For my 19th birthday, my first birthday away from home, my parents sent me a paperback copy of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling. This was not because I had never read it before; on the contrary, I have finished it 20+ times and often recite chunks of dialogue with my brother for fun. The purpose of this present was to provide something familiar to make my time away from home a little jarring. Throughout my freshmen year and even now, I sometimes pick it up and perusing a couple chapters when I find myself missing my family or friends from home. This book is so deeply intertwined with my childhood memories it never fails to lift my spirits, so I began thinking of it as a comfort book. As most Kenyon students I know spoke about their voracious reading habits, I thought I would ask some of the other Her Campus Kenyon writers about their comfort books and what they mean to them. These are some of their responses!
Jenny Nagel, Class of 2020
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. It’s about a very introverted, anxious girl who goes to college so it’s very relatable and seeing her deal with her anxiety always makes me feel like I can too. Plus the romance is adorable.
Juliana Delsante, Class of 2020
Either any Harry Potter book or if not, Winter, which is a collection of Sappho poems.
Amelia Yeager, Class of 2020
Mine is definitely The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. I have spent a lot of my life struggling/coping with religion and spiritualism and this book kind of reminds me that there is no right answer to that question. It also sort of puts me in my place as a very tiny piece of a very large universe.
Gabrielle Ivanier, Class of 2020
The Harry Potter series is my actual home. I can’t separate my identity from Harry Potter. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone was my first chapter book in English, and since then part of my mind is always there.
Suzanna Bator, Class of 2020
My comfort book is called Happyface [by Stephen Emond]. It’s about a boy who has a really dark past but hides it by being super happy and upbeat all the time. It has awesome illustrations and a great message, and it also has some really interesting views on family life.
Jenna Bouquot, Class of 2020
The Two Princesses of Bamarre [by Gail Carson Levine]. I first received the book from my 4th-grade teacher, and although it was written for a ten-year-old, I just always feel so empowered when I read it. Definitely some feminist undertones, [such as when] a princess’s sister falls deathly ill so she must go on a quest to find the cure.
Mackenna Goodrich, Class of 2019
Two Way Street by Lauren Barnholdt. It’s so not a good book but I know the story by heart and there’s something comfortable about it like an old sweater. I also feel the same about the ttyl series by Lauren Myracle.
Paola Liendo, Class of 2020
Small Ghost and Honeybee by Trista Mateer! Small Ghost is about mental illness and finding ways to live fully despite the bad days. It always makes me feel incredibly validated. Honeybee is “a collection of poems about letting go” and it helped me through a rough time in my life so I can always count on it to help me understand that I can’t control how others feel about me.
Erica Rabito, Class of 2019
I really love looking through photo books when I need some comfort, especially ones featuring women I admire or find inspirational. Two of my favorites are Judy Garland: A Portrait in Art & Anecdote by John Fricke, and Streisand: In the Camera Eye by James Spada. Both feature lots of awesome photos and stories featuring two of my favorite women, and they never fail to cheer me up when I’m feeling down.
Jessica Berger, Class of 2017
The Murder of Bindy Mackenzie by Jacqueline Moriarty (her sister wrote Big Little Lies!). I’m not lying when I say I’ve read it over 30 times. When I was in middle school, I used to wake up whenever there was a thunderstorm or loud wind at night and found it super hard to go back to sleep, so I would just read the book every time I woke up. It’s about a girl who is super smart and who thinks of herself above all of her classmates but learns to depend on them after her health deteriorates from chronic arsenic poisoning. It’s written entirely in diary entries, emails, and typed transcripts, and it’s a super exciting mystery as everybody tries to figure out if Bindy is deliberately being poisoned. And it’s full of heart. I definitely related to the main character as a nerdy middle schooler, and I can definitely see myself reading the book 30 more times!
Annmarie Morrison, Class of 2020
One More Thing by B.J. Novak is amazing. It’s a book of short stories and all of them are really funny and a lot of them are clever long plays off of classic sayings and stuff like that, and he [Novak] turns tons of things on their heads. It’s all so clever and beautiful and really profound in these cool subtle ways. I love him.
Michael Fisher, Class of 2020
Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli because it’s beautiful and I love the language in it. It was one of the first books I ever read where I connected with the character so much so that I felt the story was written for me. It tells the story of a girl named Stargirl and a boy named Leo who falls in love with her, but she changes for him so people don’t make fun of him for dating her. Eventually, this depresses her and she has to move away to get over it. I love how it deals with the idea of being different and quirky without dehumanizing the quirky girl. I read it when I’m feeling sad about who I am.
Paige Ballard, Class of 2018
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. I read it when I’m sick or upset or angry or happy or anything really. The text is complicated enough to make me slow down and focus, but I know it well enough that it doesn’t take too much effort. Also, all those grand proclamations of love at the end just makes me smile and giggle and it’s great.
Lily Alig, Class of 2017
Bossypants by Tina Fey, because a collection of very funny, intellectual, feminist-leaning essays makes me feel better about my life. Tina Fey, I think, presents an honest, entertaining, and relevant portrayal of an anxious creative life.
These responses speak to the profound comfort familiar words can bring during times of homesickness, anxiety, or sadness (and Harry Potter appears to be a favorite!). If you have a favorite comfort book comment below!