If you are looking for something to occupy yourself during those times when you’re tempted to twiddle your thumbs or escape the boredom of isolation, you should consider reading some great works of literature. Whether it’s to find meaning during this crisis or escape the day’s problems, this reading list should contain something that is right for you.
1. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, Philip K. Dick.
While it is a deeply engaging read, this post-apocalyptic novel is somewhat dense. However, it grabs your attention immediately as Dick tells a story that is set in the year 2021, where most animals are actually mechanical, and many “people” are artificial intelligent androids that are posing as humans. The standards of what constitutes a human being in this world are challenged throughout the course of this novel, and this book is perfect for the apocalyptic times we live in.
2. Frankenstein, Mary Shelley.
If you need something to read that is both intellectually engaging and intense, it is hard to beat this classic work of Gothic horror. Additionally, this text is one of the first masterworks of fiction written by a woman. Mary Shelley was, of course, Mary Wollstonecraft’s daughter who is known as one of the first feminists to openly champion equal rights for women. Many people are familiar with pop-culture works that borrow from Shelley’s novel, but it would surprise us to know how many people have not actually read Frankenstein. If you think horror is not really your thing, don’t worry. If you like fantasy or science fiction, many critics classify Frankenstein as a work of science fiction because it deals with the biological creation of artificial intelligence who turns against his creator to illustrate the folly of man’s arrogance.
3. The Moviegoer, Walker Percy.
This book is ideal for those of you trying to make sense of this pandemic or discover the meaning behind all these problems we’re currently facing. It is hard to explain why this book grabs your attention or why every sentence seems so beautiful. After all, this novel is about a guy walking down the streets of New Orleans, selling bonds, reading newspapers, and going to the movies. The protagonist, Binx Bolling, is a WWII survivor who is now stuck in the mundane everyday life of 1950s America. He feels somewhat trapped, like many of us feel during this pandemic. Most of what makes this novel interesting is what goes on in Binx’s head when he is zoning out. During Binx’s day-dreaming, readers are granted arguably the deepest and most existential meditations on life and its meaning. Walker Percy’s language is calm, subtle, descriptive, and uniquely brilliant.
I hope you enjoy these works of literature during your time at home.