Time for Escapism

By W. F. Twyman, Jr.

One of my favorite readers observed escapism has its place. She noted my prolific reading (guilty as charged) while suggesting I read something that doesn’t cause me too must thinking. Escapism has its place too/smile. Well, I love thinking. Thinking is escapism for me. It is true I favor non-fiction books and yet I have strolled through the stacks of fiction at times. Some of my notable fiction reads, in no particular order, are My Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara (my daughter raved about this book and urged this read upon me), The Struggle by Karl Ove Knausgaard (an apt title as it was a s…t…r…u…g…g…l…e… to read this never ending novel), Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman (an excellent story verging on the great but not quite), The Tree of Life by Rosenfarb (a good story but dragged at times) and my all-time favorite escapist novel, Martin Eden by Jack London (excellent vivid, continuous dream).

But, to be honest, we escape in the land of the visual these days.

Right now, we are watching Blue Bloods. My wife loves police shows. As the daughter of a New York City police officer, she feels closer to her Dad and her ancestry as she watches the story of a blue-blooded, Irish Catholic family over three generations enforce the law. My wife identifies with family legacies, a forgotten cultural virtue perhaps in some Black American families today.

As for me? I joked with my reader that I am a serious science fiction fan. I can never get enough of Star Trek (The Original Series), The Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits. These things are all true. Now, it is time to share with my supportive reader my uncouth side. My escapism is not always erudite. I remove my appearance of couthness and share what lies beneath my veneer of couthness. Want to know my guilty pleasure as I fall asleep lately?

I love stories about aliens, monsters in the night, ancient cities buried underground, ancestors from outer space, and time travelers. Flopping into bed, I am seized with anticipation as I queue up the next episode of The Why Files. I love a good unbelievable story from the host AJ and his hopeless sidekick, Heckle fish. And did I mention Heckle fish’s girlfriend, Gertie, who loves to dance? Because she is a camel.

I leave you this evening with my secret escapism of choice these evenings, the theme song to The Why Files. I am not always serious, dear readers.