It's annoying that I can't actually name one right now- there must have been a PD James one, or am I thinking of Ruth Rendall? And definitely Reginald Hill, Dalziel and Pascoe? Inspector Morse?
Anyway, thanks to spending my twenties reading unhealthy amounts of British crime fiction, I had the ingrained idea that that's what wealthy, connected men do, almost as their birthright. Since time immemorial. So I wasn't surprised by [waves hand around], but yeah.
Books do prepare us to cope with real-life tragedies and horrors. Certainly for me, at least. What about you?
by 1000andonenites
4 Comments
PD James for sure.
For all the amount of reading I’ve done in my lifetime, I don’t think any book has ever helped me accept or cope with real life horrors. What it does do, is allow me an escape (some books) and builds my personal character.
Reading non-fiction and history specifically has helped me understand what’s happening now and why it is wrong.
I don’t think very many people were surprised, even those who don’t read crime fiction.
Most, damn near all, adults know that lots of really awful things happen all the time. For various reason (mental health, for example) we don’t go around constantly thinking or acknowledging it.
Not a psychologist but I always thought that’s why some people gravitate towards dark media, it’s like acknowledging it in a safe, controlled way. And, in a lot of books, there is that wish fulfillment of justice being carried out.
I read Brian Freeman’s Break Every Rule recently and the similarities were disconcerting.