Written by Malaika Writes
One thing you’re bound to have at one point or another in your life is friends. Having friends is universally considered an important part of life, and having good friends is something that we all work towards throughout our lifetime. When it comes to books, this key point is more often than not pushed to the side for romance, adventure, or action to take place. Here are five books that break that boundary and have truly heartwarming friendships at the forefront of their story lines.
- Harry Potter series by J.K Rowling
A list about heartwarming friendships within books wouldn’t be complete without talking about Harry Potter. The classic series contains some of the most iconic friendship groups of all time! Harry Potter has complicated, well developed friendships, that get better and better throughout the series. The books expertly show the complexities that come with forming and strengthening friendships within the school setting (and in war) as you watch Harry Potter forge friendships while he works towards defeating Voldemort. The characters have to go beyond the school’s house divisions, the blood divisions that are perpetuated within the wizarding world as well as the socio-economic divisions to form friendships with different types of people. Harry Potter gets major points for providing readers with the Golden Trio and The Marauders, which are two friendship groups you can’t help but want to be a part of!
- Radio Silence by Alice Oseman
Radio Silence has one of the best friendships you can find in a book period. The story about the unlikely friendship between a perfect head girl (who’s secretly a fan girl and fan artist) and the smart, quiet boy who’s the creator of the podcast that the girls in love with (and creates art for) is a story like no other! Quite early in the book, it’s made clear that the person who would’ve conventionally been the love interest is simply our protagonist’s friend, and there won’t be a romance between the two characters. One things for sure, Radio Silence does not disappoint! The lack of romance at the center of the plot is by no means a loss within this story. The focus on friendship is wonderfully executed and realistic. You can’t help but get invested in the story and fall in love with the platonic love the two main characters share. Radio Silence leaves you wanting more of the wonderful friendship that is formed and solidified throughout the book, as you read about the two strangers becoming best friends.
- The Perks Of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
If you’re looking for a book with a dynamic, group of friends then The Perks of Being a Wallflower should definitely be at the top of your list. The book tackles friendship from a wallflower’s perspective, and shows how different teenage cliques interact and both inside and outside of school. The book shows how different friendships can come to be, by focusing on our protagonists past and present friendship circles, the friendship the protagonist has with their English teacher, their friendship with their aunt and the friendship that is somewhat formed between the protagonist and the person he is writing letters to. The book is able to capture the most memorable and picturesque parts of the protagonists friendships, while also showing the toxic and problematic elements, in a completely balanced and realistic way. When reading The Perks of Being a Wallflower, you can’t deny that spending time with friends, doing things as mundane as driving, has never looked so good.
- Wonder by R.J. Palacio
Wonder is a book that explores the difficulties of friendship vs popularity in a middle school setting. The book follows a boy who’s going to school for the first time in his life, and has to deal with not only being the “new kid” but also being a child that is “deformed” and not treated fairly because of his differences. The book explores how to deal with having differences that was not looked kindly upon and how to make (and keep) real friends in situations where the majority are against you. Wonder does an excellent job of showing the consequences, for both the boy and other people, that comes with making such a difficult decision. By the end of the book you see the power of friendship, and accepting peoples differences, in a way that leaves you truly content. It’s a book with many lessons about acceptance, life, and friendship.
- Holes by Louis Sachar
This book has the importance of friendship as part of the moral of the story. Holes is about a boy whose been cursed with inter-generational bad luck, and ends up at a juvenile detention camp because of it. At this camp he forms strong friendships with the other boys as they try to survive with doing hard labour in the hot desert sun with minimal water. The book explores friendship intensely, as it is revealed that the boy and his best friend at camp is great-great grandparents were friends who had a promise to each other that wasn’t fulfilled. Holes is story shows how important friendship truly is as you read about how the two boys come together, fulfil the age old promise and break the curse.
