College is exhausting. There is no denying that the college life is hard, tiring, and way too complicated to handle sometimes. There are some days where you feel like crawling into your bed and not coming out for a few weeks and this normal. It is normal to have a few bad days. However, you don’t need to feel this way all the time.

I have found that since I was a young child reading picture books, I have always looked to book characters for guidance in real-life situations. Believe it or not, these fictional heroes and heroines face real, human problems in their stories, but they know how to make the best of them and come out victorious in the end. Here are four literary characters to inspire you the next time you feel trapped in your life problems.

1. Matilda Wormwood From "Matilda"

Roald Dahl’s heroine Matilda doesn’t exactly have life handed to her on a silver platter; her life sucks in every way possible. Her parents treat her terribly and her school is ridden with practices of child abuse. When faced with these challenges, she doesn’t back down and try to hide from her problems. She understands that she is in control of her own fate, so she acts accordingly. She isn’t afraid to show that even little people can do great things through her acts of mischief, such as dying her dad’s hair green. Next time you feel like the world is collapsing around you, let Matilda inspire you to step and make a change instead of putting the blame on the people around you.

2. Luna Lovegood From The "Harry Potter" Franchise

Luna is different from her peers. She likes to make her own jewelry, cheers for Gryffindor when she’s a Ravenclaw, and she isn’t afraid to speak her mind. Despite her peers openly teasing her about these behaviors, she stays true to herself and doesn’t listen to the haters. She loves the person that she is, and doesn’t want to change herself so that people quit calling her “Looney Lovegood.” Take advice from Luna, and don’t change yourself to fit in with those around you. The right group will eventually come alone who appreciate you for who you truly are.

3. Charlie From "The Perks of Being A Wallflower"

Charlie is the outcast of his high school. He doesn’t really know where he fits in and how to fully communicate his relationship desires with his peers. He finally finds friendship and love with two people, Sam and Patrick, after he makes the effort to go be social and try to make friends. This is a lesson that I need to learn sometimes, as friends are just not going to fall to your feet begging for you friendship; friendship is something that you have to work for. This means that in college, especially your freshman year, you can’t wait for that one special person to come around. You have to take the initiative and find them.

4. Ramona Quimby From The "Ramona" Franchise

Ramona Quimby is a little spitfire with equal parts sassy and spunky who teaches her readers more about life than most of those self-help books. Ramona has taught us that sometimes, especially when people copy our beautiful paper owls, that you are not always going to get the credit that you deserve. She has taught us through her worrying over the word “nuisance” that we shouldn’t eavesdrop in fear of mishearing the conversation. She has taught us to reach for the stars and to not let any bullies stop you. Lastly, she has taught us the importance of always being curious. You should never want to stop learning, and this is exactly what all college students need to hear.