Oh, man, there are so many answers to this question! The baddies in any book that has them – the murderers, psychopaths, abusers, con artists, manipulators, power-crazy narcissists… etc. None of whom I’d enjoy being in the vicinity of. But that’s sort of the obvious answer, and while true, there are others I’d prefer not to meet as well. There are so many characters I adore from books. Everyone from Matilda (in Roald Dahl’s book), Anne Shirley (Anne of Green Gables), Scout and Jem Finch (To Kill a Mockingbird), to Cassandra Mortmain (I Capture the Castle). I adore all of these characters, as well as many, many more. I love the stories I’ve read about them, the way they’ve handled life’s challenges, and the way they’ve developed through the stories I’ve read.
I worry, though, that if I were to meet them in real life they wouldn’t be as I know them from the page. That they’d have changed or become harder. That they would have compromised themselves to navigate the adult world (in the case of those who were children when I met them in books, as the examples above were) or lost the wonder and openness that I loved so much about them when I read their stories. People change, all the time. The people who you are so close to at one point in your life can become unrecognizable later. They can betray or disappoint you. But the characters in books are static. You may understand them differently when you read them at a different point in your own life because you’ve changed, but they never do. There’s something comforting about knowing that they’re still there, right where you left them, and that you can go back and visit them anytime you want – anytime the darkness or despair or pain or heartache of the real world becomes too much. There’s a magic in that, and it’s priceless. So I wouldn’t want to bring them out of their world and into this one, because I need them right where they are.
What about you guys? Anyone else feel this way about characters they love? Or do you only want to avoid the bad guys in books and wish you could meet your favourites IRL?
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This is such a tender, powerful way of looking at the characters we love. I felt every word. The idea that they might change—or have to change—to survive the real world is honestly heartbreaking. I think you’re absolutely right: part of their magic is that they remain suspended in the amber of their stories, untouched by time, unchanged by compromise. It’s a kind of sanctuary we can return to, especially when real life feels too heavy.
I love how you described that—how rereading might shift our understanding of them because we’ve changed, but they themselves are still holding steady on the page. That’s such a comforting thought, and one I hadn’t quite put into words before reading your post. You’ve captured it so beautifully
I love how you put this – “remain suspended in the amber of their stories, untouched by time, unchanged by compromise” is such a beautiful turn of phrase! You’ve got it, precisely!
Okay, that’s a genuinely *fascinating* take on this prompt. I came at it from a “Oh dear God I don’t want to die” angle; I never even considered looking at it from a “never meet your heroes” angle. I love this response.
Haha thanks! Though I do think the “Oh dear God I don’t want to die” angle is also quite valid!
Such a great post! I did not think as deeply as you. I agree with you about there being a comfort in revisiting characters in their own worlds. It’s a different sort of ‘familiar’ than the real world. I really enjoyed this.
That’s exactly it! I do the same thing with old TV shows like As Time Goes By and, currently, The Good Life. They’re not great art, but they are mighty comforting!
I have to say you named some I’d really like to meet, but my answer would be I’d love to…even if I was disappointed. Life evolves, I suppose. Nice post.
Haha! To each their own!
You make a great point. Wouldn’t it be awful if Anne spelled with an E didn’t act like like Anne if you met her? What if Matilda weren’t as nice as you expected? I had that happen with an author I met at a conference one year, and I’ve never been able to read her books since. Thanks for sharing.
It would be tragic to meet Anne only to discover that she’d become Ann! And Matilda’s strong sense of justice is, I think, a moral compass that kids learn a lot from, and without that I don’t know who she’d be! I have been affected even by other people meeting authors and telling me about it… those ideas just stick and become these shadows over the books, I find! I prefer to just keep it simple and focus on the books and their characters as they are, I think!