Summer is the best time of the year for sleeping, traveling, partying and... reading! No matter if you are on a wonderful beach in Spain, flying on a plane, or simply enjoying the quietness of your apartment, any place is perfect for a book. Here are five books that made me laugh and cry, broadened my views on politics and love, offered a new perspective on people and countries. Here are the five books that made me love reading.
"We Should All Be Feminists," Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
I became familiar with Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie after watching her TED talk entitled “The Danger of a Single Story.” It was an inspiring conversation that warned the listeners of how terribly our stereotypes influence the possibility of connection with others.
Adiche, with her fascinating personality and her sweet but firm tone, impressed me so much that when I found this tiny book in a tiny library I felt immediately obliged to read it. “We Should All Be Feminists” is a book-length essay that, through anecdotes and captivating biographical events, aims to give a definition of feminism for the 21st century. I guarantee that you will devour the book in less than a day, not only because it is a rather short piece of writing, but mostly because is full of insightful sarcasm and stimulating thoughts and successfully triumphs in explaining why we all should be feminists.
"And the Mountains Echoed," Khaled Hosseini
I have been loving Khaled Hosseini’s writing since I was 12 years old. His first novel, “The Kite Runner,” was like a powerful magnet and I was a little iron coin; no matter how hard I tried to escape it, how tormenting and painful the story was, the writing and the plot were so fascinating I was constantly drawn back to it. “And the Mountains Echoed” had the same magnetic grip on me.
In 453 pages Hosseini brings to life incredibly complex and wonderfully shaped characters: a 10-year-old boy that, separated from his little sister, swears that he will do anything to find her; a hopeful driver that, driven by an impossible love, sacrifices his family’s unity; a young afghan woman living in Paris with an enigmatic past. The stories of these and more characters intertwine through the chapters, revealing mysterious connections between the protagonists, offering an insightful perspective of the tormented situation of Afghanistan and leaving the reader with bated breath.
"The Motorcycle Diaries," Ernesto Guevara
Ernesto "Che" Guevara is widely known for his major and pivotal role in the Cuban Revolution that deposed the U.S.-backed authoritarian government of Fulgencio Batista. However, the reasons that brought this upper-middle-class young man to change so drastically are less known. “The Motorcycle Diaries” documents the formative odyssey through South America that Guevara undertook with Alberto Granado. Throughout this journey, the 23-year-old medical student is transformed by witnessing the social injustices of exploited mine workers, of the poor people, of the Incas and of communists.
Through the pages it’s possible to perceive the surprise, sadness and anger that Guevara felt while traveling on La Poderosa, the motorcycle, and his willingness to fight and die for the cause of the poor. It is, in my opinion, a fundamental reading for a complete understanding of the revolutionary personality that Ernesto "Che" Guevara was.
"Fossi in te io insisterei" ("If I Were You, I Would Insist"), Carlo Giuseppe Gabardini
“Fossi in te io insisterei” is an open letter that Gabardini writes to his father in an attempt to accept his death. What Gabardini starts off as a normal letter, after some pages develops into a sort of biography or, better, a confession of all the thoughts, events and feelings that the author never had the courage to tell to his father. It becomes a 252-page conversation with the father he deeply loved and terribly misses.
“Fossi in te io insisterei” touches themes such as politics, homosexuality, love, death, passion and perseverance. It is at the same time an example of how fundamental it is for a son to listen to his father and for a father to support his son, pushing him and sometimes telling him “If I were you, I would insist."
"Just Kids," Patti Smith
This book will make you fall in love with Patti Smith, poetry, music and New York in the '70s. It is a wonderful portrayal of the punk rock star’s life before fame broke in and her relationship with the photographer Robert Mapplethorpe. Smith has the capacity of capturing her readers and projecting them into her world; every word she writes evokes such a concrete and precise feeling that gives you the impression of being in the story with her.
“Just Kids” is not only an interesting documentation of New York City during those years and the struggles artists had to go through to affirm themselves. It is so touching and wonderful because it represents a type of love that is often absent in our society: an unconditional love, a love that doesn’t aim to possess or confine, but rather enlarges and accepts. This was the love Patti had for Robert, a love that is free.
