I guess it’s time for another somewhat random post where I ask a question. I was reading a book recently, and a bizarre feeling came over me. Every other sentence seemed to be familiar. I could recite some of them after reading just the first word. I didn’t know the story, nor did I have any recollection of reading the word before, but it certainly felt like I have read it.
So the question is…
What is it like when a book feels like home?
It’s pretty obvious that the feeling I encountered was something akin to nostalgia. No, it was nostalgia. Sometimes a book takes you back. It puts you in the same mood that you once had. Sometimes it makes you remember a time long ago.
Of course, there are book that mislead you. Their so familiar to things you’ve read before that they might ignite certain emotions. You’re certain that it’s your first time with the work, but they feel so familiar. Perhaps that’s because it might be a book that you have encountered, you just haven’t extensively read it.
Nonetheless, those genuine book bring you home. It’s not rare to stumble upon a book like that, but it’s not exactly common either. Yet, when you do find one, the book makes you remember. It puts you in a state where you, somewhat, relive emotions of the past in a powerful way. A book that evokes a strong emotional connection to the past is a book that takes you home.
So that’s it. Best of luck finding a book that’s like that.
Thanks for reading,
Patrick Rain
Image © Patrick Rain
and now I’m going to spend all afternoon thinking about it! I thought Joyce’s ‘Ulysses’ first as I keep reading it. But it’s a different feeling, more like a familiar world in my head. I kind of think it would be ‘ The Wind in the Willows’ by Kenneth Grahame – and I feel slightly ashamed…
I just started the book I’m currently reading, the book that was the catalyst for this post. It turns out that I must’ve read the beginning of it some time ago…probably at the library. For better or for worse, the bizarre feeling is gone now, and I’m just reading.