I recall reading a study that said book readers demonstrate high levels of empathy. What are three books that you feel shaped you into an empathetic human being?
This was in my youth, but The Perks of Being a Wallflower
skybluepink77 on
I’m not sure any particular books can do this; it’s more that people with a real, regular reading habit might learn more about the human condition and gain more insight and compassion [and are reading quality lit and not the nasty type of sadistic thrillers!]
So I’m not going to pick three books, but just suggest you read widely, from all types of quality literature both fiction and memoir, from all cultures/countries. If you read with an open mind, you can’t fail to develop empathy and compassion.
MochaMellie on
Memoirs are great for this. I found that I have a lot of empathy these days, but I didn’t use to. I noticed I became a lot more empathetic to others after reading memoirs and getting a better understanding of how vast experiences in the world are.
The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls – First memoir I read. Loved it. This book is beautiful but gets very dark and real at times. It’s pretty short, but MAN does Jeannette go through it.
A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah – memoir of a child soldier. Goes in depth about the horrors of war times and the reality of people in these places.
Friends, Lovers, And The Big Terrible Thing by Matthew Perry – Celeb memoir, but it’s really funny. It changed how I view addiction.
Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo – Not a memoir, but goes in depth on feminism and a lot of ongoing issues with gender and responsibility in Korea. It’s backed up by in-book citations, which I appreciated.
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This was in my youth, but The Perks of Being a Wallflower
I’m not sure any particular books can do this; it’s more that people with a real, regular reading habit might learn more about the human condition and gain more insight and compassion [and are reading quality lit and not the nasty type of sadistic thrillers!]
So I’m not going to pick three books, but just suggest you read widely, from all types of quality literature both fiction and memoir, from all cultures/countries. If you read with an open mind, you can’t fail to develop empathy and compassion.
Memoirs are great for this. I found that I have a lot of empathy these days, but I didn’t use to. I noticed I became a lot more empathetic to others after reading memoirs and getting a better understanding of how vast experiences in the world are.
The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls – First memoir I read. Loved it. This book is beautiful but gets very dark and real at times. It’s pretty short, but MAN does Jeannette go through it.
A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah – memoir of a child soldier. Goes in depth about the horrors of war times and the reality of people in these places.
Friends, Lovers, And The Big Terrible Thing by Matthew Perry – Celeb memoir, but it’s really funny. It changed how I view addiction.
Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo – Not a memoir, but goes in depth on feminism and a lot of ongoing issues with gender and responsibility in Korea. It’s backed up by in-book citations, which I appreciated.