Recently, I have read several books that are heavy reads - in information, in context, in content. Books that have heartbreaking elements, that contain abuse, that require VERY CLOSE READING and a lot of notes. This book was not that. (Ok, there was a little abuse in Four, but it wasn't incredibly heavy.)
At the end of last week I started in on another book - nonfiction and full of information that I needed to digest in order to better understand the story. And for the first time ever, reading became too much. I was struggling to open the book, to continue to leaf through the pages. I reached for my "to read" pile and picked up Four - a book that was recommended to me by a student, M. This is just what I needed. A palate cleanser, literary parsley. (Did you know that parsley refreshes your mouth so that you can enjoy the next flavor that your tongue encounters? It also freshens your breath.)
Four is a companion novel for the Divergent series. When I opened the book and started reading it took me back to a simpler time in my life - free from the scattered busyness that the COVID pandemic dumped upon us. The story was a simpler story than what I had been reading. Reading about these characters that I hadn't encountered for many years felt like going back to a book home. The story was still satisfying in that it gave me plenty to think about but it wasn't a struggle and exactly the right book for me in the right moment.
I hope you try the Divergent series, or even just the short stories in Four. It will make you think about caste, and labels in a new way. It might even make you consider that labels that you have affixed to yourself. But if it isn't the right book at the right time for you - go find something that fills your reading or learning needs.
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