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Introduction to Literature: What? Why? How?

When is the last time you read a book or a story simply because it interested you? If you were to classify that book, would you call it fiction or literature? This is an interesting separation, with many possible reasons for it. One is that “fiction” and “literature” are regarded as quite different things. “Fiction,” for example, is what people read for enjoyment. “Literature” is what they read for school. Or “fiction” is what living people write and is about the present. “Literature” was written by people (often white males) who have since died and is about times and places that have nothing to do with us. Or “fiction” offers everyday pleasures, but “literature” is to be honored and respected, even though it is boring. Of course, when we put anything on a pedestal, we remove it from everyday life, so the corollary is that literature is to be honored and respected, but it is not to be read, certainly not by any normal person with normal interests.

Sadly, it is the guardians of literature, that is, of the classics, who have done so much to take the life out of literature, to put it on a pedestal and thereby to make it an irrelevant aspect of American life. People study literature because they love literature. They certainly don’t do it for the money. But what happens too often, especially in colleges, is that teachers forget what it was that first interested them in the study of literature. They forget the joy that they first felt (and perhaps still feel) as they read a new novel or a poem or as they reread a work and saw something new in it. Instead, they erect formidable walls around these literary works, giving the impression that the only access to a work is through deep learning and years of study. Such study is clearly important for scholars, but this kind of scholarship is not the only way, or even necessarily the best way, for most people to approach literature. Instead it makes the literature seem inaccessible. It makes the literature seem like the province of scholars. “Oh, you have to be smart to read that,” as though Shakespeare or Dickens or Woolf wrote only for English teachers, not for general readers.

What is Literature?

In short, literature evokes imaginative worlds through the conscious arrangement of words that tell a story. These stories are told through different genres, or types of literature, like novels, short stories, poetry, drama, and the essay. Each genre is associated with certain conventions. In this course, we will study poetry, short fiction, and drama (in the form of movies).

Some Misconceptions about Literature

Of course, there are a number of misconceptions about literature that have to be gotten out of the way before anyone can enjoy it. One misconception is that literature is full of  hidden meanings . There are certainly occasional works that contain hidden meanings. The biblical book of  Revelation , for example, was written in a kind of code, using images that had specific meanings for its early audience but that we can only recover with a great deal of difficulty. Most literary works, however, are not at all like that. Perhaps an analogy will illustrate this point. When I take my car to my mechanic because something is not working properly, he opens the hood and we both stand there looking at the engine. But after we have looked for a few minutes, he is likely to have seen what the problem is, while I could look for hours and never see it. We are looking at the same thing. The problem is not hidden, nor is it in some secret code. It is right there in the open, accessible to anyone who knows how to “read” it, which my mechanic does and I do not. He has been taught how to “read” automobile engines and he has practiced “reading” them. He is a good “close reader,” which is why I continue to take my car to him.

The same thing is true for readers of literature. Generally authors want to communicate with their readers, so they are not likely to hide or disguise what they are saying, but reading literature also requires some training and some practice. Good writers use language very carefully, and readers must learn how to be sensitive to that language, just as the mechanic must learn to be sensitive to the appearances and sounds of the engine. Everything that the writer wants to say, and much that the writer may not be aware of, is there in the words. We simply have to learn how to read them.

Another popular misconception is that a literary work has a  single “meaning”  (and that only English teachers know how to find that meaning). There is an easy way to dispel this misconception. Just go to a college library and find the section that holds books on Shakespeare. Choose one play,  Hamlet , for example, and see how many books there are about it, all by scholars who are educated, perceptive readers. Can it be the case that one of these books is correct and all the others are mistaken? And if the correct one has already been written, why would anyone need to write another book about the play? The answer is this:

Key Takeaways

There is no single correct way to read any piece of literature. 

Again, let me use an analogy to illustrate this point. Suppose that everyone at a meeting were asked to describe a person who was standing in the middle of the room. Imagine how many different descriptions there would be, depending on where the viewer sat in relation to the person. For example, an optometrist in the crowd might focus on the person’s glasses; a hair stylist might focus on the person’s haircut; someone who sells clothing might focus on the style of dress; a podiatrist might focus on the person’s feet. Would any of these descriptions be incorrect? Not necessarily, but they would be determined by the viewers’ perspectives. They might also be determined by such factors as the viewers’ ages, genders, or ability to move around the person being viewed, or by their previous acquaintance with the subject. So whose descriptions would be correct? Conceivably all of them, and if we put all of these correct descriptions together, we would be closer to having a full description of the person.

This is most emphatically NOT to say, however, that all descriptions are correct simply because each person is entitled to his or her opinion

If the podiatrist is of the opinion that the person is five feet, nine inches tall, the podiatrist could be mistaken. And even if the podiatrist actually measures the person, the measurement could be mistaken. Everyone who describes this person, therefore, must offer not only an opinion but also a basis for that opinion. “My feeling is that this person is a teacher” is not enough. “My feeling is that this person is a teacher because the person’s clothing is covered with chalk dust and because the person is carrying a stack of papers that look like they need grading” is far better, though even that statement might be mistaken.

So it is with literature. As we read, as we try to understand and interpret, we must deal with the text that is in front of us ; but we must also recognize (1) that language is slippery and (2) that each of us individually deals with it from a different set of perspectives. Not all of these perspectives are necessarily legitimate, and it is always possible that we might misread or misinterpret what we see. Furthermore, it is possible that contradictory readings of a single work will both be legitimate, because literary works can be as complex and multi-faceted as human beings. It is vital, therefore, that in reading literature we abandon both the idea that any individual’s reading of a work is the “correct” one and the idea that there is one simple way to read any work. Our interpretations may, and probably should, change according to the way we approach the work. If we read The Chronicles of Narnia as teenagers, then in middle age, and then in old age, we might be said to have read three different books. Thus, multiple interpretations, even contradictory interpretations, can work together to give us a fuller and possibly more interesting understanding of a work.

Why Reading Literature is Important

Reading literature can teach us new ways to read, think, imagine, feel, and make sense of our own experiences. Literature forces readers to confront the complexities of the world, to confront what it means to be a human being in this difficult and uncertain world, to confront other people who may be unlike them, and ultimately to confront themselves.

The relationship between the reader and the world of a work of literature is complex and fascinating. Frequently when we read a work, we become so involved in it that we may feel that we have become part of it. “I was really into that movie,” we might say, and in one sense that statement can be accurate. But in another sense it is clearly inaccurate, for actually we do not enter the movie or the story as IT enters US; the words enter our eyes in the form of squiggles on a page which are transformed into words, sentences, paragraphs, and meaningful concepts in our brains, in our imaginations, where scenes and characters are given “a local habitation and a name.” Thus, when we “get into” a book, we are actually “getting into” our own mental conceptions that have been produced by the book, which, incidentally, explains why so often readers are dissatisfied with cinematic or television adaptations of literary works.

In fact, though it may seem a trite thing to say, writers are close observers of the world who are capable of communicating their visions, and the more perspectives we have to draw on, the better able we should be to make sense of our lives. In these terms, it makes no difference whether we are reading a Homeric epic poem like The Odysse y, a twelfth-century Japanese novel like  The Tale of Genji , or a Victorian novel by Dickens, or even, in a sense, watching someone’s TikTok video (a video or movie is also a kind of text that can be “read” or analyzed for multiple meanings). The more different perspectives we get, the better. And it must be emphasized that we read such works not only to be well-rounded (whatever that means) or to be “educated” or for antiquarian interest. We read them because they have something to do with us, with our lives. Whatever culture produced them, whatever the gender or race or religion of their authors, they relate to us as human beings; and all of us can use as many insights into being human as we can get. Reading is itself a kind of experience, and while we may not have the time or the opportunity or  or physical possibility  to experience certain things in the world, we can experience them through reading. So literature allows us to broaden our experiences.

Reading also forces us to focus our thoughts. The world around us is so full of stimuli that we are easily distracted. Unless we are involved in a crisis that demands our full attention, we flit from subject to subject. But when we read a book, even a book that has a large number of characters and covers many years, the story and the writing help us to focus, to think about what they show us in a concentrated manner. When I hold a book, I often feel that I have in my hand another world that I can enter and that will help me to understand the everyday world that I inhabit.

Literature invites us to  meet interesting characters and to visit interesting places, to use our imagination and to think about things that might otherwise escape our notice, to see the world from perspectives that we would otherwise not have.

Watch this video for a discussion of why reading fiction matters.

How to Read Literature: The Basics

• Read with a pen in hand! Yes, even if you’re reading an electronic text, in which case you may want to open a new document in which you can take notes. Jot down questions, highlight things you find significant, mark confusing passages, look up unfamiliar words/references, and record first impressions.
• Think critically to form a response. Here are some things to be aware of and look for in the story that may help you form an idea of meaning.
• Repetitions . You probably know from watching movies that if something is repeated, that means something. Stories are similar—if something occurs more than once, the story is calling attention to it, so notice it and consider why it is repeated. The repeated element can be a word or a phrase, an action, even a piece of clothing or gear.
• Not Quite Right : If something that happens that seems Not Quite Right to you, that may also have some particular meaning. So, for example, if a violent act is committed against someone who’s done nothing wrong, that is unusual, unexpected, that is, Not Quite Right. And therefore, that act means something.
• Address your own biases and compare your own experiences with those expressed in the piece.
• Test your positions and thoughts about the piece with what others think (we’ll do some of this in class discussions).

While you will have your own individual connection to a piece based on your life experiences, interpreting literature is not a willy-nilly process. Each piece of writing has purpose, usually more than one purpose–you, as the reader, are meant to uncover purpose in the text. As the speaker notes in  the video you watched about how to read literature, you, as a reader, also have a role to play. Sometimes you may see something in the text that speaks to you; whether or not the author intended that piece to be there, it still matters to you.

For example, I’ve had a student who had life experiences that she was reminded of when reading “Chonguita, the Monkey Bride” and another student whose experience was mirrored in part of “The Frog King or Iron Heinrich.” I encourage you to honor these perceptions if they occur to you and possibly even to use them in your writing assignments. I can suggest ways to do this if you’re interested.

But remember that when we write about literature, our observations must also be supported by the text itself. Make sure you aren’t reading into the text something that isn’t there. Value the text for what is and appreciate the experience it provides, all while you attempt to create a connection with your experiences.

Attributions:

• Content written by Dr. Karen Palmer and licensed  CC BY NC SA .
• Content adapted from  Literature, the Humanities, and Humanity  by Theodore L. Steinberg and licensed under a  Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

The Worry Free Writer  by Dr. Karen Palmer is licensed under a  Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Introduction to Literature Copyright © by Judy Young is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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3.2: The Purpose of Literature

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What is literature for?

One of the primary goals of this course is to develop an understanding of the importance of literature as a vital source of cultural knowledge in everyday life. Literature is often viewed as a collection of made-up stories, designed to entertain us, to amuse us, or to simply provide us with an escape from the “real” world.

Although literature does serve these purposes, in this course, one of the ways that we will answer the question “What is literature for?” is by showing that literature can provide us with valuable insights about the  world  in which we live and about our  relationships  to one another, as well as to  ourselves  . In this sense, literature may be considered a vehicle for the exploration and discovery of our world and the culture in which we live. It allows us to explore alternative realities, to view things from the perspective of someone completely different to us, and to reflect upon our own intellectual and emotional responses to the complex challenges of everyday life.

By studying literature, it is possible to develop an in-depth understanding of the ways that we use language to make sense of the world. According to the literary scholars, Andrew Bennett and Nicholas Royle, “Stories are everywhere,” and therefore, “Not only do we tell stories, but stories tell us: if stories are everywhere, we are also in stories.” From the moment each one of us is born, we are surrounded by stories — oftentimes these stories are told to us by parents, family members, or our community. Some of these stories are ones that we read for ourselves, and still others are stories that we tell to ourselves about who we are, what we desire, what we fear, and what we value. Not all of these stories are typically considered “literary” ones, but in this course, we will develop a more detailed understanding of how studying literature can enrich our knowledge about ourselves and the world in which we live.

If literature helps us to make sense of, or better yet question, the world and our place in it, then how does it do this? It may seem strange to suggest that literature performs a certain kind of work. However, when we think of other subjects, such as math or science, it is generally understood that the skills obtained from mastering these subjects equips us to solve practical problems. Can the same be said of literature?

To understand the kind of work that literature can do, it is important to understand the kind of knowledge that it provides. This is a very complex and widely debated question among literary scholars. But one way of understanding the kind of knowledge that can be gained from literature is by thinking about how we use language to make sense of the world each day.  (1)

What does literature do?

Every day we use  metaphors  to describe the world. What is a metaphor? According to  A Dictionary of Literary Terms and Literary Theory  , a metaphor is “a figure of speech in which one thing is described in terms of another.” You have probably heard the expressions, “Time is money” or “The administration is a train wreck.” These expressions are metaphors because they describe one less clearly defined idea, like time or the administration of an institution, in relation to a concept whose characteristics are easier to imagine.

A metaphor forms an implied comparison between two terms whereas a  simile  makes an explicit comparison between two terms using the words like or as — for example, in his poem, “A Red, Red Rose,” the Scottish poet Robert Burns famously announces, “O my Luve is like a red, red rose/That’s newly sprung in June.” The association of romantic love with red roses is so firmly established in our culture that one need only look at the imagery associated with Valentine’s Day to find evidence of its persistence. The knowledge we gain from literature can have a profound influence on our patterns of thought and behavior.

In their book  Metaphors We Live By  , George Lakoff and Mark Johnson outline a number of metaphors used so often in everyday conversation that we have forgotten that they are even metaphors, for example, the understanding that “Happy is up” or that “Sad is down.” Likewise, we might think “Darkness is death” or that “Life is light.” Here we can see that metaphors help us to recognize and make sense of a wide range of very complex ideas and even emotions. Metaphors are powerful, and as a result they can even be problematic.

The author Toni Morrison has argued that throughout history the language used by many white authors to describe black characters often expresses ideas of fear or dread — the color black and black people themselves come to represent feelings of loathing, mystery, or dread. Likewise, James Baldwin has observed that whiteness is often presented as a metaphor for safety.  (1)

Figure 1 is taken from a book published in 1857 entitled  Indigenous Races of the Earth  . It demonstrates how classical ideas of beauty and sophistication were associated with an idealized version of white European society whereas people of African descent were considered to be more closely related to apes. One of Morrison’s tasks as a writer is to rewrite the racist literary language that has been used to describe people of color and their lives.

By being able to identify and question the metaphors that we live by, it is possible to gain a better understanding of how we view our world, as well as our relationship to others and ourselves. It is important to critically examine these metaphors because they have very real consequences for our lives.  (1)

• Authored by : Florida State College at Jacksonville. License : CC BY: Attribution
• Race and Skulls. Authored by : Nott, Josiah, and George R. Giddon. Provided by : Wikimedia Commons. Located at : https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Races_and_skulls.png . License : Public Domain: No Known Copyright

What is Novel? Definition, Usage, and Literary Examples

Novel definition.

A novel (NAH-vull) is a narrative work of fiction published in book form. Novels are longer than short stories and novellas, with the greater length allowing authors to expand upon the same basic components of all fictional literature—character, conflict , plot , and setting , to name a few.

Novels have a long, rich history, shaped by formal standards, experimentation, and cultural and social influences. Authors use novels to tell detailed stories about the human condition, presented through any number of genres and styles .

The word novel comes from the Italian and Latin novella , meaning “a new story.”

The History of Novels

Ancient Greek, Roman, and Sanskrit narrative works were the earliest forebears of modern novels. These include the Alexander Romances, which fictionalize the life and adventures of Alexander the Great; Aethiopica , an epic romance by Heliodorus of Emesa; The Golden Ass by Augustine of Hippo, chronicling a magician’s journey after he turns himself into a donkey; and Vasavadatta by Subandhu, a Sanskrit love story.

The first written novels tended to be dramatic sagas with valiant characters and noble quests, themes that would continue to be popular into the 20th century. These early novels varied greatly in length, with some consisting of multiple volumes and thousands of pages.

