Goodreads Authors/Readers discussion

There is a kind of darkness that isn’t supernatural at all — just ordinary life becoming too heavy.
No demons, no visions. Just days that repeat, hope that feels thin, and the quiet thought:
“Will anything ever get better?”

In Be Not Afraid, I write about spiritual battles — but this silent, everyday darkness is just as real, and many people have lived through it without ever saying a word.

Do you think books and films show this kind of “ordinary darkness” enough?
Or is it something we avoid, even though it's one of the most common human experiences?
Be Not Afraid II — Hear Me: A Spiritual Thriller About Listening, Faith, and the Battle Within

"Choose faith over fear" is a familiar phrase, and seems to refer to "spiritual battles" we all fight every day; and its very lonely, because you cant really tell anybody. I mean, you can try and share, but you'll regret doing so 99.9% of the time.

Any healthy and well adjusted child is a result of numerous " spiritual wrestling's" between his parents, grandparents/other care givers' natures.

Long term happy relationship? An endless dance of pain and pleasure, love and madness... its a complex subject, and a beautiful one, and humanity has been trying to work it all out in books, and other arts, and in the art of living for millennia- noone can do it for you, its your soul's work :))

Jasmine

Neither books nor films show this to the degree that it occurs in real life. But then, the vast number of books and films are escapism.

There must be a hundred feelgood escapades for every "Paris, Texas" or "American Graffiti". Same with the stage- Uncle Vanya is a play I felt I had to see rather than to see rather than one I would have chosen for myself.

I'm looking through my Netflix choices; I like to think I'm not too shallow, but there's no Pinter on it.

Dr. wrote: ""Choose faith over fear" is a familiar phrase, and seems to refer to "spiritual battles" we all fight every day; and its very lonely, because you cant really tell anybody. I mean, you can try and s..."

Hi John :)

Re Netflix, its so plentiful, you could find all sorts.. what kind of program would you like to watch, re family life? love story? societal issues?

Some of them are great but WAY too many episodes.. ( like, 90!)

Still, I'll mention those that stayed with me; in no particular order:

Midnight diner ( Japanese; short life stories; eccentric sense of humour)
The burnt cocoon ( Turkish; complex family life, love)
Till death do us part ( Lebanese; societal issues/very complex love dissection/criminality)
As the crow flies ( Turkish; societal issues/love/the world of TV/news industry)

Happy watching!! :)

Jasmine

Oh I know- the investment of time to get the most out of the longer dramas is enormous.

Thank you kindly, Jasmine. I've been limiting my viewing (mostly) to works that have a literary background, but I confess that the two Turkish entries sound very interesting.