Blog Post

Plugging into Books to Super-Charge our Empathy Muscles

  • By EmpathyLab
  • 30 May, 2022

Farrah Serroukh, Research and Development Director at CLPE, explores the sheer power of books to change things for the better

It seems reasonable to presume that we have reached a point in the evolution of our species at which enough lives have been lived for key lessons to have been learned. A point at which we should inherently have the capacity to be compassionate, respectful, considerate and kind towards anyone and everyone we encounter. And a point at which the ability to sympathise and empathise with those who share our immediate and wider world should be our default setting. Yet despite the wickedness that has been unleashed on individuals and communities of people around the world and the atrocities that have marked and continue to mark the tapestry of our timeline, this sadly does not seem to be the case. Not only do our societies struggle to exercise these virtues but they also inflict pain upon and exacerbate the struggles of others that they deem lesser or different.

When things are as challenging as they have been in recent times, it can feel like we need a miracle to get us through, a hero to swoop in with a cape to make it all better. But what our time on this planet should have taught us by now is, that heroes don’t come in the muscle packed lycra, draped in a cape image fed to us in comics and on the silver screen. Instead, heroism comes in the form of everyday people of all shapes and sizes, from all walks of life, finding the heart and energy to feel for their fellow humans and draw on this to undertake small and large acts of kindness.

Empathy not only has the capacity to unlock all of these positive traits but can also counteract the cruelty that flourishes in spaces that are void of it. With that said, it is important to recognise empathy as a muscle that must be exercised and one of the greatest tools to aid in such exertion is the humble book. It is therefore apt that the theme of this year’s Empathy Day is reflecting on empathy as our human superpower. The carefully curated book collections featuring a rich range of titles that support young readers to channel empathy, along with the specially designed empathy-boosting resources will help readers to nurture and build that superpower.

Books provide a space for us to walk around in and to explore how we feel and what we think about a whole range of things. Books can help build our understanding of the world and enable us to make sense of our place in it. Books can challenge our thinking and break down barriers. And this year’s collection can also help super-charge empathy as a key superpower.

The 2022 Read For Empathy collections feature important titles such as Catherine Johnson’s Queen of Freedom and Alex Wheatle’s Cane Warriors, that platform significant figures in history who played crucial roles in resisting oppressive forces and whose humanity and heroism is rarely depicted or acknowledged in mainstream discourse. These titles along with David Olusoga’s Black and British deepen and broaden understanding of how the past has shaped the Britain of today, encouraging empathy with the struggle for fair and just treatment for longstanding marginalised communities.

Poetry is a particularly powerful medium that provides scope for sincere, heartfelt insights into the thoughts and feelings of others and through such honesty gives licence to the reader to feel, connect and reflect. The titles in this year’s collection from Manjeet Mann’s powerfully moving verse novel, The Crossing, to the rousing collection curated by Nikita Gill, SLAM! You’re Gonna Wanna Hear This and Karl Nova’s thoughtful and introspective collection The Curious Case of Karl Nova all invite readers to channel and supercharge their empathy muscles in a range of important ways.

All of the picture books, graphic novels, novels and non-fiction titles are uniquely, creatively and sensitively crafted and capture a range of voices, styles and themes, meaning there’s definitely something for everyone across these collections. These books inspire feelings of connection and encourage taking action to improve the world around us and beyond. These books spark the hope that is much needed during these times.

Farrah Serroukh is the Research and Development Director at CLPE, and leads the charity’s important Reflecting Realities research. She also advises EmpathyLab on the diversity and inclusion aspects of our annual Read for Empathy book collections.


By EmpathyLab 29 Feb, 2024
Ofsted have recently said that inspectors need to have more empathy. Journalists have asked politicians where their empathy is when talking about refugees or homeless people. These adults were obviously not at school when EmpathyLab started Empathy Day. But what we hope for children today is that even if they’re not seeing empathy being modelled at home, they are exposed to books in school which promote the consideration of others. The publication of the annual Read for Empathy lists supports schools aiming to develop this crucial life skill.
The collection consists of 65 books for 3-16 year olds, each chosen for its unique contribution in building young people’s empathy.

The primary collection for 3-11 year has 40 books; the secondary collection features 25 books for 12-16 year olds.
By EmpathyLab 29 Feb, 2024

I am very fortunate to have been on the Read for Empathy booklist judging panel over the past few years.

I’m also a practising classroom teacher so I would like to consider how the books on the list can influence what happens in a school.

Firstly, along with many other schools, reading aloud is an important part of our school day, every day, almost without fail. All the teachers at my school are aware of the EmpathyLab booklist, and often use it as a basis for choosing their next class read. Knowing that the books touch on important aspects of our children’s lives is key; we all understand how important representation is in stories. These are books that make a difference, that lead to passionate discussions in the classroom and can actually influence children’s behaviour .

The booklists become increasingly valuable. We have a couple of hundred empathy texts at our school – they are there on merit. Staff often refer to previous lists if there as a particular aspect of empathy that they want to include or share with the children.

Our Year 6 Reading Champions often seek out picture books from the  list to take in to KS1 and Reception when they read stories, so we already have the next generation educating each other about the importance of empathy. I love the fact they often meet beforehand (they tend to work in twos) to discuss what questions they might want to ask the children once the story has been read. After each booklist is released, they also spend several of their Friday recommendation slots in assembly talking about a couple of the books. We have parents in on our Friday assembly so it’s a great way to share the texts with them and help raise their awareness of our work.

We often use the books as our teaching texts for English, partly because they encourage excellent writing but also because they provide a fantastic opportunity for our pupils to develop their empathy skills.  The Wild Robot by Peter Brown, Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo, Freedom by Catherine Johnson, Eyes that Kiss in the Corners by Joanna Ho and A Street Dog Named Pup by Gill Lewis are all books that have made in into our English curriculum as a result of being on one of the Read for Empathy booklists. Well, that’s not strictly true - Edward Tulane was there before that as it’s one of my favourite ever books, but you hopefully take my point.

Reflecting on our empathy journey over the past few years, I’ve also found that the more books children read that address empathy, where they can relate to the characters and their choices, the more books they want to read. It’s almost a virtuous circle. Many begin to realise that such books can  empower them to think about situations.

For example, as soon as we finished A Street Dog Named Pup last year, several of them immediately wanted to read other books by Gill Lewis. Because empathy is a thread that runs through much of her work ( Gorilla Dawn , Moon Bear , The Closest Thing to Flying and so on). Thanks to EmpathyLab's lists, I was able to point them in the direction of several other books, by her and others.

I think we agree that teaching children about empathy and providing them with opportunities to develop it is one of the most important gifts we can give them as adults. The fact that empathy has gone from being something that schools sort of understood a few years ago to being something that has got an increasingly solid evidence base is crucial.

There’s always been anecdotal evidence that reading stories is important for children and that it can change how they think but now that’s backed up with research. The empathy revolution (and it is a revolution) is only going to pick up more momentum over the next few years as the need for it becomes ever more apparent. Working in schools and in the world of children’s books means that we’re in the front line. There’s nowhere else I’d rather be. 
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