Novels in the Middle Ages

Literary historians generally recognize Murasaki Shikibu’s The Tale of Genji as the first modern novel, written in 1010. It’s the story of a Japanese emperor and his relationship with a lower-class concubine. Though the original manuscript, consisting of numerous sheets of paper glued together in book-like format, is lost, subsequent generations wrote and passed down the story. Twentieth-century poets and authors have attempted to translate the confusing text, with mixed results.

Chivalric romantic adventures were the novels of choice during the Middle Ages. Authors wrote them in either verse or prose , but by the mid-15th century, prose largely replaced verse as the preferred writing technique in popular novels. Until this time, there wasn’t much distinction between history and fiction; novels blended components of both.

The birth of modern printing techniques in the 16th and 17th centuries resulted in a new market of accessible literature that was both entertaining and informative. As a result, novels evolved into almost exclusively fictional stories to meet this upsurge in demand.

Novels in the Modern Period

Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes’s 1605 work The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha , frequently shortened to Don Quixote , is the first major Western novel. The popularity of Don Quixote and subsequent novels paved the way for the Romantic literary era that began in the latter half of the 18th century. Romantic literature challenged the ideas of both the Age of Enlightenment and the Industrial Age by focusing on novels entrenched in emotion, the natural world, idealism, and the subjective experiences of commoners. Jane Austen, the Brontë sisters, James Fenimore Cooper, and Mary Shelley all emerged as superstars of the Romantic era.

Naturalism was, in many ways, a rebellion against romanticism. Naturalism replaced romanticism in the popular literary imagination by the end of the 19th century. Naturalistic novels favored stories that examined the reasons for the human condition and why characters acted and behaved the way they did. Landmark novels of this era included The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane, McTeague by Frank Norris, and Les Rougon-Macquart by Émile Zola.

Novels in the Present

Many popular novels of the 19th and 20th centuries started out as serializations in newspapers and other periodicals, especially during the Victorian era. Several Charles Dickens novels, including The Pickwick Papers , Alexandre Dumas’s The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo , and Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin began this way, before publishers eventually released them in single volumes.

In the 20th century, many themes of naturalism remained, but novelists began to create more stream-of-consciousness stories that highlighted the inner monologues of their central characters. Modernist literature, including the works of James Joyce, Marcel Proust, and Virginia Woolf, experimented with traditional form and language.

The Great Depression, two World Wars, and the civil rights movement impacted the American novel in dramatic ways, giving the world stories of war and the fallout of war (Ernest Hemingway’s A Farewell to Arms , Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front ); abject poverty and opulent wealth (John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath , F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby ); the Black American experience (Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man , Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God ); and countercultural revolution (Ken Kesey’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest , Jack Kerouac’s On the Road ).

Changing sexual attitudes in the early and mid-20th century allowed authors to explore sexuality in previously unheard-of depth (Henry Miller’s Tropic of Cancer , Anaïs Nin’s Delta of Venus ). By the 1970s, second-wave feminism introduced a new type of novel that centered women as authors of their own fates, not as romantic objects or supporting players existing only in relation to men (Doris Lessing’s The Golden Notebook , Erica Jong’s Fear of Flying ).

Throughout the 20th century, the popularity of the novel grew to such an extent that publishers pushed books more firmly into individual genres and subgenres for better classification and marketing. This resulted in every genre having breakout stars who set specific standards for the works in their category. At the same time, there is literary fiction, often considered more serious because of its greater emphasis on meaning than genre fiction’s entertainment value. However, authors can blur the line between genre and literary fiction; see Stephen King’s novels, Lessing’s space fiction novels, and Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series, to mention just a few. Both genre and literary fiction have legions of devoted fans.

Serialized novels fell out of favor as the 20th century unfolded. Today, novels are almost always published in single volumes. The average wordcount for contemporary adult fiction is 70,000 to 120,000 words, which is approximately 230 to 400 pages.

The Many Types of Novels

Literary Novels

Literary novels are a broad category of books often regarded as having more intellectual merit than genre fiction. These novels are not as bound to formula, and authors feel greater freedom to experiment with style ; examine the psychology and motivations of their characters; and make commentary on larger social conditions or issues. Literary novels possess a certain amount of intellectualism and depth. Their language is rich, their descriptions detailed, and their characters unique and memorable. Examples of popular literary novels include The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt, Life After Life by Kate Atkinson, The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen, and A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara.

Genre Novels

In contrast to literary fiction, authors of genre novels tend to follow more of a basic plot formula, and they paint their characters with broader strokes and less nuance and complexity. Stories in this vein accentuate plot over character. The accepted norms of genre fiction allow a reader to pick up a certain kind of novel and, in general, know what to expect from it. However, the boundaries of genre fiction are considerably malleable, and you could just as easily classify many genre works as lofty as any literary novel. Also, many genre novels fall under more than one genre. Below are several major genres/subgenres of the contemporary novel.

Bildungsroman/Coming of Age

A bildungsroman is a coming-of-age novel that highlights a period of profound emotional, psychological, and/or spiritual growth for a young protagonist. Depending on the nature and depth of the story and the author’s goals, a bildungsroman can skew toward a young readership or an adult one. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain are two notable bildungsroman novels.

Children and Young Adult

More of a catchall term than a genre, children and young adult novels center on young protagonists having formative experiences. Plots deal with issues and challenges of special interest to young readers, such as friendship, bullying, prejudice, school and academic life, gender roles and norms, changing bodies, and sexuality.

Classic children and young adult novels include Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. More recently, some young people’s literature has had a crossover appeal to adult audiences, with the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling and The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins garnering legions of fans both young and old.

Death and romance are major plot points in gothic novels. The supernatural, family curses, stock characters like Byronic heroes and innocent maidens, and moody settings like castles or monasteries usually figure prominently in the storylines. Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë and The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux are two beloved gothic novels.

Historical novels take place in the past, where plots typically involve a specific historical event or era. The novel may or may not include fictionalized versions of real people. Authors of historical fiction often conduct in-depth research of the times about which they write to provide readers with a vivid reimagining of what life was like. Popular historical novels include The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett, The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory, and Roots by Alex Haley.

Authors of horror novels write plots and characters intended to scare or disgust the reader. The stories frequently incorporate elements of the supernatural and/or psychological components designed to startle the reader and get them to question what they know about the characters. The Shining by Stephen King, The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson, and Dracula by Bram Stoker are perennial favorites of this genre.

Mysteries tell stories of crimes and the attempts to solve them. There are multiple types of mystery novels, such as noir, police procedurals, professional and amateur detective fiction, legal thrillers, and cozy mysteries. Examples include Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson, and Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie.

Picaresque novels feature the adventures of impish, lowborn but likeable heroes who barrel through a variety of different encounters, living by their wits in corrupt or oppressive societies. Picaresque novels reached their peak of popularity in Europe from the 16th to 19th centuries, but authors still occasionally write them today. The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling , by Henry Fielding is a classic picaresque, while A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole is a more recent one.

Roman à Clef

A roman à clef is an autobiographical novel, which fictionalizes real people and events. An author of a roman à clef has the freedom to write about controversial or deeply personal, secretive topics without technically exposing anyone or anything—or exposing themselves to charges of libel. They can also imagine different scenarios and resolutions for real-life situations. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath and The Devil Wear Prada by Lauren Weisberger are both roman à clefs.

Romance novels are love stories. The main plot usually features the dramatic courtship of two characters as they discover their feelings and attempt to be together. An antagonist frustrates these attempts but rarely wins, which means romance novels almost always end in a happily-ever-after.

Contemporary romance, historical romance, inspirational romance, and LGBTQ romance are just a few of the subgenres on the market. Examples of romance novels include A Knight in Shining Armor by Jude Deveraux, Outlander by Diana Gabaldon, and The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks.

A satirical novel humorously criticizes someone or something. The author will typically employ exaggerated plots and characters to underscore a specific fallibility or corruption. Common targets include public figures, laws and government policies, and social norms. Satires can possess considerable power by using humor to comment on societal or human flaws. Animal Farm by George Orwell and Catch-22 by Joseph Heller are masterworks of the genre.

Science Fiction and Fantasy

Science fiction novels deal with emerging or new technologies, space exploration, futurism, and other speculative elements. Similarly, fantasy novels integrate elements that defy known scientific laws, with magic and folklore often playing a major role in the worlds and characters created by the author. Science fantasy novels are a subgenre that combine these two forms. The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin and The War of the Worlds are prime examples of science fiction, while The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien and A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin are enduring fantasy classics.

The Great American Novel

A uniquely American phenomenon is what novelist John William DeForest called the “Great American Novel.” The definition of this term is open to some interpretation, but, in general, it refers to a novel that captures the spirit and experience of life in the United States and the essence of the national character. Since DeForest coined the term in 1868, many novels have claimed this title, though there’s no single organization or institution that bestows such a designation. Books cited as a Great American Novel include Moby-Dick by Herman Melville, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, and The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Novels’ Different Styles and Formats

Authors can write novels using any number of techniques. A straightforward narrative that utilizes a conventional plot is just one approach. Others include:

An epistolary novel tells its story through fictional letters, newspaper and magazine clippings, diary entries, emails, and other documents. The Color Purple by Alice Walker and Les Liaisons Dangereuses by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos are examples of epistolary novels.

Experimental

An experimental novel plays with traditional form, plot, character, and/or voice . The author might invent techniques or words that present their story in innovative ways. Such works are sometimes challenging and exhilarating for readers, and they inspire looking at the novel as an ever-evolving art form. Popular experimental novels include Wittgenstein’s Mistress by David Markson and Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn.

Modernism as a distinct literary form flourished in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Modernist fiction challenged conventional ideas of structure and linear storytelling and is a precursor to today’s experimental fiction. Individualism, symbolism , absurdity, and wild experimentation were common in modernist novels. Ulysses by James Joyce and Nightwood by Djuna Barnes are quintessential modernist novels.

Philosophical

Philosophical novels are, more than anything, novels of ideas. They put forth moral, theoretical, and/or metaphysical ideas, assertions, and speculations. They’re not necessarily academic works; they still include plots and characters, but these exist as symbols of a larger philosophical theme. Examples of philosophical novels include The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera and Under the Net by Iris Murdoch.

Sentimental

Sentimental novels tug at the heartstrings. Authors design these novels to appeal to readers’ sympathy and compassion. As its own literary form, sentimental novels—like The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Pamela; or, Virtue Rewarded by Samuel Richardson—abounded during the 18th century. Stella Dallas by Olive Higgins Prouty and Beaches by Iris Rainer Dart are more recent novels written in this style.

Novels written in verse are rare in today’s literary landscape, but they have their roots as far back as The Iliad and The Odyssey . The narratives blend fiction and poetry by telling a fictional tale through traditional verses of rhythms and stanzas . Two contemporary verse novels are Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson and Sharp Teeth by Toby Barlow.

The Function of Novels

Compared to short stories and novellas, novels give authors the opportunity to create more detailed plots, characters, and worlds. An author can delve more fully into the trajectory of the story and the evolution of the characters, presenting struggles, conflicts , and, ultimately, resolutions. For readers, novels also entertain and educate. They can be an escape and a leisure activity, one that engages the mind in a way that other forms of entertainment cannot. They are instructive as well, informing readers about society, history, morality, and/or aspects of the human condition, depending on the novel.

Novels have never been entirely without controversy. They give authors an outlet to create imaginative stories, but they can also function as commentaries on the societies that publish them. Governments, schools, and other authority figures and institutions might see such novels as subversive and even dangerous. This has led many countries, including the United States, to ban novels deemed offensive. Novels banned by authorities at one point or another include The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Lady Chatterley’s Lover by D.H. Lawrence, and Go Tell It on the Mountain by James Baldwin.

Notable Novelists

• Bildungsroman/Coming of Age: Betty Smith, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
• Children and Young Adult: Laura Ingalls Wilder, Little House on the Prairie
• Epistolary: Marilynne Robinson, Gilead
• Experimental: Mark Z. Danielewski, House of Leaves
• Gothic: Mary Shelley, Frankenstein; The Modern Prometheus
• The Great American Novel: Toni Morrison, Beloved
• Historical: Hilary Mantel, Wolf Hall
• Horror: Ira Levin, Rosemary’s Baby
• Literary: Gabriel García Márquez, One Hundred Years of Solitude
• Modernist: Marcel Proust, Swann’s Way
• Mystery: Paula Hawkins, The Girl on the Train
• Philosophical: Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha
• Picaresque: William Makepeace Thackeray, The Luck of Barry Lyndon
• Roman à Clef: Carrie Fisher, Postcards from the Edge
• Romance: Nora Roberts, Northern Lights
• Satire: Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five
• Science Fiction and Fantasy: Octavia E. Butler, Parable of the Sower
• Sentimental: Maria Susanna Cummins, The Lamplighter
• Verse: Allan Wolf, The Watch That Ends the Night: Voices from the Titanic

Examples in Literature

1. Miguel de Cervantes, Don Quixote

Don Quixote is a satire of the chivalric romances popular during Cervantes’s time. Middle-aged Don Quixote of 16th-century La Mancha, Spain, spends his life reading these epic tales. They inspire him to revive what he sees as the lost concept of chivalry, so he picks up a sword and shield and becomes a knight. His goal is to defend the defenseless and eliminate evil. His partner in this endeavor is a poor farmer named Sancho Panza. They ride through Spain on their horses, searching for adventure, and Don Quixote falls in love with a peasant named Dulcinea. Don Quixote and Sancho embark upon multiple quests to restore lost honor to the nation. Ultimately, Don Quixote returns home, denounces his knighthood, and dies of fever, bringing an end to chivalry.

2. Jane Austen, Sense and Sensibility

Sense and Sensibility is a classic Romantic -era novel that also contains some satirical elements that wittily criticize the social decorum of the time. In 1790s England, Henry Dashwood’s death leaves his wife and three daughters nearly destitute. The older daughters, Elinor and Marianne, realize their only hope for saving the family is to find suitable husbands.

Sensible Elinor falls for Edward Ferrars, while romantic Marianne feels torn between dashing John Willoughby and sturdy Colonel Brandon. After recovering from a fever, Marianne realizes Colonel Brandon is the steady force she desires, not the impetuous Willoughby, and after some initial confusion, Elinor learns that Edward is in love with her. The young women marry their suitors, and the two couples live as neighbors.

3. F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby is a novel that examines the American Dream, class inequality, and themes of love and loss. Nick Carraway arrives on Long Island in the spring of 1922, moving into a cottage next to a sprawling estate owned by elusive millionaire Jay Gatsby. Known for hosting lavish parties that he never attends, Gatsby is an almost mythic figure in the community. Nick learns that Gatsby is passionately in love with Daisy, the wife of Nick’s old college friend Tom, who has a mistress named Myrtle.

Nick wrangles an invitation to one of Gatsby’s parties, and the two become friends. Through Nick, Gatsby arranges a meeting with Daisy, beginning an intense affair. One night, Gatsby and Daisy are driving home and accidently run into and kill Myrtle. Daisy was the one driving, but Gatsby takes the blame, and Myrtle’s husband kills him. The entire experience leaves Nick cold toward New York life, feeling that he, Gatsby, Daisy, and Tom never fit in with this world.

4. Toni Morrison, Beloved

Beloved is an historical novel that delves into the lasting psychological effects of slavery. Sethe, a formerly enslaved woman, lives with her daughter Denver in 1870s Cincinnati. Paul D, a man enslaved with Sethe on the Sweet Home plantation, arrives at their door, and not long after, a mysterious young woman—only identifying herself as Beloved—arrives as well. Sethe eventually believes that Beloved is the incarnation of her youngest daughter, who she killed to prevent her capture and sale into slavery.

Sethe grows obsessed with Beloved, losing her job, pushing away Paul D, and alienating Denver in the process. Denver reaches out to the local Black community and gets a job working for a white family. When Denver’s employer comes to pick her up for her first day of work, Sethe, by this time delirious and delusional, thinks he’s a slavecatcher coming yet again to take Beloved. She attempts to attack him but is held back by the townspeople, an act that seemingly sets Beloved free, and the mysterious young woman disappears in a cloud of butterflies. Denver supports the family, and Paul D returns to Sethe and reminds her of her worth.

