Should You Read a Book You Know Nothing About?

Photo Courtesy of Instagram: @ellarose

To quickly give you an answer, YES.

A while back, when in Washington D.C., I stumbled across Capitol Hill Book Store. It was buzzing with people from the nearby farmers market, Eastern Market, and I figured I should pick up a few new books. 

The first of my two books was an easier choice, Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner. I had heard multiple rave reviews about this book and thought I would be able to resonate with Zauner’s experience as a bi-racial American. The tug and pull of not quite fitting in with either of your races was something that pulled at my heart and it was easy to see why so many people had highly acclaimed this book.

The other book, though, was a back of the store, never-heard-of, single-copy book. That book was called Sirius: A Novel About The Little Dog That Almost Changed History by Jonathan Crown. I picked it up because I was instantly hit by my personal Kryptonite, my love for dogs. The description made it seem like the book would be interesting enough and having a dog as the unsung hero would keep me entertained. However, as the book began and went on I couldn’t help but think “What the f*** am I reading?”. Throughout the novel, the dog learns to act, recite conversations he has heard back to people, and make judgment calls that could change the course of history. 

I found a review of the book online that said, “This book is like if Quentin Tarantino was an author.” Take that review at face value because all of the messiness and awe-defying that is a Tarantino film was found in this book. Needless to say, I’m not sure I would recommend it to my book club.

But, despite this unexpected story, I was still glad to have read it. The same way you couldn’t bear to only watch one director the rest of your life, you need to switch up your authors. New perspectives and stories give you the range to appreciate what you do and don’t like and find what you are most enthralled by. 

I am normally someone who reads books recommended to me or that are sitting at the front of Barnes & Noble. After reading this book, though, I am enticed to pick up another book I may or may not like. Hey, I judged a book by its cover, or however, the saying goes!