You curl up on the couch beside your moody reading lamp, ready to befriend new characters and go on adventures with them. Their personalities and humor shine and you can see yourself reflected in their struggles and brokenness.

 

But as the story progresses, the mood dims. The brokenness is lifted up instead of contrasted with love and light. Self-deprecating humor, toxic dynamics between friends, and the way they put each other down irks you. And at the end, everything somehow turns out all right!

 

You know deep down this is unrealistic. You wish the characters reflected the ways you want to excel and not the mistakes you want to leave behind. Isn’t there a way to read a great page turner without feeling lied to and underprepared to shine light in your own life?