Further Resources on Novels

Jane Friedman answers the question, What is a literary novel?

The Guardian has a list of their picks for the 100 best novels written in English .

Literary Hub offers insights into the Great American Novel .

Writer’s Digest shares the 10 rules of writing a novel .

Writing coach Vivian Reis coaches beginners through the writing of a novel .

Related Terms

• Point of View
• Romanticism
• Science Fiction

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Blog – Posted on Wednesday, Oct 13

The 100 best classic books to read.

Ever been caught up in a conversation about books and felt yourself cringe over your literary blind spots? Classic literature can be intimidating, but getting acquainted with the canon isn't just a form of torture cooked up by your high school English teacher: instead, an appreciation for the classics will help you see everything that's come since in a different light, and pick up on allusions that you'll begin to notice everywhere. Above all, they're just great reads — they've stood the test of time for a reason!

If you've always wanted to tackle the classics but never knew quite where to begin, we've got you covered. We've hand-selected 100 classic books to read, written by authors spanning continents and millennia. From love stories to murder mysteries, nonfiction to fantasy, there's something for everybody.

1. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez

This milestone Spanish novel may as well be titled 100 Years on Everyone’s Must-Read List — it’s just a titan in the world literature canon. We could go on about its remarkable narrative technique, beguiling voice, and sprawling cast of characters spanning seven generations. Its famous first line may be all that’s needed to win you over: “Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano Buendía was to remember that distant afternoon when his father took him to discover ice.”

2. The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton

Newland Archer, one of 1900s New York’s most eligible bachelors, has been looking for a traditional wife, and May Welland seems just the girl — that is until Newland meets entirely unsuitable Ellen Olenska. He must now choose between the two women — and between old money prestige and a value that runs deeper than social etiquette.

3. The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

This allegorical tale, often recommended as a self-help book , follows young shepherd Santiago as he journeys to Egypt searching for a hidden treasure. A parable telling readers that the universe can help them realize their dreams if they only focus their energy on them, Coelho’s short novel has endured the test of time and remains a bestseller today.

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4 . All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque

Erich Maria Remarque’s wartime classic broke ground with its unflinching look at the human cost of war through the eyes of German soldiers in the Great War. With a lauded 1930 film adaptation (only the third to win Best Picture at the Oscars), All Quiet on the Western Front remains as powerful and relevant as ever.

5 . American Indian Stories, Legends, and Other Writings by Zitkála-Šá

Zitkála-Šá’s stories invite readers into the world of Sioux settlement, sharing childhood memories, legends, and folktales, and a memoir account of the Native American author ’s transition into Western culture when she left home. Told in beautiful, fluid language, this is a must-read book.

The World's Bestselling Mystery \'Ten . . .\' Ten strangers are lured to an isolated island mansion off the Devon coast by a mysterious \'U.N. Owen.\' \'Nine . . .\' At dinner a recorded message accuses each of them in turn of having a guilty secret, and by the end of the night one of the guests is dead. \'Eight . . .\' Stranded by a violent storm, and haunted by a nursery rhyme counting down one by one . . . one by one they begin to die. \'Seven . . .\' Who among them is the killer and will any of them survive?

6 . And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

First, there were ten who arrived on the island. Strangers to one another, they shared one similarity: they had all murdered in the past. And when people begin dropping like flies, they realize that they are the ones being murdered now. An example of a mystery novel done right, this timeless classic was penned by none other than the Queen of Mystery herself .

7 . Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

Tolstoy’s celebrated novel narrates the whirlwind tale of Anna Karenina. She’s married to dull civil servant Alexei Karenin when she meets Count Vronsky, a man who changes her life forever. But an affair doesn’t come without a moral cost, and Anna’s life is soon anything but blissful.

8 . The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

Sylvia Plath’s only novel follows the young, ambitious Esther Greenwood, who falls into a depression after a directionless summer, culminating in a suicide attempt. But even as Esther survives and receives treatment, she continues wondering about her purpose and role in society — leading to much larger questions about existential fulfillment. Poetically written and stunningly authentic, The Bell Jar continues to resonate with countless readers today.

9. Beloved by Toni Morrison

Many books are said to have helped shape the world — but only a few can really stake that claim. Toni Morrison’s Beloved is one of them. One of the great literary luminaries of our time, her best-known novel is the searingly powerful story of Sethe, who was born a slave in Kentucky. Though she’s since escaped to Ohio, she is haunted by her dead baby, whose tombstone is engraved with one word: Beloved .

10 . The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories by Angela Carter

Before the recent fad of feminist retellings of fairy tales, there was The Bloody Chamber . But Angela Carter’s retold tales, including twisted versions of Little Red Riding Hood and Beauty and the Beast, are more than just feminist: they’re original, darkly irreverent, and fiercely independent. This classic book is exactly what you’d expect from the author who inspired contemporary masters like Neil Gaiman, Sarah Waters, and Margaret Atwood.

11. Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote

Though the title evokes Audrey Hepburn, this novella came first — and the literary Holly Golightly is a very different creature from the 'good-time girl' who falls for George Peppard. Clever and chameleonic, she crafts her persona to fit others’ expectations, chasing her own American Dream while letting men think they can have it with her… only to slip through their fingers. A fascinating character study and a triumph of Capote’s wit and humanity.

12. Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh

Set in the opulent inter-war era in England, Brideshead Revisited chronicles the increasingly complex relationship between Oxford student Charles Ryder, his university chum Sebastian, whose noble family they visit at their grand seat of Brideshead. A lush, nostalgic, and passionate rendering of a bygone era of English aristocracy.

13. A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking

Welcome to Theoretical Physics 101. If it sounds daunting, you aren’t alone, and Stephen Hawking does a beautiful job guiding layperson readers through complex subjects. If you’re keen to learn more about such enigmas as black holes, relativity theory, quantum mechanics, and time itself, this is a perfect first taste.

14. The Call of the Wild (Reader's Library Classics) by Jack London

London's American classic is the bildungsroman of Buck: a St. Bernard/Scotch Collie mix who must adapt to life as a sled dog after a domesticated upbringing. Thrown into a harsh new reality, he must trust his instincts to survive. When he falls into the hands of a wise, experienced outdoorsman, will he become loyal to his new master or finally answer the call of the wild?

15. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

Salinger’s angsty coming-of-age tale is an English class cornerstone for a good reason. The story follows Holden Caulfield, a 17-year-old boy fed up with prep school “phonies.” Escaping to New York in search of authenticity, he soon discovers that the city is a microcosm of the society he hates. Relentlessly cynical yet profoundly moving, The Catcher in the Rye will strike a chord not just with Holden’s fellow teens but with earnest thinkers of all ages.

16. A Christmas Carol (Bantam Classics) by Charles Dickens

If you’re not acquainted with Dickens , then his evergreen Christmastime classic is the perfect introduction. Not only is it one of his best-loved works, but it’s also a slim 104 pages — a true yuletide miracle from an author with a tendency towards the tome! This short length means it’s the perfect book with which to cozy up in winter, just when you want to feel that warm holiday glow.

17. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

En route to his wedding, merchant sailor Edmond Dantès is shockingly accused of treason and thrown in prison without cause. There, he learns the secret location of a great fortune — knowledge that incites him to escape his grim fortress and take revenge on his accusers. With peerlessly propulsive prose, Dumas spins an epic tale of retribution, jealousy, and suffering that deserves every page he gives it.

18. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

A masterclass in character development , the very title of Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment is essentially an idiom for 'epic literature.' It centers around Raskolnikov, an unremarkable man who randomly murders someone after convincing himself that his motives are lofty enough to justify his actions. It turns out that it’s never that simple, and his conscience begins to call to him more and more.

19. Dangerous Liaisons by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos

The inspiration for the seminal 90s teen drama Cruel Intentions , Laclos's epistolary classic is a heady pre-revolutionary cocktail of sex and scandal that paints a damning portrait of high society. Laclos expertly plays with form and structure, composing a riveting narrative of letters passed between the Marquise de Merteuil and the Vicomte de Valmont — aristocratic former lovers who get in over their heads when they start playing with people's hearts. 

20. The Death of Artemio Cruz by Carlos Fuentes

In this highly atmospheric book, Fuentes draws the reader in with hypnotic, visceral descriptions of the final hours of its title character: a multifaceted tycoon, revolutionary, lover, and politician. As with many classic books, death here symbolizes corruption — yet it’s also impossible to ignore as a physical reality. As well as being a powerful statement on mortality, it's a moving history of the Mexican Revolution and a landmark in Latin-American literature .

21. Diary of a Madman, and other stories by Lu Xun

This collection is a modern Chinese classic containing chilling, satirical stories illustrating a time of great social upheaval. With tales that ask questions about what constitutes an individual's life, ordinary citizens' everyday experiences blend with enduring feudal values, ghosts, death, and even a touch of cannibalism.

22. Samuel Pepys The Diaries by Samuel Pepys

Best known for his recording the Great Fire of London, Samuel Pepys was a man whose writings have provided modern historians with one of the greatest insights into 17th-century living. The greatest hits of his diary include eyewitness accounts of the restoration of the monarchy and the Great Plague. The timelessness of this book, however, is owed to the richness of Pepys's day-to-day drama, which he records in unsparing, lively detail.

23 . A Doll's House and Other Plays (Penguin Classics) by Henrik Ibsen

Ibsen’s A Doll’s House is a powerful play starring the seemingly frivolous housewife Nora. Her husband, Torvald, considers her to be a silly “bird” of a companion, but in reality, she’s got a much firmer grasp on the hard facts of their domestic life than he does. Readers will celebrate as she finds the voice to speak her true thoughts.

24. Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes

Entranced by tales of chivalry, a minor nobleman reinvents himself as a knight. He travels the land jousting giants and delivering justice — though, in reality, he’s tilting at windmills and fighting friars. And while Don Quixote lives out a fantasy in his head, an imposter puts it to the page, further blurring the line between fiction and reality. Considered by many to be the first modern novel, Don Quixote is undoubtedly the work of a master storyteller.

25. The Dream of The Red Chamber by Cao Xueqin

A treasured classic of Chinese literature, Dream of the Red Chamber is a rich, sprawling text that explores the darkest corners of high society during the Qing Dynasty. Focusing on two branches of a fading aristocratic clan, it details the lives of almost forty major characters, including Jia Baoyu, the heir apparent whose romantic notions may threaten the family's future.

26. Dune by Frank Herbert

A dazzling epic science fiction classic, Dune created a now-immortalized interstellar society featuring a conflict between various noble families. On the desert planet of Arrakis, House Atreides controls the production of a high-demand drug known as "the spice". As political conflicts mount and spice-related revelations occur, young heir Paul Atreides must push himself to the absolute limit to save his planet and his loved ones.

27. The Fellowship of the Ring by J. R. R. Tolkien

Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy became the blueprint for countless fantasy series , and this first installment is its epic start. In The Fellowship of the Ring, we meet Frodo Baggins and his troupe of loyal friends, all of whom embark on a fateful mission: to destroy the One Ring and its awful powers forever.

28. The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan

Betty Friedan’s disruptive feminist text sheds light on the midcentury dissatisfaction of homemakers across America. Her case studies of unhappy women relegated to the domestic sphere, striving for careers and identities beyond the home, cut deep even now — and in retrospect, were a clear catalyst for second-wave feminism in the United States.

29. Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

Shelley’s hugely influential classic recounts the tragic tale of Victor Frankenstein: a scientist who mistakenly engineers a violent monster. When Victor abandons his creation, the monster escapes and threatens to kill Victor’s family — unless he’s given a mate. Facing tremendous moral pressure, Victor must choose: foster a new race to possibly destroy humanity, or be responsible for the deaths of everyone he’s ever loved?

30. Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin

A defining entry in the LGBTQ+ canon , Giovanni’s Room relates one man’s struggle with his sexuality, as well as the broader consequences of the toxic patriarchy. After David, our narrator, has traveled to France to find himself, he begins a relationship with messy, magnetic Giovanni — the perfect foil to David’s safe, dull girlfriend. As more trouble arises, David agonizes over who he is, what he wants, and whether it is even possible to obtain it in this world.

31. The Golden Notebook by Doris Lessing

This inventive meta novel is the first of Lessing’s “inner space” works, dealing with ideas of mental and societal breakdown. It revolves around writer Anna Wulf, who hopes to combine the notebooks about her life into one grand narrative. But despite her creative strides, Anna has irreparably fragmented herself — and working to re-synthesize her different sides eventually drives her mad.

32. Goodbye To All That by Robert Graves

Few people possess enough raw material to pen a memoir at the age of 34. Robert Graves — having already lived through the First World War and the seismic shifts it sparked in English society and sensibilities — peppers his sober account of social and personal turmoil with moments of surprising levity. Graves would later go on to write I, Claudius, a novel of the Roman Empire that is considered one of the greatest books ever written.

33. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

Following one Oklahoma family’s journey out of the Dust Bowl in search of a better life in California, Steinbeck’s classic is a vivid snapshot of Depression-era America, and about as devastating as it gets. Both tragic and awe-inspiring, The Grapes of Wrath is widely considered to be Steinbeck's best book and a front-runner for the title of The Great American Novel.

34. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

When talking of the Great American Novel, you cannot help but mention this work by F. Scott Fitzgerald. More than just a champagne-soaked story of love, betrayal, and murder, The Great Gatsby has a lot to say about class, identity, and belonging if you scratch its surface. You probably read this classic book in high school, but a return visit to West Egg is more than justified.

35. The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers

Meet John Singer, a deaf and nonverbal man who sits in the same café every day. Here, in the deep American South of the 1930s, John meets an assortment of people and acts as the silent, kind keeper of their stories — right up until an unforgettable ending that will blow you away. It’s hard to believe McCullers was only 23 when she penned this Southern gothic classic.

36. The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon

An epic work that befits its lengthy title, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire chronicles thirteen centuries of Roman rule. It chronicles its leaders, conflicts, and the events that led to its collapse— an outcome that Gibbon lays at the feet of Christianity. This work is an ambitious feat at over six volumes, though one that Gibbon pulls off with great panache.

37. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

Arthur Dent is an Englishman, an enjoyer of tea — and the only person to survive the destruction of the Earth. Accompanied by an alien author, Dent must now venture into the intergalactic bypass to figure out what’s going on. Though by no means the first comedic genre book, Douglas Adams’s masterpiece certainly popularized the idea that science fiction doesn't have to be earnest and straight-faced.

38. The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Arthur Conan Doyle’s world-famous detective needs no introduction. Mythologized in film and television many times over by now, this mystery of a diabolical hound roaming the moors in Devon is perhaps Sherlock Holmes’s most famous adventure.

39. The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende

Few first-time novelists have had the kind of impact and success enjoyed by Isabel Allende with her triumphant debut. Found at the top of pretty much every list of ‘best sweeping family sagas,’ The House of the Spirits chronicles the tumultuous history of the Trueba family, entwining the personal, the political, and the magical.

40. How to Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie

A perennial personal development staple, How to Win Friends and Influence People has been flying off the shelves since its release in 1936. Full of tried-and-true tips for garnering favor in both professional and personal settings, you’ll want to read the classic book that launched the entire self-help industry.

41. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

From a small Southern town to San Francisco, this landmark memoir covers Maya Angelou’s childhood years growing up in the United States, facing daily prejudice, racism, and sexism. Yet what shines the brightest on every page is Maya Angelou’s voice — which made the book an instant classic in 1969 and has endured to this day.

42. I, Robot by Isaac Asimov

You don’t have to be a sci-fi buff (or a Will Smith fan) to understand I, Robot’s iconic status. But if you are one, you’ll know the impact Isaac Asimov’s short story collection has had on subsequent generations of writers. Razor-sharp and thought-provoking, these tales of robotic sentience are still deeply relevant today.

43. If This Is a Man by Primo Levi

Spare, unflinching, and horrifying, If This Is a Ma n is Italian-Jewish writer Primo Levi’s autobiographical account of life under fascism and his detention in Auschwitz. It serves as an invaluable historical document and a powerful insight into the atrocities of war, making for a challenging but essential read.

44. Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison

From Ellison’s exceptional writing to his affecting portrayal of Black existence in America, Invisible Man is a true masterpiece. The book’s unnamed narrator describes experiences ranging from frustrating to nightmarish, reflecting on the “invisibility” of being seen only as one’s racial identity. Weaving in threads of Marxist theory and political unrest, this National Book Award winner remains a radical, brilliant must-read for the 21st century.

45. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

Like a dark, sparkling jewel passed down through generations, Charlotte Brontë’s exquisite Gothic romance continues to be revered and reimagined more than 170 years after its publication. Its endurance is largely thanks to the intensely passionate and turbulent relationship between headstrong heroine Jane and the mysterious Mr. Rochester — a romance that is strikingly modern in its sexual politics.

46. The Journey to the West by Wu Cheng'en

Journey to the West is an episodic Chinese novel published anonymously in the 16th century and attributed to Wu Cheng’en. Today, this beloved text — a rollicking fantasy about a mischievous, shape-shifting monkey god and his fallen immortal friends — is the source text for children’s stories, films, and comics. But this classic book is also an insightful comic satire and a monument of literature comparable to The Canterbury Tales or Don Quixote.

47. Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

A science fiction novel by one of the genre's greats, Kindred asks the toughest “what if” question there is: What if a modern black woman was transported back in time to antebellum Maryland? Octavia Butler sugarcoats nothing in this incisive, time-traveling inquisition into race and racism during one of the most horrifying periods in American history.

49. The Lonely Londoners by Samuel Selvon

The Lonely Londoners occupies a unique historical position as one of the earliest accounts of the Black working-class in 20th-century Britain. Selvon delves into the lives of immigrants from the West Indies, most of whom feel disillusioned and listless in London. But with its singular slice-of-life style and humor, The Lonely Londoners is hardly a tragic novel — only an unflinchingly honest one.

50. Lord of the Flies by William Golding

Another high school English classic, Lord of the Flies recounts the fate of a group of young British boys stranded on a desert island. Though they initially attempt to band together, rising tensions and paranoia lead to in-fighting and, eventually, terrible violence. The result is a dark cautionary tale against our own primitive brutality — with the haunting implication that it's closer to the surface than we'd like to think.

51. Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert

Flaubert’s heroine Emma Bovary is the young wife of a provincial doctor who escapes her banal existence by devouring romance novels. But when Emma decides she remains unfulfilled, she starts seeking romantic affairs of her own — all of which fail to meet her expectations or rescue her from her mounting debt. Though Flaubert’s novel caused a moral outcry on publication, its portrayal of a married woman’s affair was so realistic, many women believed they were the model for his heroine.

52. The Man Who Would Be King by Rudyard Kipling

This short novella tells the story of two British men visiting India while the country is a British colony. Swindlers and cheats, the men trick their way to Kafiristan, a remote region where one of them comes to be revered as king. A cautionary tale warning against letting things go to your head, this funny and absurd read has also been made into a classic film starring Michael Caine and Sean Connery.

53. Middlemarch by George Eliot

Subtitled A Study of Provincial Life , this novel concerns itself with the ordinary lives of individuals in the fictional town of Middlemarch in the early 19th century. Hailed for its depiction of a time of significant social change, it also stands out for its gleaming idealism, as well as endless generosity and compassion towards the follies of humanity.

54. Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie

Born in the first hour of India’s independence, Saleem Sinai is gifted with the power of telepathy and an extraordinary sense of smell. He soon discovers that there are 1,001 others with similar abilities — people who can help Saleem build a new India. The winner of the Booker prize in 1981, Salman Rushdie’s groundbreaking novel is a triumphant achievement of magical realism .

55. Moby-Dick by Herman Melville

Moby-Dick is more than the story of a boy on-board a whaling ship, more than an ode to marine lore and legend, and even more than a metaphysical allegory for the struggle between good and evil. Herman Melville’s “Great American Novel” is a masterful study of faith, obsession, and delusion — and a profound social commentary born from his lifelong meditation on America. The result will fill you with wonder and awe.

56. My Antonia by Willa Cather

Willa Cather’s celebrated classic about life on the prairie, My Ántonia tells the nostalgic story of Jim and Ántonia, childhood friends and neighbors in rural Nebraska. As well as charting the passage of time and the making of America, it’s a book that fills readers with wonder and a warm feeling of familiarity.

57. The Name Of The Rose by Umberto Eco

Originally published in Italian, The Name of the Rose is one of the bestselling books of all time — and for good reason. Umberto Eco plots a wild ride from start to finish: an intelligent murder mystery that combines theology, semiotics, empiricism, biblical analysis, and layers of metanarratives that create a brilliant labyrinth of a book.

58. The Nether World by George Gissing

A masterpiece of realism, The Nether World forces the reader to spend time with the type of marginalized people routinely left out of fiction: the working class of late 19th century London, a group whose many problems are intertwined with money. Idealistic in its pessimism, this fantastic novel insists that life is much more demanding than fiction lets show.

59. Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell

George Orwell’s story of a heavily surveilled dystopian state was heralded as prescient and left a lasting impact on popular culture and language (“Room 101”, “Big Brother,” and “Doublethink” were all born in its pages, to name a few). Just read it, if only to recognize its references, which you’ll begin to notice everywhere .

60. North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell

Uprooted from the South, a pastor's daughter, Margaret Hale, finds herself living in an industrial town in England's North. She encounters the suffering of the local mill workers and the mill owner John Thornton — and two very different passions ignite. In North and South, Elizabeth Gaskell fuses personal feeling with social concern, creating in the process a heroine that feels original and strikingly modern.

61. The Odyssey by Homer

This timeless classic has the heart-racing thrills of an adventure story and the psychological drama of an intricate family saga. After ten years fighting in a thankless war, Odysseus begins the long journey home to Ithaca — where his wife Penelope struggles to hold off a horde of suitors. But with men and gods standing in their way, will Odysseus and Penelope ever be reunited?

62. The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

Ernest Hemingway ’s career culminated with The Old Man and the Sea, the last book he published in his lifetime. This ocean-deep novella has a deceptively simple premise — an aging fisherman ventures out into the Gulf Stream determined to break his unlucky streak. What follows is a battle that’s small in scale but epic in feeling, rendered in Hemingway’s famously spare prose.

63. On The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin

Questioning the idea of a Creator — and therefore challenging the beliefs of most of the Western world — in The Origin of Species , Darwin explored a theory of evolution based on laws of natural selection. Not only is this text still considered a groundbreaking scientific work, but the ideas it puts forward remain fundamental to modern biology. And it’s totally readable to boot!

64. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey

The subjective nature of “sanity,” institutional oppression, and rejection of authority are just a few of the issues tackled in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest . The rebellious Randle McMurphy is this story’s de facto hero, and his clashes with the notorious Nurse Ratched have not only inspired a host of spin-offs but arguably a whole movement of fiction related to mental health.

65. One Thousand and One Nights by Anonymous

Embittered by his first wife’s infidelity, King Shahryar takes a new bride every night and beheads her in the morning — until Scheherazade, his latest bride, learns to use her imagination to stave off death. In this collection of Arabic folk tales, the quick-witted storyteller Scheherazade demonstrates the power of a good cliffhanger — on both the king and the reader!

66. Orientalism by Edward W. Said

An intelligent critique of the way the Western world perceives the East, Orientalism argues that the West’s racist, oppressive, and backward representation of the Eastern world is tied to imperialism. Published in 1978, Edward Said’s transformative text changed academic discourse forever.

67. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Thanks to the wit and wisdom of Jane Austen, the love story of Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy (pioneers of the enemies-to-lovers trope) is not merely a regency romance but a playful commentary on class, wealth, and the search for self-knowledge in a world governed by strict etiquette. Light, bright, and flawlessly crafted, Pride and Prejudice is an Austen classic you’re guaranteed to love.

68. The Princesse de Clèves by Madame de Lafayette

Often called the first modern novel from France, The Princesse de Cleves is an account of love, anguish, and their inherent inseparability: an all-too-familiar story, despite the 16th-century setting. Though the plot is simple — an unrequited love, unspoken until it’s not — Madame de Lafayette pours onto the pages a moving and profound analysis of the fragile human heart.

69. The Reader by Bernhard Schlink

The Reader is set in postwar Germany, a society still living in the shadow of the Holocaust. The book begins with an older woman’s relationship with a minor, though it isn’t even the most shocking thing that happens in this novel. Concerned with disconnection and apathy, Schlink’s book grapples with the guilty weight of the past without flinching from the horror of the present.

70. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

“Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.” Du Maurier’s slow-burning mystery has been sending a chill down readers’ spines for decades, earning its place in the horror hall of fame. It’s required reading for any fan of the genre, but reader beware: this gorgeously gothic novel will keep you up at night.

71. A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf

A mainstay of feminist literature , A Room of One’s Own experimentally blends fiction and fact to drill down into the role of women in literature as both subjects and creatives. Part critical theory, part rallying cry, this slender book still packs a powerful punch.

72. Season of Migration to the North by Tayeb Salih

Described by Edward Said as one of the great novels in the oeuvre of Arabic books, Season of Migration to the North is the revolutionary narrative of two men struggling to re-discover their Sudanese identities following the impact of British colonialism. Some compare it to Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness , but it stands tall in its own right.

73. The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir

A foundational feminist text , Simone de Beauvoir's treatise The Second Sex marked a watershed moment in feminist history and gender theory. It rewards the efforts of those willing to traverse its nearly 1,000 pages with eye-opening truths about gender, oppression, and otherness.

74. The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins

How do genes work? And what does that mean for our chances of survival? Often cited as one of the most influential science books of all time, Richard Dawkins’ The Selfish Gene seeks to answer these pressing questions and more. It also touts the dubious glory of introducing the word “meme” into the public consciousness. 

75. The Shining by Stephen King

Jack Torrance is the new off-season caretaker at the Overlook Hotel. Providing his family with a home and him with enough time to write, it’s the perfect job, but for one tiny problem: the hotel may be haunted. And it’s only going to get worse once winter sets in. If you only read one horror book in your lifetime, you could do much worse than Stephen King’s The Shining .

76. Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse

The story of a man casting off his worldly possessions in the pursuit of self-discovery and enlightenment, Siddhartha may seem intimidatingly philosophical at first glance. In reality, though, Herman Hesse’s German-language classic is surprisingly accessible, and as page-turning and readable as it is spiritually enlightening.

77. The Sorrows Of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

A defining work in early Romanticism that influenced the likes of Mary Shelley and Thomas Mann, The Sorrows of Young Werther is an epistolary novel that tells of a young writer infatuated with someone else’s betrothed. Drawing heavily on his own experience of ill-fated love, as well as the death of his good friend, Goethe makes the pages hum with angst and repressed desire.

78. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

Dr. Jekyll’s attempt to indulge in his vices transforms him into the horrific Mr. Hyde. The more Jekyll yields to his urges, the more powerful Hyde becomes until even Jekyll can’t control him. The result is a thrilling story of supernatural horror and a potent allegory that warns against giving in to one’s dark side.

79. The Stranger by Albert Camus

The Stranger opens with Meursault, our hero, learning of the death of his mother. His reaction to the news is put under intense scrutiny from those around him. The reader is led in a strange dance of absurdism and existentialism that sees Meursault confront something even crueler than mortality: society’s expectations.

80. A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth by Vikram Seth

Recently adapted into a hit drama by the BBC, A Suitable Boy is one of the newer books on our list but has already landed classic status. At nearly 1,500 pages long, the story of 19-year-old Lata's attempts to resist her family's efforts to marry her off to "a suitable boy" is astonishing in its execution and eye-opening look at class, religion, and gendered expectations in mid-century India.

81. The Tale of Genji by Murasaki Shikibu

The Tale of Genji follows the romantic and political misadventures of a young official born to one of the emperor’s consorts. With no place in the line of succession, Genji makes his way through life using his good looks and charm — but these gifts ultimately bring him more sorrow than joy. Elegant and immersive, this captivating classic is often touted as the first in-depth character study.

82. Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy

Set against sweeping landscapes and wind-torn fields, Tess of the D’Urbervilles focuses on the life of young Tess Durbeyfield, who, by her family’s great poverty, is forced to claim kinship with the wealthy D’Urberville family. What follows is a devastating tragedy, as Tess meets harsher and harsher treatment at the hands of men.

83. Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

After being caught kissing down-and-out Johnny Taylor, sixteen-year-old Janie is promptly married off to an older man. Following her journey through adolescence, adulthood, and a string of unsatisfying marriages with unblinking honesty, Their Eyes Were Watching God is one of the seminal masterpieces of African American literature .

84. Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

Chinua Achebe’s magnum opus follows Okonkwo, an Igbo man whose sole aim is to rise above his father’s weak legacy. Okonkwo is strong and fearless, but his obsession with masculinity leads him to violently dominate others — until he goes too far one day. The following events form an unparalleled tragedy, made all the more gripping by rich details of pre-colonial Igbo culture and timeless questions about tradition and honor.

85. Thousand Cranes by Yasunari Kawabata

When a young man meets his late father’s mistress at a tea ceremony, he succumbs to a desire that is both transgressive and overpowering. While the tragic consequences of their love affair unfold, Kawabata delicately guides us through a world of passion, regret, and exquisite beauty. No wonder Thousand Cranes helped him land a Nobel Prize.

86. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

This unforgettable classic centers on race relations and justice in the Depression-era South. Narrated by our protagonist as an adult, it looks back to her childhood when her father defended a Black man falsely accused of rape. She muses on what their small town’s reactions to the trial taught her about prejudice and morality. Despite the heavy subject matter, Scout’s warm, insightful voice makes To Kill a Mockingbird a joy to read; no wonder it’s often cited as the Great American Novel.

87. The Trial by Franz Kafka

The Trial begins with a bank cashier, Josef K., accused of an unspecified crime and told to await a court summons. Josef attempts to figure out what he has “done” but is met only with chaos and despair, and his sanity continues to fray as he goes through this maddening ordeal.

88. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James

Henry James’ brilliance arguably reached a pinnacle with The Turn of the Screw , a Gothic novella about a governess who cares for two children in the estate of Bly. She grows convinced that the grounds are haunted by ghosts — but are they, really?

89. Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northup

Steve McQueen’s Oscar-winning adaptation recently drew renewed attention to this vital work by Solomon Northup, a memoir that takes a well-deserved place on every complete list of classic books. As a free and educated man kidnapped and sold into slavery, Northup was able to write an extraordinarily full account of life on a cotton plantation that exposes the brutal truth from the uniquely cutting viewpoint of both an outsider and a victim.

90. Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne

This classic sci-fi book features the original Nemo — not, regrettably, an adorable clownfish, but the captain of a submarine called Nautilus. Captain Nemo, his crew, and three scientists go on a fantastical journey in the shadowy depths of the sea. From underwater forests to walking the seafloor and finding Atlantis, this is no ordinary adventure.

91. Ulysses by James Joyce

Though it’s a long book, Ulysses traces the progress of a single day in the life of Irishman Leopold Bloom and his acquaintances. A groundbreaking modernist work, this novel is characterized by innovative literary experimentation and a stream-of-consciousness flow that winds elusively along the streets of Dublin.

92. Under the Net by Iris Murdoch

Iris Murdoch’s best-known novel is much like its protagonist: brimming with equal parts charisma and chaos. Down-and-out writer Jake Donaghue is the man of the hour, and the reader charts him all over London as he runs into increasingly odd characters and situations.

93. Untouchable by Mulk Raj Anand

Untouchable follows a day in the life of Bakha, a sweeper and toilet cleaner who is rendered “untouchable” under India’s rigid caste system. Only 166 pages long, Anand presents a powerful case study of injustice and the oppressive systems that perpetuate it.

94. A Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft

A commanding manifesto by author-activist Mary Wollstonecraft, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman birthed the tenets of modern feminist thought. Defying the commonly held notion that women were naturally inferior to men, it argued that a lack of education for women fostered inequality. One to pick up if you want to feel good about how far gender equality has come — or if you want to fuel your fire for the distance yet to be traveled.

