Comfort Books

Greetings, fellow readers! Today is just one of those days when the universe decides to make life difficult. I got caught in the sprinklers (twice), my shoes rubbed bloody blisters onto the backs of my heels, and I didn't get home until ten o'clock tonight. Everybody else is suffering the post-midterm blues and the attendant slough of colds, viruses, and existential crises. At this point, I'm not sure if I'm riding the Struggle Bus or falling off the back!

The Struggle Bus

So, like any self-respecting book lover, I decided to park myself at Pascal's Coffeehouse for several hours of reading and studying. Alas, I was unable to partake of any of the delicious teas and coffees for sale there because I'm flat broke--at this point in the day, the back wheel had fallen off the Struggle Bus--but my dear friend Jordan was kind enough to share a spinach croissant with me. We got to talking, as we often do, about books.

There are some books that are the literary equivalent of mom's homemade mac-and-cheese or grandma's famous chocolate chip cookies--you know what I'm talking about. I call them comfort books, and if ever there was a day for comfort books, it is today. For Jordan, these books are the works of Jane Austen. For my roommate, Allison, these are the Harry Potter series. For me . . . well, I tend to read books that are ponderous and depressing (I am taking two Holocaust classes this fall and a Kafka seminar in the spring), but I've had enough of that for a while. And so I implore you, dear readers, recommend me some comfort books! Share your favorites, comment with the books you turn to to get through difficult times. Help a fellow bibliophile off the Struggle Bus and onto the bookmobile. I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with.

Until next time,

Anna