TStringfellow]

03:00 PM on 04/26/2011

In 3 weeks I'll be on a lake deep in the Lacandon Jungle of Southern Mexico. A 10 hour truck ride from the nearest city followed by a 6 mile hike from the village where I get dropped off into the jungle should provide the kind of isolation I need after a year of working in the service industry at home, haha.

I just hope I don't forget my book before leaving the hotel like last time.....

[Jarhead65]

12:27 PM on 04/26/2011

My second grade teacher called my mother and told her that she wanted to keep me after school. My mother asked what I had done. Nothing wrong, was her answer, but he's having a problem with reading and I want to teach him to read. After many after school hours, Maud Etter had changed my life, no, she probably saved my life. I've been a voracious reader ever since and have become a published writer myself. Thank you Miss Etter, I'll never forget you!

[Betsy3491]

11:14 AM on 04/26/2011

Thanks, Meg. I, too, love The Princess Diaries. There are many wonderful books featuring strong female characters for younger girls too, such as The Paper Bag Princess and Princesses Are Not Quitters.

Ellen Jackson, author
CINDER EDNA

[IowaGirl]

10:43 AM on 04/26/2011

Sounds very familiar to many of us who are lifelong readers and writers.

My daughter loved your books! The Princess Diaries no doubt got her through some tough times dealing with her crazy mom!

[Lev Raphael]

09:42 AM on 04/26/2011

All reading is escape. If it works, it takes us into a world different from our own, whatever the genre. I write across genres (memoir, mystery, literary fiction, historical fiction and more), and read even more widely than that. I'll go from reading a thriller to a biography to history to cultural criticism in a few week's time and what I always want is a compelling story that's beautifully told.

[Valerie Frankel]

08:29 AM on 04/26/2011

Couldn't agree more, Meg! I'm buying your book now.

[William Anderson LMHC]

07:19 AM on 04/26/2011

You are so right. Reading for pleasure is a tonic and a great teacher. It turned my life from failure to triumph. I was failing in grade school, unable to remember what I read at the top of the page when I reached the bottom. I read the words, but couldn't comprehend what they meant. I could not read. By the grace of God, I was attracted to comic books and Mad Magazine. The pictures together with the words about stories that held my interest trained my brain to make sense of the written words. I became obsessed with them, and went to the corner store every day to see what new ones came in. I read everything they had, and it was not enough. Then, I started reading spy novels, Ian Fleming's James Bond series. The same thing happened, but now without the pictures. The summer of my fourteenth year, I was reading a book a day. I was able to start succeeding at school, and eventually earned a graduate degree. However, all that school reading killed my love of reading. I stopped reading for pleasure. What a loss. As a psychotherapist, I appreciate the absolute need for healthy pleasures in our lives. Without them, we get sick. Thank God I have regained the ability to read just for the fun of it again. It took years, but I am back to a love affair with books.

William Anderson, LMHC, author of 'The Anderson Method', www.TheAndersonMethod.com

[IowaGirl]

10:50 AM on 04/26/2011

This resonates with me for two reasons. I read all my uncle's Mad Magazines and remember the absolute physical pleasure I got from laughing. My son is devoted to them now (and they're funny again...there was a long spell where they weren't worth reading, IMHO).

On to James Bond. When I was a a grad student, my office mate--a brilliant young man from Rwanda--and I discovered that one reading passion we both shared was Bond. We both saw the irony in a white girl from Iowa and an African boy from the Rwandan bureaucratic class devouring these books--forbidden pleasures at the time, no doubt.

[PTAOfficerforObama]

07:04 AM on 04/26/2011

As a teen I also read to escape. I lived in a pretty rough chaotic home. Books for me and my sister were peace and order. I loved sci fi, war novels, Agatha Christie, and Earl Stanley Gardner.

[cc]

04:52 AM on 04/26/2011

I no longer read novels (like Anthony Trollope's for instance) to escape though I enjoyed them immensely in my twenties. Instead, for the last thirty years, I've been altogether captivated reading and rereading Seth/Jane Roberts' host of books as well as others that relate bold new concepts of 'what is.' I find this fare far more freeing than any form of fiction.

[Lev Raphael]

09:43 AM on 04/26/2011

I discovered Trollope late even though I was an English major in college and of course read George Eliot, Dickens, Thackerey. I am in love with "The Eustace Diamonds" and "The Way We Live Now" and am trying to find time off to read both.