95. The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells

Two worlds must do epic battle: humankind and Martians. And only one can survive. This seminal science fiction work caused widespread panic in 1938 when its radio adaptation—narrated and directed by Orson Welles—made people across the United States think that an actual alien invasion was taking place right outside their front doors.

96. Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys

Are you tired of being told to read Jane Eyre ? Then we suggest you pick up Wide Sargasso Sea : the feminist prequel written by Jean Rhys in 1966. Rhys reshapes the Bronte classic forever by writing from Bertha Mason’s point of view: no longer the madwoman in the attic, but a Jamaican caught in a patriarchal society from which she cannot escape.

97. Wizard of the Crow by Ngugi wa Thiong'o

This book takes its reader to a fictional African nation called the Free Republic of Aburiria and brings a postcolonial edge to folk storytelling. Featuring tricksters, lovers, and magical elements, Wizard of the Crow is a hilarious satire of autocracy and an experimental feat that cleverly incorporates oral traditions into its grand vision.

98. Women, Race & Class by Angela Davis

Women, Race, and Class is a must-read for anyone who wants to know about the intersectionality of the abolitionist and women’s suffrage movements. Civil rights activist Angela Davis unpacks white feminism, sexism, and racism in clear, incisive prose as she makes a resounding call for equality.

99. Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

Amid a terrible snowstorm, a man takes shelter at Wuthering Heights, where he learns the story of the manor’s former inhabitants: Catherine and Heathcliff. Set against the bleak and feral backdrop of the Yorkshire Moors, it’s a story of impossible desire, cruel betrayal, and bitter vengeance that rages with as much life and power as the fierce winds outside.

100. The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

One of the early feminist triumphs, The Yellow Wallpaper is the famous short story chronicling the slow breakdown of a woman imprisoned in a room with (spoiler alert) yellow wallpaper—presumably to cure her “temporary nervous depression.” Highly recommended, especially since it’s only a 10-minute read.

Still hungry for more classic reads? Check out our picks for the best books of all time . If you'd like to try something a little more contemporary, we've got you covered with our favorite novels of the 21st century .

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A Century of Reading: The 10 Books That Defined the 1980s

This list is, like, totally bitchin'.

Some books are flashes in the pan, read for entertainment and then left on a bus seat for the next lucky person to pick up and enjoy, forgotten by most after their season has passed. Others stick around, are read and re-read, are taught and discussed. sometimes due to great artistry, sometimes due to luck, and sometimes because they manage to recognize and capture some element of the culture of the time.

In the moment, you often can’t tell which books are which.  The Great Gatsby  wasn’t a bestseller upon its release, but we now see it as emblematic of a certain American sensibility in the 1920s. Of course, hindsight can also distort the senses; the canon looms and obscures. Still, over the next weeks, we’ll be publishing a list a day, each one attempting to define a discrete decade,  starting with the 1900s  (as you’ve no doubt guessed by now) and counting down until we get to the (nearly complete) 2010s.

Though the books on these lists need not be American in origin, I am looking for books that evoke some aspect of American life, actual or intellectual, in each decade—a global lens would require a much longer list. And of course, varied and complex as it is, there’s no list that could truly define American life over ten or any number of years, so I do not make any claim on exhaustiveness. I’ve simply selected books that, if read together, would give a fair picture of the landscape of literary culture for that decade—both as it was and as it is remembered. Finally, two process notes: I’ve limited myself to one book for author over the entire 12-part list, so you may see certain works skipped over in favor of others, even if both are important (for instance, I ignored  Dubliners  in the 1910s so I could include  Ulysses  in the 1920s), and in the case of translated work, I’ll be using the date of the English translation, for obvious reasons.

For our ninth installment, below you’ll find 10 books that defined the 1980s. (Head here for the  1910s ,  20s ,  30s , 40s ,  50s ,  60s , and 70s ).

Raymond Carver has a fair bid for being the most iconic and influential American short story writer ever—but he’s certainly the most iconic and influential American short story writer of the 1980s, due to this collection (just think of how many times you’ve seen the title construction parodied and reused) as well as Cathedral  (1983) and  Where I’m Calling From  (1988). “Carver stands squarely in the line of descent of American realism,” Marilynne Robinson wrote in a 1988 review of the latter.

His weaknesses are for sentimentality and sensationalism. His great gift is for writing stories that create meaning through their form. Much attention has been paid to his prose, and to his preoccupation with very ordinary lives and with disruption, divorce, displacement, sadness, the thankless business of cadging income from small and unlikable jobs. He should be famous for the conceptual beauty of his best stories, and disburdened of his worst, which could then pass into relative neglect. The narrative foreground in Mr. Carver’s fiction is typically muted or flattened. The stories have in common a sort of bafflement, justified in the best ones by the fact that their burdens are truly mysterious. Anecdotes – for want of a better word – looming and untranslatable like remembered dreams (which they sometimes are) figure so largely in these stories as to suggest that they are analogues to fiction itself, and also to consciousness, specifically to consciousness as it is shared, collective or bonding. It has been usual for a long time to lament the absence of myth in modern life, as if intuitions of the primordial and essential were the products of culture and would be dispelled with the loss of certain images and illusions, as if the forces myth describes were not real or powerful enough to impose themselves on our attention all unbidden. The bafflement in the best of these stories does not render an absence of meaning but awkwardness in the face of meaning, a very different thing.

His work sold exceptionally well ( for short stories ) in his lifetime and is still a staple of contemporary literary culture, taught widely at the undergraduate and graduate levels, and copied everywhere. Even whispers that his editor Gordon Lish had too much of a hand in his stories have not much tarnished his legacy—or appeal.

Walker’s most famous novel was a critical hit upon its release, winning the National Book Award as well as the Pulitzer (she was the first black woman ever to win it). It was a groundbreaking work and remains an essential womanist text, hailed for its literary excellence as well as its frank portrayal of impoverished black women, domestic abuse, and lesbian relationships. The 1985 film adaptation made it a full-blown sensation, for all Americans, but particularly for black women. As Victoria Bond put it in The New Republic , “ The Color Purple lingers as perhaps the  cultural touchstone for black women in America, a kind of lingua franca of familiarity and friendship.” As far as the controversy , she goes on:

Spike Lee said that the Steven Spielberg–produced film was “done with hate,” and that the Mr.— character was a “one-note animal.” The Coalition Against Black Exploitation protested The Color Purple ’s 1985 Los Angeles premiere for its depiction of black men abusing black women. The novelist Ishmael Reed called The Color Purple  “a Nazi conspiracy,” and even suggested that both the novel and the film were critically acclaimed expressly because they slam black men.

Reed was wrong then and he’s wrong now. The popularity of The Color Purple has very little to do with besmirching black men. Instead, it has everything to do with black women’s rejection of respectability politics: from the lesbian relationship between Celie and Shug, Mr.—’s ex-lover; to the representation of traditional Christianity as small-minded and stifling; to the narrative’s assertion that domestic violence arises from patriarchal hysteria about women’s strength, not our weakness.

Black women turned out in droves to see the film. We continue to reference it today because it breaks a certain cultural silence about abuse. Respectability politics imperil black women by demanding we stay mute; they insist that black people are a monolith whose reputation must be protected and preserved, whatever the cost. This extends to art, which appears only to be acceptable if black characters are struggling to “get better,” to put checkered pasts firmly in the past. But the truth is obvious. We aren’t interested in stories about the perfect; we’re interested in stories about the real.

“There is no way to overstate how radical Gibson’s first and best novel was when it first appeared,” Lev Grossman wrote in TIME . “Violent, visceral and visionary (there’s no other word for it), Neuromancer proved, not for the first or last time, that science fiction is more than a mass-market paperback genre, it’s a crucial tool by which an age shaped by and obsessed with technology can understand itself.”

The book, Cory Doctrow told  The Guardian , “remains a vividly imagined allegory for the world of the 1980s, when the first seeds of massive, globalised wealth-disparity were planted, and when the inchoate rumblings of technological rebellion were first felt.”

A generation later, we’re living in a future that is both nothing like the Gibson future and instantly recognisable as its less stylish, less romantic cousin. Instead of zaibatsus [large conglomerates] run by faceless salarymen, we have doctrinaire thrusting young neocons and neoliberals who want to treat everything from schools to hospitals as businesses.”

In it, Gibson popularized the term “cyberspace” (this is the 80s, remember) and predicted the internet, that “consensual hallucination” that we’re all now plugged into at all hours. He also more or less invented “cyberpunk,” an aesthetic system that has had untold influence on all the SF and fantasy since. It was, after all, the first novel to win the “holy trinity of science fiction”: the Hugo Award, the Nebula Award, and the Philip K. Dick Award, and it is still read and lionized today.

A coming-of-age classic, a staple of middle and high school reading curriculums, and a classic of Chicano literature that by 2002 had sold two million copies in 11 languages , “making Ms. Cisneros one of the best-selling Hispanic authors in the United States.” Critic Lorna L. Pérez called the novel “perhaps the most widely read and taught text in Latina literature” and highlighted its “striking revision of the Western literary and theoretical canon.”

Her appropriation of the form, style, and philosophical complications of her literary predecessors reveals profound and entrenched assumptions about subjectivity, class, and ethnicity, categories that historically and contemporarily marginalize individuals like her protagonist Esperanza Cordero. In engaging—both explicitly and implicitly—the literary predecessors that haunt the house on Mango Street, Cisneros is able to alleviate what Harold Bloom calls the “anxiety of influence” not by attempting to overshadow or destroy her predecessors, but by revealing the ideological constructs that lay in the foundations of their writing, thereby redefining the grounds of subjectivity and revealing the unhomely—or that which remains hidden—in the work. By engaging her literary influences in this way, Cisneros offers a revision to their assumptions, and as such lays the foundation for a radical literature that can encompass positions that have been relegated to the margins.

This last, of course, being something we gratefully see more and more every day.

There was considerable dissent in the Literary Hub office over this book—or, to be precise, over whether we should replace it with Cormac McCarthy’s  Blood Meridian , which is also a western published in 1985, and which most of our staff (yours included) prefer, as a novel. But Cormac McCarthy, for me, is on the whole more a writer of the 90s and 00s, and unlike  Blood Meridian ,  Lonesome Dove  was loved and appreciated in its time as well as afterwards. And honestly, the literary 1980s was all about Lonesome Dove . It was a stupendously reviewed bestseller, and went on to win the 1986 Pulitzer Prize for fiction. The  New York Times   called it the first “Great Cowboy Novel” and the LA Times called it “Larry McMurtry’s loftiest novel, a wondrous work, drowned in love, melancholy, and yet, ultimately, exultant.” Then, of course, there was the miniseries, which premiered in 1989, and as with  Roots , cemented the legacy of its source material (not to mention brought back the miniseries  format, which had been considered increasingly unprofitable). It is now a canonical pillar of the American western, perhaps the most uniquely American of all genres—and no more so than in Texas, where it ranks with the Bible and the Warren Commission Report.

This is an essential novel of 1980s America not only because it was written then, and not only because it was popular and acclaimed then (it won the National Book Award), but because it hacks directly at the culture of that time. “ White Noise finds its greatest distinction in its understanding and perception of America’s soundtrack,” Jayne Anne Phillips wrote in The New York Times .

White noise includes the ever-present sound of expressway traffic, ”a remote and steady murmur around our sleep, as of dead souls babbling at the edge of a dream.” Television is ”the primal force in the American home, sealed-off, self-contained, self-referring . . . a wealth of data concealed in the grid, in the bright packaging, the jingles, the slice-of-life commercials, the products hurtling out of darkness, the coded messages . . . like chants. . . . Coke is it, Coke is it, Coke is it.” Television, Murray Siskind asserts, ”practically overflows with sacred formulas.” White noise includes the bold print of tabloids, those amalgams of American magic and dread, with their comforting ”mechanism of offering a hopeful twist to apocalyptic events.” Fast food and quad cinemas contribute to the melody, as do automated teller machines. Nowhere is Mr. DeLillo’s take on the endlessly distorted, religious underside of American consumerism better illustrated than in the passage on supermarkets.

As Lev Grossman put it in TIME : “Though it’s pitched at a level of absurdity slightly above that of real life,  White Noise  captures the quality of daily existence in media-saturated, hyper-capitalistic postmodern America so precisely, you don’t know whether to laugh or whimper.”

The book was precise about the anxiety, self-absorption, and alienation of the ’80s—which, what do you know, hasn’t exactly let up. “This turning inward was happening across America in 1985,” writes Nathaniel Rich in The Daily Beast .

Exhausted by the paranoia of Watergate era, and the panic of the oil embargo and the Iran hostage crisis, the nation sought the comforts of old-fashioned Hollywood movies, delivered by an old-fashioned Hollywood actor.  White Noise  was published two months after Ronald Reagan’s second inauguration, which followed the most effective marketing campaign in American political history, sounding visceral notes of  hope  (“It’s morning again in America”) and  terror  (“There is a bear in the woods”). In  “ Supermarket ” , the narrator asks Americans to judge the state of the country by the contents of their local supermarket—a tactic, incidentally, followed by DeLillo, who ends  White Noise  with a nightmarish scene inside of one. Walter Mondale, who had tried to make the election about the budget deficit and interest rates, soon realized his mistake, releasing ads with  horror-movie  music and images of  nuclear warheads , but it was too late.

White Noise even eerily presaged the Bhopal gas leak with his airborne toxic event. “In light of the recent Union Carbide disaster in India that killed over 2,000 and injured thousands more,” Phillips notes, “ White Noise seems all the more timely and frightening—precisely because of its totally American concerns, its rendering of a particularly American numbness.”

If you’re reading this space, I probably don’t have to expound on the importance of Toni Morrison to you. But just to cover all our bases, Beloved won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1988, and was a finalist for the 1987 National Book Award—though lost out to something called Paco’s Story , which rankled   then and rankles now. In 2006, the editors of the  New York Times  asked “a couple hundred” writers, critics, and editors to vote on “the single best work of American fiction published in the last 25 years,” and the winner—by a relatively large margin —was  Beloved . “Any other outcome would have been startling,” wrote A.O. Scott, “since Morrison’s novel has inserted itself into the American canon more completely than any of its potential rivals.

With remarkable speed, Beloved has, less than 20 years after its publication, become a staple of the college literary curriculum, which is to say a classic. This triumph is commensurate with its ambition, since it was Morrison’s intention in writing it precisely to expand the range of classic American literature, to enter, as a living black woman, the company of dead white males like Faulkner, Melville, Hawthorne and Twain. When the book first began to be assigned in college classrooms, during an earlier and in retrospect much tamer phase of the culture wars, its inclusion on syllabuses was taken, by partisans and opponents alike, as a radical gesture. (The conservative canard one heard in those days was that left-wing professors were casting aside Shakespeare in favor of Morrison.) But the political rhetoric of the time obscured the essential conservatism of the novel, which aimed not to displace or overthrow its beloved precursors, but to complete and to some extent correct them.

In Slate , Stephen Metcalf agrees. “Like two other American novels devoted to race, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and To Kill a Mockingbird , Beloved exists wholly beyond its own artistic merits and demerits,” he writes.

These books have become something more than mere literature; they’re homework, with an afterlife guaranteed by their place (or in the case of Huck Finn , its embattled absence) on the high-school and college syllabus. (“Only Shakespeare rivals her in the number of senior theses devoted to her work,” Harvard English professor Barbara Johnson has said.) Were it simply a matter of social redress, we could all go home now, the Dead White Males having been forced to cocktail with a Living Black Woman. But Beloved isn’t solely a work of protest and advocacy, as Morrison herself has insisted, nor solely a symbol for the progress and virtue of the prestige-granting institutions in American letters. It’s a serious novel and a work of art, and it deserves to be accorded the highest respect. It deserves, in other words, to be asked, Yes, but are you any good?

Reader, it is.

