Back in 2018, the Lewis and Clark Library Foundation brought Jamie Ford to Helena for his presentation: Racebending: Adventures in a Bi-Cultural World. If you were unable to attend this event, check it out on the Foundation’s YouTube channel. Mr. Ford is the author of three historical fiction novels, all set in Seattle, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, Songs of Willow Frost and Love and Other Consolation Prizes. His work often portrays heart-breaking injustices bravely endured by his Chinese- and Japanese- American characters.
Recently, I asked Jamie Ford about empathy and reading books—a subject I find myself thinking about a lot lately: how can reading fiction increase the reader’s ability to feel empathy? Studies show that reading increases empathy in children, is this also true for adults? Can reading fiction increase our ability to understand and share the feelings of others?
Jamie Ford suggests our culture is experiencing an empathy deficit right now and further explains, “For generations, people read books and listened to music that was a mirror. It reflected them. I think books really should be a window to see someone else’s experience, and when you do that, you exercise your empathy muscles and it makes the world a better place, makes communities healthier.”
What do you think? Does reading allow you to more deeply understand a situation and empathize with other people, especially those who have had a much different life experience? Check out the Jamie Ford’s book recommendations below. Take a look inside these ‘windows’ and see if they might strengthen your empathy muscles, too.
The House of Broken Angels
"All we do, mija, is love. Love is the answer. Nothing stops it. Not borders. Not death."
Available in the library catalog HERE
Also available in digital format:
“A powerful and moving teen graphic novel memoir about immigration, belonging, and how arts can save a life.”
Available in the library catalog HERE
Watch Robin Ha give an art lesson in “How to Draw a Comic” HERE
Writing My Wrongs: Life, Death, and Redemption in an American Prison
During the author’s nineteen years in prison, seven of which were spent in solitary confinement, Mr. Senghor discovers the tools he needs to become an activist and mentor.
Available in digital format:
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You
By Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
Read this highly-accessible book written for teens. It’s an adaptation of the original book by Ibram X. Kendi.
Available in the library catalog HERE
Also available in digital format:
Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States
Native American scholar Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz offers a radical rewrite of traditional U.S. history.
Available in the library catalog HERE
Also available in digital format:
Montana Library2Go - Young People’s version Ebook
The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration
Pulitzer Prize-winning author Isabel Wilkerson chronicles one of the great untold stories of American history: the decades-long migration of black citizens who fled the South for northern and western cities, in search of a better life.
Available in the library catalog HERE
Also available in digital format:
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
Available in digital format:
Check out books by author Pat Conroy, one of Jamie Ford’s favorite authors
Available in the library catalog HERE
Also available in digital format:
Read more about Pat Conroy and his work HERE
Do you have a book to recommend? Tell us about it in the comments.
