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Oct
19
“A moment with a book is basic self-care.”
2010 at 5am Posted by Rebecca Joines Schinsky
Published October 19, 2010 by Harper Books
When our lives are turned upside down in moments of tragedy, pain, and struggle, opening a book can seem like the last thing we should be doing. But Erin Blakemore says that isn’t so.
When the line between duty and sanity blurs, you can usually find me curled up with a battered book, reading as if my mental health depended on it. And it does, for inside books I love I find food, respite, escape, and perspective. I find something else, too: heroines and authors, hundreds of them, women whose real and fictitious lives have covered the terrain I too must tread.
With the thesis that every woman is the heroine of her own life’s story, Erin Blakemore remembers twelve heroines of classic literature who, along with the authors that created them, teach us about character traits and virtues that, when well-cultivated, can allow us to move through even the most difficult moments with grace and courage. These twelve books form the foundation of The Heroine’s Bookshelf and, Blakemore argues, deserve a spot on our individual bookshelves as well, where they can be consulted for wisdom and guidance time and again.
In the introduction to The Heroine’s Bookshelf, Blakemore posits that reading during a crisis is far from cowardly or escapist. “A moment with a book,” she says, “is basic self-care, the kind of skill you pass along to your children as you would a security blanket or a churchgoing habit.”
Can I get an amen from the congregation?
Blakemore recalls turning to books during the most difficult moments of her childhood and discovering that, rather than pulling her away into a different world, the opposite occurred.
Somehow, painfully, I came closer to myself with every book I read, even—especially—the ones that took place in far-off and inaccessible lands.
In each chapter of The Heroine’s Bookshelf, Blakemore discusses one classic book and what she learned from its heroine and author, figuring that if it worked for her, it can work for the rest of us, too.
In Pride and Prejudice‘s Lizzy Bennet, Blakemore sees the strength of being true to oneself. “Elizabeth Bennet is vital, naughty, saucy, smart. And like her creator, she’s not about to sacrifice herself on the altar of a loveless life.” Janie Crawford, the heroine of Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God embodies and exemplifies faith. Lucy Maud Montgomery’s Anne Shirley teaches us about happiness and turning the proverbial lemons into lemonade in Anne of Green Gables. You get the idea.
Blakemore’s short chapters are packed with biographical information about the women who created these influential and inspiring books and contain quick but thorough summaries of the story lines, so when Blakemore tells us that “the heart of Pride and Prejudice is more than a love story—it’s a heroine’s fearless confrontation of herself, complete with family humiliations and fatal flaws,” we understand where she’s coming from, even if we haven’t read the book for years or—gasp!—at all.
Just as often as not, the woman who created the heroine featured in the chapter also exemplifies the trait Blakemore discusses, and in a few chapters, it seems that the author, more so than the character, is the focus of Blakemore’s conversation. (And that’s completely fine by me.) This is true of the chapter on faith, in which Blakemore explores the impact of Zora Neale Hurston’s experiences on her writing.
As much a volume on faith as a rumination on personal power, self-worth, and love, Their Eyes Were Watching God embodies Zora’s own personal struggle with her beliefs as it follows Janie’s attempts to define and assert her inner strength.
At the end of each chapter, Blakemore recommends times during which the featured book might be particularly relevant or helpful and identifies the highlighted heroine’s “literary sisters.” After explaining the ways in which Celie in Alice Walker’s The Color Purple embodies dignity—a claim with which I could not agree more—she suggests:
READ THIS BOOK:
- When complacent or a bit too contented
- Before important elections or contentious board meetings
- With your teenage daughters.
CELIE’S LITERARY SISTERS:
- Sethe in Beloved, by Toni Morrison
- Offred in The Handmaid’s Tale, by Margaret Atwood
- Idgie Threadgood in Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg
Margaret Mitchell and Scarlett O’Hara teach us about fight and perseverance. Harper Lee’s indomitable Jean Louise “Scout” Finch is compassion (“an advanced heroine skill”) made manifest in To Kill a Mockingbird. Laura Ingalls illustrates the value and importance of simplicity in The Long Winter. Jane Eyre is the picture of steadfastness. (But we all know how I felt about her.) Fortunately, Blakemore isn’t all seriousness. She discusses Mary Lenox’s magic in The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett and reminds us that indulgence and pleasure are important, with a little help from Claudine in the novels by Colette.
This slim collection is part literary criticism and part love letter to literature, and it is a gift to readers and a reminder of why we read and how the books we share our lives with have the power to shape and change them. In addition to spotlighting twelve important works, Blakemore urges each of us to consider the books that form the foundation of our own “heroine’s bookshelf,” validates our need to read in the midst of a coming storm, and encourages us to share the books we love with the people we love.
The only thing I love more than a book about books is a celebration of the role of books in our lives, and Blakemore gives us both (and so much more) in The Heroine’s Bookshelf. This is perfect for a one-sitting read or to be read one chapter at a time in between other books…and I dare say it would be a great way to model a year’s worth of book club selections.
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I was on the fence about this book, but the first quote did it for me…now I HAVE to get it. This books sounds like one I just have to keep on the shelf waiting to to help me through a rainy day.
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This is exactly what I had hoped this book would be. Thank you for the information and the celebration of self-care.
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[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Rebecca Schinsky, Backspace. Backspace said: RT @bookladysblog: “A moment with a book is basic self-care.” http://goo.gl/fb/j6gFR [...]
When I was setting up the giveaway for this book for BBAW, the author was such a pleasure to work with and I wished I could enter for a chance to win myself. I’ll be picking this book up for sure. It sounds fabulous.
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I think I have to read anything dubbed “part love-letter to literature.” This sounds downright excellent, looking forward to getting my hands on a copy. Thanks for the review!
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This is the second review that has made me want to get this book. And I’ve already added it to my gift list possibilities for readers.
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