In Alan Bennett’s The History Boys, the profoundly human (i.e., imperfect) teacher, Hector, reminds his students that “The best moments in reading are when you come across something—a thought, a feeling, a way of looking at things—that you’d thought special, particular to you. And here it is, set down by someone else, a person you’ve never met,... See more

“That is part of the beauty of all literature . You discover that your longings are universal longings, that you're not lonely and isolated from anyone. You belong.”