#26 Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison

There are times when being invisible would be a blessing: an unsightly pimple, or a foot-in-your-mouth remark,  but that is not the case for the young black man in Ellison’s classic novel. He tells the story of how throughout his life people have chosen not to see him, though he is a solid, physical being. It was a slow, painful process, becoming invisible, but he embraces it now, as real life has nothing to offer him and he sees it as a joke. He lives rent free in the basement  of an apartment building where he has rigged 1,369 light bulbs powered by stolen electricity.  He is off the grid; invisible.