This may be the most 80s of all the 80s books on this 80s list (though it’s a foot race against  White Noise ), which is not a particularly novel point. “So regularly is Tom Wolfe’s brash 1987 tome described as ‘the quintessential novel of the 80s’ that you almost feel the phrase could be slapped on as a subtitle,” Hermoine Hoby wrote in The Guardian . “But the ability to ‘capture the decade’ isn’t the only measure of a writer’s ability, and like a hot-pink puffball dress, this story displays a blithe disregard for nuance.” Indeed—though un-nuanced as it is, it’s a riot, a satirical novel about money, clothes, success, greed, racism, and corruption in New York City, an absolute nonsense whirlwind that turned into a major best-seller.

“Now comes Tom Wolfe, aging enfant terrible, with his first novel, (his first novel!), six hundred and fifty-nine pages of raw energy about New York City and various of its inhabitants—a big, bitter, funny, craftily plotted book that grabs you by the lapels and won’t let go,” Pat Conroy wrote in the New York Times . “As in much of his other work, such as The Right Stuff , Mr. Wolfe’s strategy is to somehow batter the reader into submission, using an incantatory repetition of certain emblematic phrases, (HIS FIRST NOVEL!), detailed description of people’s clothing, hyperbole, interior monologue whenever he feels like it, and various other New Journalism devices he is apparently too fond of to give up. What is amazing is that he gets away with it.” Great, now I have to say “indeed” again.

Again, there was some argument in the Literary Hub office over whether it was more important to include this volume or Carl Sagan’s  Cosmos  (1981), so I’d say that all things being equal, Hawking has had the greater cultural influence. After all, Hawking’s plain-language explanation of the universe has sold more than 10 million copies  since it was first published—spending 147 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and an astonishing 237 weeks on the Times of London bestseller list—and been translated into some 35 languages. It’s more or less the reason why the average American has any idea about space, or black holes, or quantum mechanics, or the theory of relativity—despite the theory that it is “probably the least-read, most-bought book ever.”

Midnight’s Children (1981) is probably the better book, but it was  The Satanic Verses  that kicked off the largest literary controversy of the 1980s. The book, based in part on the life of the Islamic Prophet Mohammad, was vehemently protested by some Muslims, and on February 14th, 1989, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the Supreme Leader of Iran, issued a fatwa against Rushdie, calling for his assassination. “I inform the proud Muslim people of the world that the author of the Satanic Verses book, which is against Islam, the Prophet and the Koran, and all those involved in its publication who are aware of its content are sentenced to death,” he announced , and the Iranian government offered $6 million to anyone who killed Rushdie. The author apologized, but to no avail. Bookstores carrying the book in the US and UK were bombed, and so was at least one newspaper that ran an editorial supporting the book. Rushdie’s Japanese translator was murdered, and his Italian and Norwegian translators were attacked and seriously injured. Protests were held all over the world, and Rushdie spent the next nine years in hiding—until September 1998, when the new Iranian President Mohammed Khatami said he would not uphold the fatwa. (Though it is still in effect.)

Pat Conroy, The Lords of Discipline (1980), Marilynne Robinson, Housekeeping (1980), J. M. Coetzee, Waiting for the Barbarians (1980), John Kennedy Toole, A Confederacy of Dunces (1980), Carl Sagan,  Contact (1980), Italo Calvino, If on a winter’s night a traveler (first English translation, 1981), Angela Davis, Women, Race, and Class (1981), Stephen King,  Cujo  (1981), Donald Barthelme, Sixty Stories (1981), Salman Rushdie, Midnight’s Children (1981), Rachel Ingalls, Mrs. Caliban (1982), W. P. Kinsella, Shoeless Joe (1982), Thomas Keneally, Schindler’s List  (1982), Raymond Carver, Cathedral (1983), Umberto Eco, The Name of the Rose (first English translation, 1983), Elizabeth Bishop, The Complete Poems, 1927-1979 (1983), Marion Zimmer Bradley, The Mists of Avalon (1983), Mark Helprin, Winter’s Tale (1983), Susan Hill, The Woman in Black (1983), Stephen King,  Pet Sematary  (1981), Jay McInerney, Bright Lights, Big City  (1984), Primo Levi, The Periodic Table (first English translation, 1984), Audre Lorde, Sister Outsider (1984), Kathy Acker, Blood and Guts in High School  (1984), Martin Amis, Money (1984), Milan Kundera, The Unbearable Lightness of Being (first English translation, 1984), Isabel Allende, The House of the Spirits (first English translation, 1985), John Irving, The Cider House Rules (1985), Bret Easton Ellis, Less Than Zero (1985), Patricia MacLachlan, Sarah, Plain and Tall (1985), Orson Scott Card, Ender’s Game (1985), Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid’s Tale (1985), Laura Numeroff, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie (1985), Cormac McCarthy, Blood Meridian  (1985), Lorrie Moore, Self-Help (1985), Jeanette Winterson, Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit (1985), Richard Ford, The Sportswriter (1986), Brian Jacques, Redwall (1986), Stephen King, It (1986), Art Spiegelman, Maus I (1986), Alan Moore, Watchmen (1986), Paul Auster, The New York Trilogy (1987), James Ellroy, Black Dahlia (1987), Stephen King,  Misery  (1981), Randy Shilts, And the Band Played On (1987), Gary Paulsen, Hatchet  (1987), Mary Gaitskill, Bad Behavior (1988), John Grisham, A Time to Kill (1988), David Markson, Wittgenstein’s Mistress (1988), Alan Hollinghurst, The Swimming Pool Library  (1988), Roald Dahl, Matilda (1988), Gabriel García Márquez, Love in the Time of Cholera (first English translation, 1988), Martin Amis, London Fields (1989), Kazuo Ishiguro, The Remains of the Day  (1989), Tobias Wolff, This Boy’s Life (1989), Katherine Dunn, Geek Love  (1989), Oscar Hijuelos, The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love (1989), Amy Tan, The Joy Luck Club (1989)

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Book Tropes: The Ultimate List of 70+ Tropes in Literature

by Fija Callaghan

If you read enough contemporary literature, you’ll inevitably start to notice patterns. Character archetypes, situations, and motifs will appear again and again throughout a given genre, giving readers an idea of what to expect when they pull a book off the shelf.

These recurring motifs are called “tropes,” and they’re something of a double-edged sword for writers. We’ll guide you through everything you need to know about literary tropes, with some of the most common tropes across seven popular fiction genres.

What is a “trope” in writing?

A trope is a recurring plot device, incident, or character type that we see over and over again in storytelling mediums. These recurring motifs can be comfortably familiar, though they can grow tiresome when overused too often in the same way. A group of friends renting a party cabin in the woods is an example of a common horror trope.

Literary tropes are polarizing because they represent what readers love most about a given genre, but they can also signify a lack of originality. The best tropes are subverted in some way or examined through a fresh new lens.

What’s the difference between a trope and a cliché?

Tropes and clichés both represent recurring patterns in storytelling. However, clichés are tropes that have been used too many times and have become overly predictable or simplistic. At this point, the recognizable pattern is no longer effective; at its worst, it can even be derogatory or offensive.

For example, creating a stock character who is a ditzy blonde or a dumb jock is a cliché, because it represents a very narrow and harmful view of what people can be.

What’s the difference between a trope and an archetype?

Tropes are situations or patterns that are born out of archetypes. An archetype is a broad image or idea that exists across cultures and generations, representing a universal human experience.

For example, heroes, villains, and mentor figures are all character archetypes ; these sorts of characters exist across storytelling, no matter how far back in time or how far across the globe you travel. Likewise, the quest, the hero’s journey, and the journey from rags to riches are examples of story archetypes—you can find these sorts of stories everywhere.

These archetypes form the basis of tropes and clichés. While archetypes are recognizable manifestations of our universal hopes, needs, and experiences, tropes and clichés are targeted ways in which these archetypes have been explored.

The ultimate list of book tropes by genre

Now, let’s look at some of the familiar tropes that readers have come to expect across their favorite genres.

Fantasy book tropes

Here are some of the most common tropes you’ll see across classic and contemporary fantasy literature.

The “chosen one” trope

This literary trope was once very effective, but it’s become so widespread that it tends to raise a red flag—or at least an eyebrow—with readers and publishers. These stories feature protagonists who are, by chance, elevated above everyone else in some way. Furthermore, this usually comes as a surprise to the protagonist. They might be the subject of a contentious prophecy, or discover a secret lineage of supernatural beings.

The reason why this trope is less loved today is likely because it can be a little bit lazy. If you want to put your main character in the center of a widespread magical war, the easiest way to do it is just to stick a “Chosen One™” badge on their jacket and call it a day.

It’s still possible to use this trope in a satisfying way, but it takes a little more imagination and some thorough characterization to make it fresh and new.

The most famous quest story in literary history is that of King Arthur and the Holy Grail. Since then, this plot trope has made its way into a high proportion of fantasy stories. The main characters need something that will determine the fate of their families/community/world, and so they go on a dangerous and thrilling jaunt to retrieve it.

The supernatural romance

There’s a reason “romantasy” novels are some of the rising stars of the literary world. Readers—particularly those of a certain, ahem, demographic—swoon over blooming romance between a human and the other .

Vampires, werewolves, gargoyles, gorgons, centaurs, fairies, merpeople, ghosts, zombies, zombie-ghosts, fallen stars, demons, angels, and just about any other vaguely humanoid magical creatures you can think of are fair game.

The supernatural love triangle

Okay, but what if your wilting violet has not one, but two supernatural hotties panting for her affections? And what if they belong to warring clans which have secretly ruled [insert gritty urban location here] for centuries? The three of them look so great together on the cover, you can’t help but wish they could all just get along.

The MacGuffin

A “MacGuffin” is a literary term which refers to a tangible plot device which pushes the main characters into motion. This could be a secret letter, an amulet, a sacred book, a key, and so forth. A MacGuffin is a useful way to get your plot moving.

The mentor archetype

While mentor figures are archetypal , rather than strictly trope-typal, there’s a particular incarnation of the mentor that tends to arise a lot in fantasy literature. He was first introduced to use via Merlin, further popularized via Gandalf the Grey, and firmly rooted in collective consciousness by Albus Dumbledore.

This character is one of the most popular tropes in fantasy writing, and they create defined reader expectations for the sort of story they’re about to experience. However, like the “chosen one,” they can sometimes be a symptom of taking the easiest path forward.

The reluctant ruler

Managing a kingdom is hard , writers. Despite the luxury bedding and imported wine, rulers can sometimes experience the call of simple living and the unknown. This is especially true of young rulers who have inherited their position and would really rather just go camping with their friends.

The great thing about this trope is that it creates a lot of potential to create conflict, and can go in a lot of different ways.

The reluctant hero

Often paired with the “chosen one” trope, this literary trope sees a character—often a protagonist, but sometimes a supporting character—who’s thrown into a position of heroism despite their better judgement.

They may begin as someone cowardly or selfish who doesn’t want to put themselves in the line of fire, or who’s unable to see the world as being something bigger than themselves. Later, they’ll come to embody more noble values and become a symbol of hope.

The secret society

Is there anything more thrilling than discovering a centuries-old elitist organization which may or may not sacrifice unwitting virgins in exchange for shadowy power? Or, perhaps, a centuries-old elitist organization which protects unwitting humans from forces beyond their comprehension?

This is a fan-favorite trope which offers the potential to explore powerful themes like segregation, classism, and identity.

The hidden world

Secret societies are often the “tip of the iceberg” of a much deeper and more sinister secret world. These stories see the main characters exposed to a hidden layer beneath their own, filled with beautiful and seductive dangers.

This might be a literal secondary world, or it may be an element of our own world that the characters weren’t able to see before.

Inconvenient prophecies

Don’t you just hate it when your destiny is determined for you before you’re even born? And then, to make matters worse, people start trying to off you because of what they fear you may become?

Prophecies can be a useful way to get a story moving (that’s a “MacGuffin,” remember?), and often cause characters to become their own worst enemies, ultimately bringing about their own undoing.

Ye Olde Taverne

The idealized medieval historical setting is a mainstay of classic fantasy, and there’s often a pub where people gather to drink, dance, knife each other in the back, trade mystical objects, and pick up local gossip. For this reason, it can be a helpful setting to use when you need your characters to acquire new information.

However, be mindful of limiting your fantastical historical fiction to this one very specific, very saturated motif. It’s worth exploring other cultural traditions and seeing what they have to offer the canon of storytelling.

The ultimate evil

One common recurring trope in fantasy stories is this idea of an ultimate, all-encompassing evil power. The heroes need to defeat the ultimate evil in order to ensure the survival of the human race. This figure might be a human threat that’s risen to astronomical power, or it might be something ancient and eldritch.

Science fiction book tropes

Adjacent on the spectrum of genre fiction, here are some of the most popular storytelling tropes you’ll see in sci-fi writing.

The dystopian society

Dystopian fiction is big business. We may have greats like George Orwell and HG Wells to thank for that, but more and more novels are released every year which use speculation as a lens through which to explore real social, political, and cultural problems in the world today.

Dystopias represent the worst possible course our world can take if it doesn’t address these problems. You can use this type of writing to communicate powerful social messages and themes.

The questionable utopia

On the opposite end of sci-fi genre tropes, there’s the world where everything is perfect… or is it? Utopian fiction presents a world in which the world’s problems have all gone away—except in removing them, the world has often created something much worse.

Newfound superpowers

Superheroes (and villains) have been a mainstay of the sci-fi genre since the comic strips of the 1930s. However, the most enduring and resonant heroes seem to be the ones who discover their powers by chance, rather than coming into the world already outfitted with them. For example, being bitten by a radioactive [insert creepy animal here], being exposed to unidentified planetary rays in space, or coming into an unexpected heritage via physical change, such as puberty or menstruation.

The training montage

It may be horrendously overused, but most audiences still have a soft spot for the classic training montage. The hero learns to use their newfound powers, weapons, or skills. In film mediums, this is almost invariably accompanied by uplifting ’80s power chords.

Time travel

Although time travel can exist in fantasy literature as well, it’s largely associated with science fiction. This trope sees the central characters jumping backwards and/or forwards in time, inevitably causing trouble for themselves or the wider world.

Interstellar politics

In these stories, the plot revolves around the contentious communication between planets or solar systems.

Alternate universes

Could there be a parallel universe in which you made a different choice or took a different path? Or one in which your high school bully was eaten by land-roaming sharks? The only limit is your imagination.

Creepy robots

From Rosie the Robot to the more pressing threat of AI, science fiction is loaded with humanoid machines that can do anything from your laundry to unseating world leaders.

Genetic engineering

What if you could design the perfect baby? The perfect husband? Or maybe upgrade yourself when you needed a post-divorce refresh. At what point do designer humans stop being human at all? Asking the big questions.

The impending apocalypse

“If the apocalypse comes, beep me.” —A simpler time when world-saving teens still communicated by pager.

Science fiction is riddled with end-of-the-world-level catastrophes, whether from otherworldly forces or basic human avarice.

Romance book tropes

Next, let’s look at one of the most deeply trope-laden literary genres: the love story.

The meet-cute

The “meet-cute” is the sort of story you’d love to tell your future grandchildren and/or wedding guests about how you and your SO first crossed paths. By a chance strike of destiny, two people end up coming into each other’s lives and bonding over something small—wayward pets, renaissance art, artisan bread, and so forth.

The meet-cringe

The sort of story you hope your future grandchildren and/or wedding guests will never find out about. One character experiences something mortifying and the other character witnesses it.

Love at first sight

A mainstay of fairy tales and YA paranormal romances, these stories have their main characters discovering “the one” within moments of meeting each other. Sometimes, there may be a supernatural destiny involved. Other times, it’s just hormones.

Enemies to lovers

No matter how overdone it gets, readers never tire of yelling “JUST KISS ALREADY” at two in the morning at characters who think they can’t stand each other. These stories see protagonists who start off at odds and grow increasingly attracted to each other as time goes on.

Friends to lovers

On the opposite end, this story involves two close childhood friends growing up and learning to see each other in a new way. These relationships often work well because they’ve already seen the best and worst in each other.

Lovers to enemies and back again

These “second chance” stories see a relationship fall apart due to a world-shattering betrayal. And yet, they can’t seem to keep their minds (or hands) off each other.

