What we learn from Fiction

Today I read an article by Emily Coakley of findingDulcinea that finally proves something booklovers have known for years. Fiction lets us see the world. The Kite Runner teaches us about friendship and betrayal in Afghanistan, more than we'd learn from a historical textbook and it engages us in the process. The Poisonwood Bible, also mentioned in her article, teaches us about colonialism in Africa. But stories don't have to focus on struggles across the globe, we can learn a great deal from books written about other worlds, ones we don't always notice and accidentally or intentionally ignore, right here in the US.

In high school "The House on Mango Street" introduced me to the Spanish-speaking world through the character of Esperanza whose name means "hope" or even "ambition". More recently, in reading Eric Puchner's short story collection "Music Through the Floor," I learned more about the people living next door to me, than I could ever learn from a news article. One story about a Hispanic construction worker chronicled his late nights and early mornings, his chronic exhaustion, his pitiful earnings, and his frustration with people who treat him like he's nothing. I think of him anytime I ride the subway at 6 am. And stepping away from the short story form, while it's still short in length, (the book would be considered a chapter book for middle grade readers) I recommend it to anyone. It convincingly portrays an adult problem through a child's eyes. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas looks at the Holocaust from the perspective of a Nazi general's son. There are countless books that invite us into new worlds, fictional or real (The Forever War--Iraq and Afghanistan, Eat, Pray, Love,--Italy, Indonesia, India, The Circus in Winter---Peru, Indiana) . When you're talking to someone new and you reach that uncomfortable seven minute silence, give it a moment, then ask them what books taught them the most, you may learn something in the process.

Fiction More Than Escape, Researchers Say