{"id":63918,"date":"2022-07-12T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-07-12T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=63918"},"modified":"2022-09-26T00:05:11","modified_gmt":"2022-09-26T04:05:11","slug":"shortform-reads-sara","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/shortform-reads-sara\/","title":{"rendered":"Shortform Reads: Books Are Tools for Cultural Insight"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What children\u2019s book does Sara believe everybody should read? What little-known Australian authors does Sara think should be shared with the rest of the world?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sara is a member of the writing team at Shortform. She\u2019s originally from Australia but now resides in Medell\u00edn, Colombia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Our Interview With Sara<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Sara uses books as a way to understand other cultures when she travels. Here’s what Sara had to say about her relationship with books.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What’s your favorite book? <\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

My very favorite books combine a devilish sense of humor, intellectual brilliance, and a humane approach to their subject matter. For example, Behave <\/em>by Robert Sapolsky is an extraordinary survey of the science of human behavior\u2014it covers violence, empathy, epigenetics, and why sitting in a room with smelly garbage makes you more socially conservative. Aztec <\/em>by Gary Jennings recounts the Spanish colonization of Mexico from the point of view of an old Aztec man. It\u2019s full of fascinating information about indigenous Mexican cultures and sly asides about the Spanish. And Small Gods <\/em>by Terry Pratchett pokes fun at religion in Pratchett\u2019s trademark humane and hilarious way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Women Who Run With the Wolves <\/em>by Clarissa Pinkola Est\u00e9s is another of my favorites, but for different reasons. It\u2019s a beautifully written interweaving of Jungian analysis and traditional stories from around the world. I rely on it to jostle me a bit when my life feels stuck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What are you reading these days? <\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

I have a young baby at home so I don’t get to read much these days! At the top of my to-read pile is The Song of Achilles <\/em>by Madeline Miller, which a few other Shortform writers have recommended to me. Someday I’ll get past the first page…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you could have a dinner party with any three authors\u2014dead or alive\u2014who would they be?<\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

I’d love to throw three very different writers together and listen to them talk about the writing process. Let’s say U.S.-based short story writer George Saunders, Nigerian novelist\/essayist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, and Canadian songwriter Leonard Cohen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What’s your favorite genre? <\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

My favorite genres are fantasy and historical fiction, and I also love to read anything that immerses me in a culture I don’t know much about. These types of books help me think about life in different ways\u2014it’s my way of making sure I don’t get too stuck inside my own cultural frame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are there any book genres or tropes that you dislike or refuse to read? <\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

Books about leadership sometimes make my eyes cross, because so many of them just seem to rehash different versions of the same common-sense ideas. Horror also isn\u2019t high on my list\u2014I\u2019ve never found it much fun to be scared.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What’s your favorite way to read a book? <\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

I’ve traveled quite a bit, and one of my favorite things to do is arrive in a new place, buy a book by a local author, and read the book while getting to know the new place. Some of the books I’ve done this with are Maximum City <\/em>by Suketu Mehta in Bombay, Celestial Bodies<\/em> by Jokha Alharthi on a trip through Oman, and Pablo Neruda’s poems in Santiago de Chile. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I could never get into Gabriel Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez in English. But now that I\u2019m based in Colombia, I\u2019m planning to try some of his books out in Spanish and see if I can connect with them better that way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What books do you think everyone should read in their lifetime? <\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

Man’s Search for Meaning<\/a><\/em> by Viktor Frankl and The Sneetches<\/em> by Dr. Seuss. Both of those are quick but compelling reads about the tragedy of the human condition and what we can do about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Who are your favorite authors? <\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

Robin Hobb\u2014pen name for Megan Lindholm\u2014is an extraordinary fantasy writer. There\u2019s such strength, delicacy, and psychological insight in her writing. I discovered her Liveship Traders<\/em> trilogy first and then started on the books about FitzChivalry Farseer\u2014there are now three trilogies\u2019 worth of them\u2014nine doorstoppers in total, but worth every page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’m also in awe of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, who has a unique and memorable way of using language, and Rebecca Solnit, who writes with a great deal of clarity about complex social issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Was there a specific book that sparked your love of reading? <\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

When I was little, I managed to bargain my parents up to five bedtime stories before I would go to sleep. The one I remember best was from the T.G. and Moonie<\/em> series by Fay Maschler. I requested it so much that my dad had the whole thing memorized\u2014and I think he still does! I still remember the sound of his slow, singsong voice reading the start: “T.G. and Moonie Atkins were two cats who liked each other immensely. They hardly, if ever, got on one another’s nerves….”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you have any guilty pleasure books?<\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

Philippa Gregory’s historical fiction. For example, The Other Boleyn Girl<\/em> retells European history from the point of view of prominent women. She’s been criticized for being “flexible” in terms of historical accuracy, but I don’t know much about the period so that doesn’t bother me!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Have any books you\u2019ve read caused you to make any life changes or to change or develop any habits?<\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

The Language of Emotions<\/em> by Karla McLaren helped me to understand, value, and start to work with difficult emotions<\/a>. McLaren suggests that difficult emotions such as anger, fear, sadness, and shame have important functions. For example, anger helps us protect things that are important to us, while fear helps us pay attention and take action. She offers specific questions to help you get to the root of the emotion and act on it with integrity. Let\u2019s say you feel angry. Instead of repressing or misdirecting the anger, you should ask yourself: \u201cWhat do I value? What must be protected and restored?\u201d If you\u2019re feeling shame, instead of sitting around and feeling bad, you ask: \u201cWho has been hurt? What must be made right?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What\u2019s your favorite quote from a book or an author?<\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

I can\u2019t choose between these two by Terry Pratchett:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere\u2019s always a story. It\u2019s all stories, really. The sun coming up every day is a story. Everything\u2019s got a story in it. Change the story, change the world<\/a>.\u201d (A Hat Full of Sky<\/em>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c\u2018I meant,\u2019 said Ipslore bitterly, \u2018what is there in this world that truly makes living worthwhile?\u2019 Death thought about it. CATS, he said eventually. CATS ARE NICE.\u201d (Sourcery<\/em>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are there any lesser-known books that you\u2019ve read that you want others to know exist?<\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m currently the only Australian at Shortform, so it would be remiss of me not to talk about some Australian writers here. I\u2019m not sure how well-known these books are in other parts of the world, but I highly recommend Burial Rites<\/em> by Hannah Kent, Year of Wonders<\/em> by Geraldine Brooks, and Jessica<\/em> by Bryce Courtenay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What are your favorite books in the Shortform library?<\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

As a student and teacher of karate, I really enjoyed reading our guide to The Book of Five Rings<\/em><\/a>, which is about the strategies of Samurai warriors. That guide does a great job of contextualizing, extending, and enriching the content of the original book. I also learned a lot about how racial prejudice works from our guide to Biased<\/em><\/a> by Jennifer Eberhardt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sara’s Book Recommendations<\/h4>\n\n\n\n