Love triangles

One of the oldest romance tropes of all time (if you’re not sure, just ask Eve, Adam, and Lilith), these stories follow a protagonist who’s caught between two opposing love interests. Each love interest has something very different to offer, and are often used as foil characters to each other. One might be dangerous and sultry, while the other is comforting and domestic, and so forth.

While this trope is unlikely to die anytime soon, it has been done over and over (and over), so you’ll want to try and use it to bring something new to your story.

Forced proximity

The “forced proximity” trope means coercing two characters into a finite space such as a creepy mansion, an elevator, or a bed. With nowhere to hide, latent feelings start bubbling up. You’ll often see this used with the “enemies to lovers” trope.

Imbalanced dynamics

There’s something cathartically seductive about couples reaching across the gulf of status in some way—whether that’s a divide in age, class, or economic standing. “Billionaire romances” and many supernatural romances fall into this category.

The off-limits crush

The allure of the forbidden is real. This trope follows a character’s attraction to someone they know they shouldn’t want: a friend’s ex, a friend’s parent, a co-worker, a teacher, and so forth. These stories can be engaging, but their messages need to be handled with care.

The fake relationship

This popular trope sees two characters pretending to date or marry in order to fulfill some pressing external need. Maybe one needs a date to their cousin’s wedding so their well-meaning aunt will stop trying to set them up with their accountant’s son. Maybe the other needs a socially acceptable relationship to hide a more contentious love.

These relationships of convenience begin as a business arrangement and grow into something deeper—whether that’s real love, or a fast friendship.

Second-chance love

These stories see two people who missed their window take another shot at a happy ending. They might be a couple who broke off because one of them made a stupid mistake, or they might be two college friends who were never brave enough to take the next step. Readers enjoy seeing them learn from their pasts and fight for real love.

Want to take an even deeper dive into the landscape of romance novels? Be sure to check out our detailed lesson on romance tropes !

Mystery book tropes

As one of the most structural literary genres, mysteries have a wide range of instantly recognizable, comforting, and indulgent character tropes and plot devices. Here are some fast favorites.

The grizzled detective

Made famous by Humphrey Bogart, often imitated , this character trope has nerves of steel and a heart of gold. He (it’s always a he) wears shiny shoes, drinks too much, doesn’t trust a pretty face, and has a nose for the truth (and trouble).

The amateur sleuth

A favorite of the cozy mystery genre, this character is an ordinary person who finds themselves inescapably caught up in a case. They can be anything from a cupcake baker to a struggling musician to a fashion designer, but one thing they have in common is that they’re not grizzled, tough, or particularly capable. Instead they have to learn fast along the way as the stakes get higher and higher.

The all-night diner

Much like “ye olde taverne” in high fantasy literature, the greasy spoon that’s always open gives the sleuth and their client, informant, or suspect a neutral place to touch base and blow off steam. The coffee’s cheap and not very good, and you can run into just about anyone if you hang out there long enough.

The small town with secrets

Did you think New York City had a high crime rate? Wait until you meet the inhabitants of the sweet Midwestern town with the annual harvest fair, or the Yorkshire village bursting with cottagecore charm. Eat nothing you didn’t bake yourself. Trust no one.

The bloodstained family

Can murderous instincts be a hereditary disease? What do you do when the “family business” involves “taking care” of other people’s “problems”? Just when you think you’ve found the killer, you learn that the roots of the blackened family tree extend further than you could have imagined.

The ticking clock

Introducing a time constraint is always a great way to ramp up the tension, and nowhere is this more true than in mysteries and thrillers. This might be a bomb that’s set to go off, pivotal information that’s about to be released or destroyed, or the entrance or exit of an essential character.

The unreliable narrator

Unreliable narrators are point-of-view characters who, intentionally or unintentionally, withhold information from the reader. They might be hiding something from their past, or they might be confused about what’s really happening. This is a useful plot device to keep your readers guessing.

The hidden affair

In mysteries and thriller novels, someone’s almost always messing around with someone else. This is often used as a “red herring,” or a device that intentionally misleads the reader. Did you think the sketchy hardware shop owner with no alibi for the murder was the killer? He actually spent that night in bed with his neighbor’s wife.

Action and adventure book tropes

Closely related to thrillers are the adventure stories! A favorite of readers of all ages since the days of Treasure Island and King Solomon’s Mines , these books often contain multiple tropes.

The treasure hunt

Is there anything more thrilling than the search for buried treasure? Or if not buried treasure, a priceless rare manuscript, a cursed object, or a lost world? In another classic use of the MacGuffin, these stories see the main characters go off in pursuit of life-changing riches.

Puzzles and riddles

Often seen hand in hand with the treasure hunt, this brilliantly satisfying trope encourages the heroes to use their wits. If they solve the puzzle, they can continue along their journey. If they fail, they may be trapped in a cursed tomb forever or crushed by falling rubble.

Exotic locales

While everywhere is “exotic” to somebody, many adventure stories that come from Western culture often involve characters who travel to far-off lands. This helps readers armchair-travel to places they may never see in real life, as well as conveying a sense that the characters are in unfamiliar, unpredictable territory.

The double agent

In a world where everyone has an agenda, your best friend can become a turncoat… or your enemy can become a friend.

The everyman-turned-hero

All he wanted was to run to the shop to pick up some milk, and suddenly he’s found himself at the center of international espionage and a centuries-old curse.

The villain monologue

To be totally fair to them, I do get it. You just want someone to appreciate how brilliant you were, and the hero tied to a chair is the perfect captive audience.

The secret high-stakes battle

You’d be amazed at how many times the fate of the world has been determined right under our noses. Whether it takes place in an airship above the earth, in caverns below the ground, or in some hidden parallel dream world, these stories see epic battles happening just out of society’s view.

The mandatory chase scene

Don’t try this at home (unless it’s with your Hot Wheels).

The outfit upgrade

You can tell things are getting real when the hero is given a fresh new look, complete with useful gadgets.

Horror book tropes

Ah, the horror genre. Comfortingly predictable, and we love every moment of it.

Cursed objects (aka spooky MacGuffins)

It will give you everything you ever wanted… for a price. (Death. The price is death.)

Vicious, bloodthirsty, or woefully misunderstood? Maybe all of the above? As long as there has been storytelling, there have been things that go bump in the night. Revisit old favorites, subvert old favorites in fresh new ways, or make your own.

Vampires, werewolves, and zombies are just a few of the timeless classics, but it’s worth examining regional folklore and alternative world myths for inspiration, too.

Deals at the crossroads

A rare trope that never gets old, this folkloric horror motif sees someone make a deal with the devil (or other nefarious baddie, sometimes a demon) in exchange for their immortal soul. Traditionally, this story is associated with musicians selling their soul in exchange for skill and/or fame, but you can use this trope in limitless ways.

The drunken summoning spell

Afterparty in the library and everyone’s invited. Hey guys, check out this weird book I found!

Creepy old houses

They’re either derelict and holding themselves up with nothing but pure rage, or they’re suspiciously immune to the ravages of time and still look like they did in 1712. There’s a high likelihood they were built on the bones of orphans.

Creepy old swamps

Like “creepy old houses” but make it Louisiana.

The inheritance with strings

In today’s economy, inheriting the family manor/business/fortune might seem like a godsend. Turns out, there’s a reason Great Aunt Edna locked herself away and never spoke to anyone (see “creepy old houses,” above).

Broken down vehicles

Do not: a.) get out of the car under any circumstances, b.) go around behind the car to see what the problem is, or c.) leave one person in the car alone while the other hoofs it to the nearest town. Instead: stay in the car until daybreak and say your last rites.

The party in the woods

No parents, no neighbors, and no inhibitions. Some things seem like a good idea at the time until people start killing each other.

“Help, I’ve fallen and I can’t get up!”

“If only there was a big, strong man around to save me—oh no wait, I’m dead.”

Stock characters

Classic horror, especially visual horror (ie. film and comic books), is often filled with archetypal stock characters. This gives readers an idea of what to expect, since these characters fit comfortably into narrative norms. However, stock characters can also slide into stigma and cliché. As a writer, challenge yourself to subvert these norms or use them to surprise your reader with something they didn’t expect.

Death by karma

Were you a bully to that nerdy kid in the letter sweater? I hope you enjoyed peaking in high school, because that’s all you’re going to get.

Life by virginity

If a generation of horror flicks have taught us anything, it’s that virgins have the best shot at getting out alive.

YA book tropes

While young adult fiction can fall into any genre, there are certain tropes that we see arise over and over again in stories for young people at the threshold of life.

Really crappy parents

YA fiction, especially sci-fi and fantasy, seems to have a dearth of healthy adult role models. Parents might be abusive, distant, or just wildly incompetent. Often this is necessary to move along the plot so that the teens can step up and take center stage.

There are exceptions to this trope, however, like the strong mother-daughter relationships in Cassandra Clare’s City of Bones or Meg Cabot’s The Princess Diaries .

Really crappy authority figures in general

Willful ignorance in the face of imminent peril seems to be a mainstay of many adults in YA fiction, including teachers, babysitters, and employers. When the authority figures in charge won’t take responsibility, it’s up to the next generation to set things right.

Found family (see above)

What this often means is that the main characters of YA fiction, unable to rely on their own blood families, build new found families around them of allies and friends. The protagonist seeks the family loyalty that had been lacking in their own lives and finds it in an unlikely motley group of other wayward souls.

Is anything more intrinsic to the teenage experience than first love? Whether it’s an aching secret crush on their best friend, or a first-flush summer romance, YA characters are coming into a new state of being where a rush of hormones is painting the world in living color.

First everything

You can try to stick an age range on YA fiction, but the truth is the genre isn’t really defined by the age of its characters or readers at all. YA fiction is about growing up and learning to inhabit the world in a whole new way. This means first love, first concert, first all-nighter, first road trip, first heartbreak, first betrayal, first time using a new skill or facing a particular fear.

The celebrity romance

There seem to be a lot of celebrity romances in YA fiction. That heartthrob rising moving star has enrolled in a typical American high school as research for his next role (British actor Tom Holland actually did this to prepare for starring as Marvel’s Spiderman). The heir to a small island kingdom has been sent to high school as punishment for some high-profile drunken scandal. Pretty soon sparks are flying across the gaping social divide.

Underdog or outsider protagonists

It’s common for the protagonists of YA fiction to be kids that are “uncool,” underprivileged, or outside societal norms. These characters are effective for resonating with readers who also feel like outsiders in some way.

Self-sacrifice

YA fiction teens have one thing going for them: their superhuman nobility. They’re constantly putting themselves in the line of fire for their loved ones, or for the world at large.

The dark family secret

Teen reads often follow a protagonist who discovers a shocking hidden truth about their family—whether this is a magical lineage, a hidden trust fund of dubious origins, or ghosts of the past (figurative or literal) coming back to haunt them.

How to use book tropes effectively

Feeling inspired yet? Readers expect to see certain recurring tropes and motifs in their favorite genres, but you need to get creative in order to craft a story that’s meaningful and memorable. Here are the key things to keep in mind.

Subvert expectations

Book tropes come with preconceived expectations. When the story begins, you can use these familiar genre tropes to give the reader a sense of familiarity and immerse them in your world. However, try to think of ways you can use these tropes to surprise your readers as they continue moving through the story.

For example, consider the timeless horror trope of the creepy old haunted house—a sinister, semi-conscious beast who infects all those who step inside it until no one is left. It’s a story we’ve all heard before, or at least heard of before. But what if the house turns out to be a protective entity trying to guard against something much worse? What if your heroes suddenly learn that the house is the thing that’s keeping them safe? Now you’ve taken a trope which might otherwise feel stale and turned it on its head.

You can do this with character tropes or other plot points that we looked at above. See what happens if you tell a classic story with its opposite, inverted trope, or take a well-loved trope in an unexpected direction.

With many of these tropes being traditionally dominated by majority identities—generally Caucasian, cisgender, middle- to upper-middle-class men and soft, polished, heterosexual women—subversion can be a great approach to bringing more diversity to your writing. It helps to consider why we have certain visual associations with certain story or character types, and why these stereotypes have existed for so long.

Develop fully-realized characters

Because literary tropes can be a bit two-dimensional, it’s essential to create characters that are lifelike, multifaceted, and human. Even if they find themselves in familiar, well-trod situations, your story will be unique because the people who populate it are unique. They’ll bring their own hopes, fears, beliefs, judgements, and formative experiences to the story, and these elements will inform how they act and react across the events of the plot.

This means taking your time with character development , exploring your protagonist’s backstory, and approaching them from a place of authenticity. Also pay attention to the other characters your protagonist interacts with. Avoid the easy clichés and stock characters, and remember that each and every person in your story world has hopes, fears, beliefs, judgements, and formative experiences of their own. (This is also where you get subplots, which you can use to impress your writer friends.)

If your characters are engaging and effective enough, your readers won’t notice that you’re using a tired old trope; they’ll just see that you’ve created a thrilling, readable story set in the storytelling parameters they know and love.

Use old tropes to explore new ideas

Tropes may get a bad rap in contemporary literature, but that’s only because so many writers use them as a crutch rather than a launching pad. Literary tropes are the building blocks of classic genre fiction, and so using them as a starting point for a story or scene shows readers that you “speak the language” of a chosen genre. The trick is to turn them just slightly on an angle and bring your own personal approach, so that your writing still feels innovative and alive.

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The Best Books of the Year (So Far)

The nonfiction and novels we can’t stop thinking about.

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By The New York Times Books Staff

• May 24, 2024

Fiction | Nonfiction

We’re almost halfway through 2024 and we at The Book Review have already written about hundreds of books. Some of those titles are good. Some are very good. And then there are the following.

We suspect that some (though certainly not all) will be top of mind when we publish our end-of-year, best-of lists. For more thoughts on what to read next, head to our book recommendation page .

James , by Percival Everett

In this reworking of the “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” Jim, the enslaved man who accompanies Huck down the Mississippi River, is the narrator, and he recounts the classic tale in a language that is his own, with surprising details that reveal a far more resourceful, cunning and powerful character than we knew.

Local bookstores | Barnes and Noble | Amazon

Good Material , by Dolly Alderton

Alderton’s novel, about a 35-year-old struggling to make sense of a breakup, delivers the most delightful aspects of romantic comedy — snappy dialogue, realistic relationship dynamics, funny meet-cutes and misunderstandings — and leaves behind clichéd gender roles and the traditional marriage plot.

Martyr! , by Kaveh Akbar

A young Iranian American aspiring poet and recovering addict grieves his parents’ deaths while fantasizing about his own in Akbar’s remarkable first novel, which, haunted by death, also teems with life — in the inventive beauty of its sentences, the vividness of its characters and the surprising twists of its plot.

The Hunter , by Tana French

For Tana French fans, every one of the thriller writer’s twisty, ingenious books is an event. This one, a sequel to “The Searcher,” once again sees the retired Chicago cop Cal Hooper, a perennial outsider in the Irish west-country hamlet of Ardnakelty, caught up in the crimes — seen and unseen — that eat at the seemingly picturesque village.

Wandering Stars , by Tommy Orange

This follow-up to Orange’s debut, “There There,” is part prequel and part sequel; it trails the young survivor of a 19th-century massacre of Native Americans, chronicling not just his harsh fate but those of his descendants. In its second half, the novel enters 21st-century Oakland, following the family in the aftermath of a shooting.

Headshot , by Rita Bullwinkel

Set at a women’s boxing tournament in Reno, Nev., this novel centers on eight contestants, and the fights — physical and emotional — they bring to the ring. As our critic wrote: This story’s impact “lasts a long time, like a sharp fist to your shoulder.”

Beautyland , by Marie-Helene Bertino

In 1970s Philadelphia, an alien girl sent to Earth before she’s born communicates with her fellow life-forms via fax as she helps gather intel about whether our planet is habitable. This funny-sad novel follows the girl and her single mother as they find the means to persevere.

Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder , by Salman Rushdie

In his candid, plain-spoken and gripping new memoir, Rushdie recalls the attempted assassination he survived in 2022 during a presentation about keeping the world’s writers safe from harm. His attacker had piranhic energy. He also had a knife. Rushdie lost an eye, but he has slowly recovered thanks to the attentive care of doctors and the wife he celebrates here.

