For me, it often disappears into a good book.
I recently read Flora & Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo, a book that tackles a child’s view of separated parents with the assistance of a superhero squirrel. I was fascinated by the choices the author made and the story that emerged into one beautiful whole.
Before that, I read Uncommon Charms, a novella dealing with magic in London in 1925. The magic was truly magical, the characters having some of the same intense absurdity as Kate DiCamillo.
The book I read before that was Anthem by Noah Hawley, described as a thriller. It’s kind of a satirical meditation on politics and the younger generation with a fair amount of gore and other dire events.
What do these books have in common? A perspective on people and events that jerks you from a familiar world into a very different world where events follow their own logic. Uncommon Charms and Anthem have more secrets to be revealed, while Flora & Ulysses, but all three tackel some interesting problems in terms of personal relationships. How much do we love someone and how do we show that love?
Here’s wishing you many magical reads that cause you to look at the world a bit sideways and think about what really matters to you and the people in your life.