[Trigger warning: sexual assault]
I’m going to begin this article with a cliché statement: we have all had books that have changed our lives. As cliché as the statement is, it is true. We learn from books as much as we learn from people. Every time we pick up a book, essay, or article, we are having a conversation with the person who wrote that piece — a human just like us, who has biases and experiences that are consciously or unconsciously embedded in whatever piece of writing we are reading. It’s not that books have drastically changed the course of my life, but it was the subtle yet poignant situations, wisdom, as well as awareness embedded in them that took root and helped me grow as a person. I have come to realize that our more subtle changes are some of the most significant yet they often go unnoticed, for better or worse. The books (and essay) that I have put on this list opened my eyes to the realities of the world, and shaped who I am today and my beliefs. So, here are the top ten books that have changed my life:
1. The Bible
Yes, I went there. Before you close this article, hear me out. Remember how I said the books I read did not change the course of my life? This book is the only exception to the rule. Understanding how controversial the Bible is to some, I say this: my outlook on life, the way I see people, and the lens through which I see every other book on this list was influenced by it. My passion for social justice and my belief in human fallacy is all from here — no other source. It is not a lie when I say I would not be the person I am today without this book. It is from here that my love for social justice formed, because social justice and this book cannot be separated, and this book is the champion of the embodiment of the phrase “if you know better, do better”.
2. My Name is Asher Lev — Chaim Potok
This novel tells the story of a young Jewish boy, Asher Lev, who loves art, but is often restrained from doing it because of the societal and cultural expectations within his community. He struggles with living the life that his parents envision for him, while yearning simply to use his gift. In the end, he becomes an “enemy” to both the Jewish and Christian community in his neighborhood because of a particular piece of artwork he did. This book had to be on the list, because it has influenced how I write. When I read this book in sixth grade, I was fascinated with Potok’s style of writing. I like to describe it as being cohesively fragmented. It is written in first person narrative, and the style of writing reflects human thoughts which are often fragmented. In fact, it feels as if you are in Asher’s stream of consciousness and you can feel his fleeting emotions or when time “stops”. It almost feels as if you are dreaming while reading the book.
3. Night — Elie Wiesel
This book recounts the experiences of Elie Wiesel who survived the horrors of the Holocaust. It was in this book that I started to come to terms with human fragility. It was here that I really encountered how hopelessly and uselessly cruel and hateful humans can be. I look at the hate and I realize how silly it is, how unfounded; it has no merit yet has such an impact. As a Black woman, you would think I would have already come to terms with this, but I lived in my own world as a child and thought little about what was happening around me. I worried about nothing as long as I had food and a bed, and I admit this openly. Through reading Night, I learned what betrayal looked like and how weak human loyalties were. I learned to care about the plight of others and not remove myself, as many of the former friends of the victims of the Holocaust did. Most importantly, I learned that in all issues you shouldn’t wait until something is happening to you or you are directly affected before you care about it.
4. Flowers for Algernon — Daniel Keyes
I read this book even before Night. The main character was born with mental disabilities. He gets a chance to partake in an experiment that will “enhance” his mental abilities. However, the experiment takes a turn for the worst and his mind begins to regress. It wasn’t an easy read. Seeing something through the eyes of someone who thinks differently from me, who sees and navigates the world differently, I had to come to terms with the way I treated people through reading about his experience. That’s the fascinating thing about reading. When you analyze the traits you dislike in a character, you realize that you are actually no different. You begin to understand that you are part of the problem, whether or not you care to admit it, and that you must change. This book made me wonder who were the ones who really needed an experiment to “enhance,” their mental state, because after reading the book, it didn’t seem like it was the main character that was most in need.
5. When the Elephants Dance — Tess Uriza Holthe
This novel recounts the lives of several people in the Philippines during World War II. The title comes from a Filipino saying that, very loosely paraphrased, means,“when the elephants dance, the mice get squashed”. The elephants represented the Japanese and the Americans; the mice were the Filipinos. It tells the experiences of different people both before and during Japanese imperialism in the Philippines. Growing up, I was very much into the fantasy genre. I loved to read books that separated me from reality but this was one of the books that changed that. I became invested in reading about the experiences, good or bad, of everyday people. More than this, it taught me the fallacy of human morals. It recounted how the Japanese soldiers would die for honor; how they would not kiss the lips of those they raped, because it would be disloyal to their Japanese wives, while feeling no guilt about raping Filipinas. Other than learning about the plight of a group of people I otherwise knew little about, it taught me a lot about human intentions, and the ways in which we lie to ourselves while hiding behind “morals”.
