April Apperceptions: Don't Judge a Book...

Everyone knows the famous adage, "Don't judge a book by its cover." Boy, isn't that the truth?! In my undergraduate program, I had a Sociology class, for which we were assigned a book about Chinese immigration and the immigrants' contributions to the building of the Transcontinental Railroad in the 1860's. I could learn about Chinese culture, while at the same time learning an important piece of American history...or so I thought. As it turned out, it was full of sexual vulgarity and basically painted the immigrants as sexually obsessed deviants. Sexual terminology was even used to metaphorically describe the opportunities and choices facing the immigrants. The line that threw me over the edge (I'll never forget it) was..."The world's vagina was large..." What in the world?! I felt like I was learning very little (if anything) about sociological topics.

I was about half-way through this "required reading" when I took it to one of the elders at my church, a man whose wisdom I trusted immensely. He said, "Yeah, you shouldn't have to read this." And of course, his next comment was, "Why'd you read so much of it?" I explained that I kept hoping it was going to get better.

So...I went to my instructor the next day and explained how I was offended by this book and wanted to request an alternative. He said I could, but if I did he was doubling the writing requirement. I figured that wouldn't be a big problem for me--so I took him up on it. That was an eye-opener for sure.

Fortunately, there are also those books you come across in life that make a permanent, favorable impression. If I had to pick just one, I think I'd highlight Beverly Lewis's The Shunning, described on Google in these words: "The bestselling story of Katie Lapp, who longs for things forbidden to a young Amish woman. But an unexpected discovery reveals her true past." 

I found this book--and the others in its series--eye-opening (as much was based on actual research), captivating, compelling...and it tugged hard on my heart-strings. One might think that a story about Amish life would be boring or a bit "stiff." But not this story! There was an unexpected degree of mystery, an ample array of secrets, and a fresh look at the human condition combined with dreams/desires--which made this book one of the most satisfying I've ever read.

My recommendation--if you're concerned at all about the content, style, or pace of a book--open up to the middle and read a couple pages. However, while things can go terribly wrong with a supposedly Chinese sociological spin, you can never go wrong with a Beverly Lewis novel.