“It was the first book that I remember getting truly invested in and thought, ‘Wait, reading books can feel like THIS?’”

As a Senior Editor at BuzzFeed, I cover books and politics, and I also created the daily vocabulary-boosting word game SAT Scramble.

"We were already close, but this made us so much closer. She passed at 95, six years ago. I was 34 and still going to dinner once per week, although often I would cook or help her cook.

She was my best friend, and I miss her dearly. But I am so thankful that that book made me think of visiting with her more frequently."

"We had Dr. Edith Eger as a panelist for our virtual literary festival during the pandemic. My background was genocide through the Anthropological perspective, and I’ve visited many sites, including several of the Holocaust. I sobbed the entire time she spoke. Picked up the book immediately and recommend it to everyone."

"This book really changed the way I think about the past and helped me deal with losing people."

"I first read it in high school, and it didn't do much for me.

Reading it later, having gone through trauma of my own, it really hit me, and it opened my eyes to some very beautiful life philosophy that I realized is exactly how I feel but could never put into words. Literally here we are, trapped in the amber of this moment. There is no why."

"The metaphor for the argument against comparison of suffering from this book has stuck with me for 20 years.

'A man's suffering is similar to the behavior of gas. If a certain quantity of gas is pumped into an empty chamber, it will fill the chamber completely and evenly, no matter how big the chamber. Thus, suffering completely fills the human soul and conscious mind, no matter whether the suffering is great or little. Therefore, the 'size' of human suffering is absolutely relative.'”

"My answer is Beloved as well. I know reading improves empathy and understanding in general, but that book ramped it up to 11. Such beautiful writing as well."

"Although technically considered a children's book, I think it has a lot to offer anyone. It reminds me to live my life in wonder, like through the eyes of a child, to feel, and try to live to the fullest."

"This book fundamentally shifted how I see both myself and others. It changed how I perceive everything about my own behavior and thoughts, and that of others, too."

"If we don’t cherish the knowledge we have available and take our time in this life that is already so fleeting, we could lose what makes humanity great."

"We read this in my fifth-grade class. I never did well with assigned reading, but I finished this one in a few days. It was the first book that I remember getting truly invested in and thought, 'Wait, reading books can feel like *this*???'"