6. For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When The Rainbow Is Enuf — Ntozake Shange
This book was written as a choreopoem, meaning that the stories it recounts are told in poetry form with choreography. These women are represented in terms of color, for example, “lady in red”. It takes on topics such as abandonment, abortion and its societal and personal impacts, rape, black relationships, abuse, and yearning for children when you can’t have any. It also discusses what it is to be a first generation college student and the effects of that, sisterly and motherly relations, and cultural belief/religion. As a lover of poetry, I could not resist such a book. It is breathtaking and one of a kind.
7. How it Feels to be Colored Me — Zora Neale Hurston
The one and only but absolutely necessary personal essay on this list. It was one of the first works I ever read by a Black author. Hurston recounts what it was like growing up Black and the ways in which she was forced to recognize her difference time and time again. I think Hurston was shocked that no one liked what made her different, but what I admire about her is that this did not deter her from being successful in life. While others were busy fretting about her dark skin, she made a life for herself that she could be proud of. From the day I read this essay, I began to fall hopelessly in love with Black literature and I marvelled at the creations my people could make. It wasn’t that I didn’t believe they could, it was just that I was never exposed to the fact that they could and I wasn’t proactive in searching either. But all I can say is “Thank God” (literally; I do this very often) that I had a teacher to expose me to such wonders. This was an essay I could really relate to, especially in today’s world, where difference is so heavily stressed and used to separate people. The essay has become increasing relevant on a more global scale.
8. Sula — Toni Morrison
Sula forces the reader to contemplate their notions of right and wrong. The main character, Sula, has become the common enemy of her community, because she betrayed her best friend Nel. However, Sula does not see what she did as betrayal, and this book does a great job of letting the reader come to the defense of Sula which, given the nature of her betrayal, would most likely not happen in real life. What struck me the most was the language — it was mature and filled with emotion and vigor and t was quite unlike the fantasy books I had read up until then. Before I read this book, I wanted to be the next J.K. Rowling. Now, I want to the next Toni Morrison. The same teacher who introduced me to Hurston (and most Black writers, actually) referred me to Sula. Up until then, I’d only read “masterpieces” written by White authors. Indeed these are masterpieces, and I’m glad I had the privilege to read them, dissect them, and be encouraged and inspired by them. This was the kind of book that hooked me on reading to begin with. However, I cannot explain the pride and joy I felt, knowing that someone who looks like me wrote such a great work of literature. As a Black aspiring writer, this was more than I could ask for. I had a role model that looked like me.
9. Juletane — Myriam Warner-Vieyra
This was the first book I read from an African author; Myriam Warner-Vieyra is Senegalese. This book is about a young woman named Juletane who grew up in the Caribbean and moved to France to live with her grandmother. While in France, she meets and falls in love with a man named Mamadou, who is from Africa (unfortunately the book does not specify where in Africa he is from, just as it does not specify where in the Caribbean Juletane is from). She marries him and moves to his home country only to find out he has another wife. This book brings to focus the gaps that have formed between those in the Black diaspora and their ancestral homeland. Juletane has to navigate the things that are seen as acceptable for a Black person to do in France as well as her home country in the Caribbean, but that is unacceptable in her husband’s country. It also focuses on the issues of colonialism, womanhood, and the intersectionality of identity that may not transfer well across cultures. It was different from Zora Neale Hurston and Toni Morrison, because while I have “common ground” with them as a Black woman, the topics of colonialism and deciphering your identity as a Black person, stood out to me, also as a Caribbean woman, coming to America where expectations of people based on race are so set and where I often have a missing link with the African American community because of cultural differences.
10. No Telephone to Heaven — Michelle Cliff
This was the first Jamaican novel I ever read, and it was simply great to read literature written by a fellow Jamaican. It follows the life of Clare Savage, a light skinned Jamaican. Clare, though light skinned, is not able to cope with the colorism that pervades her country or with her father’s desire to be white and his perception that being white is what makes you truly human. The author primarily discusses classism and and colorism within this novel. Jamaica has had more of an issue with classism and colorism than overt racism. By overt racism, I mean tying a person’s intrinsic worth to their race, which was something I faced only after coming to America. I grew up in Jamaica surrounded by classism and colorism, but it was a bit of a shock and it was hard for me to cope with the way America viewed race when I moved here.
These books are my companions. When I want to reminisce on all the great books I’ve read (I’m sure all my fellow bookworms can relate) these are the books that come to mind. These are the books I regret finishing because I wish the story would never end. My hope is that after reading this article, you will contemplate the ways in which books have spoken to you, and will work to keep those lessons alive. Leave a comment telling me how books have impacted your life; I would love to know!
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