Certain books can stick with students as they grow up due to the personal connections they make with the stories. This nostalgia helps students connect with their younger selves and reminds them of who they were in the past. Embarking down memory lane, students revisit nostalgic stories, such as “Harry Potter,” “Wonder” and “Diary of A Wimpy Kid,” read throughout their childhood.
“Harry Potter” Series
Selling over 600 million copies since 1997, “Harry Potter” is a seven-book fantasy and adventure series by British author, J.K. Rowling. Each book takes the time span of a year, and every book is another year of his life in The Wizarding School of Hogwarts.
“I still reread ‘Harry Potter’ because I enjoy the fantasy and adventure in it,” freshman Ruhan Asthana said.
Harry Potter is a boy who learns on his 11th birthday that he is the son of two strong wizards who have passed and that he also possesses his own magical powers. His life changes from being an unliked child at home to being a popular student in Hogwarts. During his time in Hogwarts, Harry makes several friends who help him find the truth behind his parent’s death and the man who caused it.
“As a kid, I always enjoyed reading the Harry Potter series because it was so captivating and I could never put the book down,” freshman Dylan Polanco said. “Most of the time, it was the only book I ever read. My favorite parts of Harry Potter were the spells and different magic tricks. I always wished that the characters could come to life.”
“Wonder”
People tend to form connections with characters in books they love. For example, students might connect with Auggie from New York Times bestseller “Wonder” by R.J. Palacio, because they might also be scared of getting bullied or made fun of at school.
“My favorite book to reread is ‘Wonder,’ because it was always interesting to go back to,” freshman Veda Rayavarapu said. “The main reason I like ‘Wonder’ is because it has its own unique stories and is just very organized and easy to understand.”
“Wonder” is a family and drama story about a boy who had facial differences which kept him from going to public school and living an ordinary life. Auggie Pullman goes to public school for the first time in fifth grade, leading to interacting with a community that is larger than just his family. Auggie has to deal with getting made fun of and other conflicts in his new school. The main message from “Wonder” is to accept people for who they are, always show kindness, and promote anti-bullying.
“”Wonder” is my favorite book to reread because of its story,” freshman Manasvi Singh said. “ I first read ‘Wonder’ because it was popular when I was younger, which made me want to read it as well.”
“Diary of a Wimpy Kid” Series
The realistic fiction series “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” by Jeff Kinney has currently sold over 275 million books around the world and is still growing.
“‘Diary of a Wimpy Kid’ is the most nostalgic and interesting book for me because I feel like I could relate to Greg a lot, especially since I did most of the stuff that he did in the book,” freshman Ruhan Asthana said.
The series revolves around Greg Heffley and shows what he and his best friend Rowley do. Each book talks about what Greg is doing in his new middle school, where he has to deal with small nerdy kids and large beasts of students who look like grown adults.
In these books, a certain theme is followed where new people or other things are introduced, which changes the dynamic in Greg’s normal everyday life. By the end of the book, the change is gone and life is back to normal. The books also talk about Greg and his relationship with his brother whom he finds annoying.
Certain books can bring together small groups of people who like the same thing, or even big fan bases, clubs, or groups. These books can be found in the CHS library in a variety of languages.
“Reading brings more knowledge to you and you can learn stuff from books you read, and it is also an escape from reality and you can read for entertainment purposes,” sophomore Jahnavi Revuru said. “Reading can also lead to making more connections with new people and also making new friends to talk about the book you guys might collectively enjoy.”
