Whatever novel I read, I can imagine the characters and their personalities. I hear their voices. Reading is an exercise in empathy, an exercise in walking in someone else’s shoes for a while. The Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary’s definition of empathy is the action of understanding, being aware of, being sensitive to, and vicariously experiencing the feelings, the thoughts and experience of another. I believe reading helps us develop this important quality.
I am currently reading, The Women of Chateau Lafayette, an historical fiction novel by Stephanie Dray, a New York Times, Wall Street Journal & USA Today best-selling author of historical women’s fiction. She once wrote:
“My focus isn’t only on grand narratives, I aim to highlight untold stories, particularly those of women because I believe that writing and reading historical fiction is essentially an act of empathy, something we need more of in today’s world.”
The Women of Chateau Lafayette is an epic saga based on the true story of an extraordinary castle in the heart of France and the remarkable women bound by its legacy. There are three time periods with three main characters: Adrienne Lafayette, wife of the Marquis de Lafayette, very active in the 1700s and during the French Revolution of 1789–1799. Beatrice Chanler, a socialite who marries into a prominent American family and later becomes engrossed in founding international organizations for orphans and so much more during the First World War of 1914–1918. The third, a fictional character unlike the other two, who grows up in the orphanage, later teaches there and becomes very active during the Second World War of 1939–1945.
In my previous blog, I included some quotes on reading; I have found a few more which I hope you will enjoy.
“One glance at a book and you hear the voice of another person, perhaps someone dead for 1000 years. To read is to voyage through time.” CARL SAGAN
“A room without books is like a body without a soul.” CICERO
“Books are mirrors. You only see in them what you already have inside you.” CARLOS Ruiz Zafon
Just relax and read.