Since I’m on this big reading project for this year, I thought I’d join Ate Toni‘s latest Blog Carnival. She asks this question: If books were food, what would they taste like?

I am an avid chicklit fan. I used to deny it by saying I like reading all sorts of books, but now I’m coming out in the open: I love chicklit. Some people may look down on chicklit as “fluffy” stuff with too little substance as compared to other genres, but chicklit has so much more to offer than what can be seen on those bright (usually pink) covers. Chicklit is about a woman’s (or even a man’s!) self-realization. It’s about her facing her fears, overcoming obstacles in her life and realizing that she is more than what she thinks she is, or more than what other people think of her. It’s not always about romance or shopping or superficial fluffy stuff. Chicklit is all about getting to know yourself in the midst of life’s trials. Yes it is fluffy, but it’s good fluff. :D

I’m picking my current favorite chicklit books right now, the Phoebe Grant series: Dreaming in Black and White and Dreaming in Technicolor by Laura Jensen Walker.

Dreaming in Black and White is the first Christian chicklit novel I got my hands on. By then, the only chicklit I knew of was the Shopaholic series, which I liked, but not really loved. When I bought this book, I was just getting introduced to other Christian authors besides Frank Peretti, plus I never knew this sub-genre existed. I read this book overnight, and if it were food, I’d liken it to Kettle Corn. As in kettle corn popcorn, one of my favorite snack food. Perfect to eat anytime or during a movie, be at the cinema or in a simple movie house decorated with home theater sconces. These books, just like kettle corn is three things: sweet, salty and crunchy.

It’s sweet because I couldn’t help falling in love with Phoebe Grant’s character. Her struggles weren’t that different from my struggles: finding the perfect job, family arguments and singlehood. She isn’t ashamed of her faith, and she rises out of the struggles quite beautifully. Phoebe is like someone who I would want to have as a friend.

It’s salty because of the struggles the author put in Phoebe’s life. Like I mentioned, Phoebe is not that different from any single woman out there. In Dreaming in Black and White she wanted a bigger job, and is devastated when she had to go back to her hometown to take care of her mother, then finds struggle with saving her hometown and her family. In Dreaming in Technicolor, Phoebe has a better job, and she enjoys her time with her family, but now she’s struggling about her singlehood. It’s all normal, and these struggles give more “taste” in our life — the salt that gives the flavor. :)

Finally it’s crunchy because the book is hardly ever boring at all. I love how Laura Jensen Walker peppered the books with yummy anecdotes, quotable quotes and words of wisdom that cannot be found in other chicklit books. :)

Interestingly, Phoebe Grant is a movie addict, and popcorn just fits these books, don’t you think? :)