So this Sunday, I checked my favorite site Postsecret.com (read what I said about it here), and I found this little gem:
I think this is FANTASTIC, because it gives me the chance to ask you this question:
Are there any novels, poems, or plays which make you feel closer to someone in or out of your life? Why do they make you feel that way, and how do you think you could incorporate it into your writing?
Reading and writing makes me feel closer to my late mother every time, because we shared a passion for it. However, she loved Star Trek and cheesy romance novels the most. I remember staring at the covers while she read, wishing I could read too. When I write, I try to incorporate that passion.
Your turn!
~SAT
Shannon A. Thompson 
Makes me feel close to my sister as we tend to share book interests!
totally love that PostSecret – and it’s very true. Reading is such a sensory experience for me, and I think it’s the same way for most writers. Picking up a particular book can be like smelling a perfume I used to used or hearing a particular song that conjures up certain people or places – it’s keyed to such specific moments.
As for me…I’ve done a fair amount of Shakespearean acting, rereading particular plays or sonnets can bring back memories of particularly awesome productions. I do love going over shows like Richard III and A Midsummer Night’s Dream for just that reason!
I’ve never really thought about it that way. I can’t say that I’ve read any books to get closer to a particular person, but I do know that I read classics because I want to get closer to the people of other time eras. There is something enchanting about reading from the perspective of someone who actually experienced things we only see in movies now.
Have you ever seen the movie “Midnight in Paris” with Owen Wilson? Sounds like you’d love it
~SAT
Only one book made me feel that way, ‘The Alchemist’ by Paulo Coehlo. My mother told me that it reminds her of me.
Waw, a star trek fan… your mother was awesome. 🙂
I never thought much about it, but my daughter and I tend toward the same tastes in books and it’s always been a touchstone for us. I taught high school literature for a long time so I was able to have meaningful discourse with her all through school. Now we exchange books after reading them and then discuss. I don’t have that relationship with many other people in my life, and I’m glad it’s with her. Thanks, Shannon!
Sometimes a character in a book I’m reading will remind me of someone. I had to read “Catcher in the Rye” in high school and didn’t like it at the time, but later in college I had a roommate who reminded me of the main character, and when I went back and reread the book with that in mind, I enjoyed it much more. I’m not sure I felt closer to him, but it did make the book feel much more relevant.
Interesting idea. I can’t think of connections that way to certain people with certain books, but I’ll be watching to see if I come up with any.
I don’t read them to get closer to someone, but they do usually show me glimpses into the other persons character or beliefs…
I find myself leaning towards female heroines, I believe this due to the adoration I had for my mother, she worked and studied at KU for twenty years, could have had her doctorate, some view the lack there of to be a failure, I simply wish to spend my life following her footsteps, there was no topic she could not speak intelligently about!!!
Some favorites, Chyna Shepard “untouched and alive”
Lisbeth Salander, Katnip Everdeen
That’s right there is not much I will not read
Once again you challenge me to think,
Had not realized the draw till today!
Thank you
some favorites