Students all across the country are bonded by their mutual hatred of the books they are forced to read for their English class.

These books are usually long, difficult to understand, and, most of the time, boring. However, I believe that they serve a purpose.

These books that we are forced to read, which include some of the greatest works of literature in history, always have an important message.

“Frankenstein,” by Mary Shelley, taught us that looks can be deceiving and that good can be found in even the most seemingly evil of people and vice versa. “To Kill a Mockingbird,” by Harper Lee, showed us that it is important to be educated in good morals.

Books like these have the power to make you feel a deeper connection with the characters and, because of that, deeper emotions.

The way that these authors are able to communicate ideas and stories is amazing. They have the ability to make you feel sad and happy and angry all at once, with just the right words and the right plot.

These books, some of which were written hundreds of years ago, are still relevant to today.

Shakespeare’s play “Hamlet” can be applied to problems today. People will always struggle with what is right.

“Heart of Darkness,” by Joseph Conrad could easily be renamed, “American Sniper.” The plots bear a striking similarity. In both cases, a country sends men into what is seen as an uncivilized place for some purpose, and in both cases there is death and horror.

If what is keeping you from reading books of such meaning and importance is the language and difficulty, then while you are reading, look at the SparkNotes for it. It is OK to get some help to understand a difficult piece of literature.

Also, books do not have to be a hundred years old to carry these deeper meanings. They can be as recently published as yesterday. What matters is what kind of issues they deal with and the development of characters and plot.

For example, “The Kite Runner,” by Khaled Hosseini was published in 2003, just 13 years ago. The language is easy to understand, and while there are some difficult words and jargon, it is simple to pull up an online dictionary and look up their meaning.

Yes, it is true that these books are often more difficult to read and understand, but the takeaway and the feeling that you get at the end of them is worth it.

I admit that there are some books that I was assigned to read that I did not like, instead choosing to use SparkNotes to read the summaries. While it made my life a little easier at the time, I regret it now because I probably will not have the motivation to pick it up again and actually read it, word-for-word.

So next time your English teacher assigns you a book to read, just remember that they are only trying to expand your horizons and introduce you to important themes in the world.

Also, it will not be the end of the world, if instead of watching “The Bachelor,” you do some homework and read a book.

With this next book, try and give it a shot. You just might be surprised.