There are certain books and movies that soothe and satiate the soul. Back to the Future is the one movie I’ll put on any time if I’m down and seeking comfort. It transports me back to my childhood, and the familiar dialogue and plot leaves no room for anxiety. It’s delightfully predictable. That’s the neurodivergent’s elixir.

That got me thinking, during this time of turmoil and duress, what books do I turn to for that same feeling? That know what’s around every turn, cozy little hug you get from a book that allows you to escape from your world and into something familiarly intoxicating.

For me, it’s definitely something written by the King himself. If I had to boil it down to a few, it would be The Stand, 11/22/63, or The Shining, although something about this particular period called out for me to re-read The Talisman. And let’s just say it isn’t disappointing. Every time I pick it up, it’s like I don’t have to exist as myself for a while, a feeling that’s overwhelmingly welcome right now. I somehow become Jack Sawyer, that all too grown 12-year-old boy, searching for an indescribable totem to alleviate all of life’s woes. Damn, it feels good to be 12 again.

What are your comfort books?