Everyone Who Is Gone Is Here: The United States, Central America, and the Making of a Crisis , by Jonathan Blitzer

This urgent and propulsive account of Latin American politics and immigration makes a persuasive case for a direct line from U.S. foreign policy in Central America to the current migrant crisis.

The Wide Wide Sea: Imperial Ambition, First Contact and the Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook , by Hampton Sides

By the time he made his third Pacific voyage, the British explorer James Cook had maybe begun to lose it a little. The scientific aims of his first two trips had shifted into something darker. According to our reviewer, the historian Hampton Sides “isn’t just interested in retelling an adventure tale. He also wants to present it from a 21st-century point of view. ‘The Wide Wide Sea’ fits neatly into a growing genre that includes David Grann’s ‘ The Wager ’ and Candice Millard’s ‘ River of the Gods ,’ in which famous expeditions, once told as swashbuckling stories of adventure, are recast within the tragic history of colonialism .”

The Rebel’s Clinic: The Revolutionary Lives of Frantz Fanon , by Adam Shatz

This absorbing biography of the Black psychiatrist, writer and revolutionary Frantz Fanon highlights a side of him that’s often eclipsed by his image as a zealous partisan — that of the caring doctor, who ran a secret clinic for Algerian rebels.

Fi: A Memoir , by Alexandra Fuller

In her fifth memoir, Fuller describes the sudden death of her 21-year-old son. Devastating as this elegant and honest account may be — it’s certainly not for the faint of heart — it also leaves the reader with a sense of having known a lovely and lively young man.

Explore More in Books

Want to know about the best books to read and the latest news start here..

John S. Jacobs was a fugitive, an abolitionist — and the brother of the canonical author Harriet Jacobs. Now, his own fierce autobiography has re-emerged .

Don DeLillo’s fascination with terrorism, cults and mass culture’s weirder turns has given his work a prophetic air. Here are his essential books .

Jenny Erpenbeck’s “ Kairos ,” a novel about a torrid love affair in the final years of East Germany, won the International Booker Prize , the renowned award for fiction translated into English.

Kevin Kwan, the author of “Crazy Rich Asians,” left Singapore’s opulent, status-obsessed, upper crust when he was 11. He’s still writing about it .

Each week, top authors and critics join the Book Review’s podcast to talk about the latest news in the literary world. Listen here .

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Ta-Nehisi Coates returns to nonfiction and explores the power of stories in upcoming 'The Message'

For his first all-new book of nonfiction in nearly a decade, Ta-Nehisi Coates traveled the world

NEW YORK -- For his first all-new book of nonfiction in nearly a decade, Ta-Nehisi Coates traveled the world.

One World announced Thursday that Coates' “The Message” will be published Oct. 1. “The Message” is set everywhere from the American South to the Middle East and Palestine and focuses on a single question: In a time of growing strife and injustice, why do stories matter?

"In ‘The Message,’ Coates explores this question by reporting from three powerfully resonant sites — Senegal, South Carolina, and Palestine — that have been profoundly shaped and riven by contested accounts of meaning and reality," the One World announcement reads in part. “Weaving together on-the-ground reportage, personal narrative, and insightful dives into literature and history, he tries to clarify what’s real beneath layers of propaganda, wishful thinking, and enforced silence — and why we are so often misled, with sometimes catastrophic consequences.”

Additional details about “The Message” were not immediately available. In a statement released through One World, a Penguin Random House imprint, Coates said he was thrilled “to be back publishing nonfiction in this particular political moment.”

Coates' last new work of nonfiction, “Between the World and Me,” was a meditation on racism and police violence that won the National Book Award in 2015 and was likened by Nobel laureate Toni Morrison to the works of James Baldwin. His books also include the 2017 essay collection “We Were Eight Years in Power,” drawn in part from his Atlantic magazine reporting during the Obama administration, and the 2019 novel “The Water Dancer,” an Oprah Winfrey book selection.

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What is the 'best' children's book? Kids, parents and authors on why some rise to the top

What was your favorite book as a kid?

That question makes for a surprisingly effective icebreaker. You can tell a lot about someone from the books they read as a child. Case in point: I’m a journalist, a talker, a storyteller. Many of my childhood favorites had equally yappy and imaginative characters – “Junie B. Jones” by Barbara Park, “Olivia” by Ian Falconer, “Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse” by Kevin Henkes.

The stories we read at bedtime seldom stay there . Here’s what parents, booksellers, authors and – most importantly – kids told me about what makes the best children’s book.

What makes the best children’s book?

Reading is subjective, of course. But in the quest for the “best” children’s books, parents should look out for a story that’s as entertaining to them as it is to their kids. 

Check out: USA TODAY's weekly Best-selling Booklist

“The secret to a really successful picture book is a picture book that both the parent and child can each enjoy on their own level,” says Peter Glassman, the owner of children’s bookstore “Books of Wonder” in New York City.

At a minimum, you have to make sure it’s a book you’re willing to read over and over.

“Sometimes I view children’s book authors as parenting partners where they’re like ‘This book is for the kid, but I’m going to make sure there’s a joke in here for you,'" said Tocarra Mallard , a TV writer from New York and a mother of two who makes TikToks about children’s books.

A good children’s book may teach kids about colors or numbers, but the best children's books can give them a voice to process and experience emotions.

In “The Pout-Pout Fish” by Deborah Diesen, a favorite in Mallard’s house, an act of acceptance helps turn a frown upside down. It has a silly, catchy rhyme that makes her 2-year-old laugh , but also a lesson for her 5-year-old that it's OK to feel blue sometimes. Kids aren't just kids – they're small people who live in a world that can foster anxiety, depression and other complicated feelings," Mallard says.

“For us to pretend that children (exist in) light and love and goodness at all times is denying them their humanity,” she says.

In their words: Kids tell us what makes a good book

Sometimes, finding the “best” book for your kid is just about knowing your kid. Some children want a picture-heavy book while others, like Mallard's son, who is autistic and hyperlexic, need a strong story with lots of words.

I spent the day at “Books of Wonder” earlier this spring to ask kids what makes the best children’s book.

Iago and Nico Akerman, both 11, told me the books they liked reading in school were about human history, how money works and agriculture in Latin America. Reading is a tool for the brothers to help decode the world around them.

Eight-year-old Valerie Song also loves to learn through reading. It “helps your brain grow,” she told me. 

She’s drawn to series because she’s a speed reader – and they help her feel connected to characters. Valerie was reading the last "Harry Potter" book when we spoke. Fantasy books can help you “go anywhere you want,” she said. As for everyday adventures, “I get enough of that in real life,” she reported. 

Frog and Toad are everywhere: How 50-year-old children's characters became Gen Z icons

What makes an award-winning children’s book?

A captivating story is the foundation for an award-winning book, says Shannon DeVito, the senior director of books at Barnes & Noble, which hosts an annual “Children’s and YA Book Awards.” Witty characters and dynamic illustrations aren’t powerful if there isn’t a story that inspires young readers to keep reading, she says.

But beyond that, a book should have characters or lessons that young readers can identify with. Last year’s overall winner was “ The Swifts: A Dictionary of Scoundrels ” by Beth Lincoln, a chapter book with a vibrant cast of characters. This year’s winner, “ A Royal Conundrum (The Misfits ) ” by Lisa Yee, is described by Barnes & Noble as a book for anyone who has ever felt like an outsider.

One pair of young sisters I spoke to at Books of Wonder, 3-year-old Azadeh and 5-year-old Arya Hashemi-Sohi, love “Saffron Ice Cream” by Rashin Kheiriyeh because one of the characters is named Azadeh. The sisters are half Persian, so their mom, Jeunelle Cunningham, told me they keep an eye out for books with Persian characters.

Glassman has been a bookseller for decades and says it excites him to see different childhood experiences represented in books.

“ Max and The House of Spies” by Adam Gidwitz , for example, is a story he wished he had growing up. It follows a Jewish boy living in London after leaving Germany during World War II. Max has red hair and freckles, just as Glassman did when he was growing up. 

Children’s books have gotten more diverse, both in the authors and the characters they write. A 2022 breakdown from the Cooperative Children’s Book Center noted 40% of books published in 2022 and received by the CCBC were by authors of color. On the other hand, an analysis of award-winning children’s books showed white characters are overrepresented .

“A good book that talks about modern culture, (and has a) diverse cast of characters is better than something that doesn’t,” DeVito says.

How to write a children’s book

Author Dan Gutman knows a thing or two about writing successful children’s books. His “My Weird School” books have sold over 35 million copies and he published the series’ 100th book earlier this year.

His secret sauce? Target the kids who don’t like to read. He focuses on short chapters and paragraphs, a linear, easy-to-follow storyline and, his personal favorite, “grown-ups doing dumb things.”

“I wasn’t a big reader myself, I relate really well to kids, especially boys, who don’t like to read,” Gutman says. “My goal is that that kid will open up one of my books and an hour later look up and think ‘Wow, that didn’t even feel like I was reading. I felt like I was watching a movie in my head.’”

That feeling is what Glassman looks for in a book as well. “I go to a book not to be impressed with someone’s writing – which sometimes I am – but I go to a book for the story. I love story, that is my great love,” he says.

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Ta-Nehisi Coates returns to nonfiction and explores the power of stories in upcoming ‘The Message’

This cover image released by One World shows “The Message” by Ta-Nehisi Coates. (One World via AP)

• Copy Link copied

NEW YORK (AP) — For his first all-new book of nonfiction in nearly a decade, Ta-Nehisi Coates traveled the world.

One World announced Thursday that Coates’ “The Message” will be published Oct. 1. “The Message” is set everywhere from the American South to the Middle East and Palestine and focuses on a single question: In a time of growing strife and injustice, why do stories matter?

“In ‘The Message,’ Coates explores this question by reporting from three powerfully resonant sites — Senegal, South Carolina, and Palestine — that have been profoundly shaped and riven by contested accounts of meaning and reality,” the One World announcement reads in part. “Weaving together on-the-ground reportage, personal narrative, and insightful dives into literature and history, he tries to clarify what’s real beneath layers of propaganda, wishful thinking, and enforced silence — and why we are so often misled, with sometimes catastrophic consequences.”

Additional details about “The Message” were not immediately available. In a statement released through One World, a Penguin Random House imprint, Coates said he was thrilled “to be back publishing nonfiction in this particular political moment.”

Coates’ last new work of nonfiction, “Between the World and Me,” was a meditation on racism and police violence that won the National Book Award in 2015 and was likened by Nobel laureate Toni Morrison to the works of James Baldwin. His books also include the 2017 essay collection “We Were Eight Years in Power,” drawn in part from his Atlantic magazine reporting during the Obama administration, and the 2019 novel “The Water Dancer,” an Oprah Winfrey book selection.

Jenna Tang’s new translation of Fang Si-Chi’s First Love Paradise, by Lin Yi-Han (Transnational Literature Series at Brookline Booksmith, May 31, 2024)

The Transnational Literature Series at Brookline Booksmith focuses on stories of migration, the intersection of politics and literature, and works in translation. Join us this Friday May 31, 2024 for an in-store event with translator Jenna Tang to discuss and celebrate the release of Fang Si-Chi’s First Love Paradise  by Lin Yi-Han. She will be in conversation with writer Grace Talusan. One of the biggest books to come out of Taiwan in the last decade and a #MeToo feminist manifesto across Asia, the novel is a chilling tale of grooming and trauma and the power structures that allow it to flourish. Insightful and unsettling, it is a staggering work of literature that reverberates across cultures and forces us to confront painful truths.

Friday, May 31st at 7:00 PM at Brookline Booksmith

279 harvard street, brookline, ma  02446   tel. (617) 566-6660.

For more information and to rsvp, visit: https://tls-firstloveparadise.eventbrite.com

This event is free to attend. If you don’t want to click on the links you can also find registration information on Brookline Booksmith’s website . 

brooklinebooksmith.com

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About the book (from https://www.harpercollins.com/products/fang-si-chis-first-love-paradise-yi-han-lin?variant=41107206144034):

The most influential book of Taiwan’s #MeToo movement—a heartbreaking account of sexual violence and a remarkable reinvention of the trauma plot, turning the traditional   Lolita   narrative upside down as it explores women’s vulnerability, victimization, and the lengths they will go to survive.

Thirteen-year-old Fang Si-Chi lives with her family in an upscale apartment complex in Taiwan, a tightknit community of strict yet doting parents and privileged children raised to be ambitious, dutiful, and virtuous. She and her neighbor Liu Yi-Ting bond over their love of learning and books, devouring classic works—Proust, Gabriel García Márquez, the very best Chinese writers. Yet, it is their lack of real-world education that makes them true kindred spirits.

Si-Chi’s innocence is irresistible to Lee Guo-hua, a revered cram literature teacher and serial predator who lives in her building. When he offers to tutor the academic-minded girls for free, their parents—unaware of Lee’s true nature—happily accept. While Yi-Ting’s studies with Lee are straightforward, Si-Chi learns about things no one teaches them in school—lessons about sex and love that will change the course of her life. Confused and uncertain, Si-Chi turns to her beloved books for guidance. But literature tells her nothing honest about rape or how to cope with the trauma of abuse. For her own salvation, the young girl begins to think of her personal hell as her “first love paradise,” where the power of love, no matter how twisted, gives her the strength to survive.

One of the biggest books to come out of Taiwan in the last decade,   Fang Si-Chi’s First Love Paradise   is a chilling tale of grooming and its lingering trauma, and the power structures that allow it to flourish. Insightful, unsettling, emotionally raw, it is a staggering work of literature that reverberates across cultures and forces us to confront painful truths about the vulnerability and strength of women and those who use and hurt them.

Translated from the Chinese by Jenna Tang

About the translator , Jenna Tang https://www.jennatang.com/ :

Jenna Tang is a Taiwanese writer and a literary translator who translates between Chinese, French, Spanish, and English. She graduated from MFA in Fiction Creative Writing from The New School in New York City. Her translations and essays are published in The Paris Review, Restless Books , Latin American Literature Today , AAWW , McSweeney’s , Catapult , and elsewhere. Her interviews can be found at World Literature Today and Words Without Borders . She is currently based in Taiwan. She was 2021 Mentee at ALTA Emerging Translators Mentorship program with a focus on Taiwanese prose. She has translated Lin Yi-Han’s novel, Fang Si-Chi’s First Love Paradise , forthcoming at HarperVia in May 21st, 2024.

To date, she has translated authors from Taiwan, México, Bolivia, Colombia, Venezuela, and more.

She is available for works including: medical and court interpretation (Chinese, Spanish, French to English), literary translation samples, subtitle translations, research projects, sensitivity reading, copyediting (Chinese & English), reader’s reports, teaching workshops, lectures, panels, proofreading, translators’ mentorship, and event coordination.

New children's book tells story of Josef Newgarden's Indy 500 win

You're never too young to be an IndyCar fan.

Josef Newgarden announced on X/Twitter this week that a children's book about his 2023 Indy 500 win is available for preorder. He co-created the book with his wife, Ashley Newgarden, and Red Racer Books creator Andy Amendola .

"I’ve been wanting to write a children’s book focused on the values of hard work and dedication," his X post reads, "and there’s nothing that requires that more than the Indy 500."

A description of the book on the publisher 's site reads: "This beautifully crafted hardcover book captures the true story of Josef Newgarden, a young racer with a colossal dream: to conquer the legendary Indianapolis Motor Speedway and win the INDY 500."

It's not the first children's book about Josef Newgarden

Author Chris Workman and race car driver Josef Newgarden partnered in 2016 on a children's book titled "Josef, The Indy Car Driver." According to its Amazon description , the book "mixes Indy car racing education with entertaining on-track action that is sure to please budding race fans and their parents."

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A note from Workman says the duo hope the book "inspires and empowers (kids) to chase after their goals, whatever they may be."

Josef Newgarden visits Indianapolis Children's Museum

The video below shows Newgarden's trip to the museum to debut the book.

How to read 'Josef's Big Dream'

The hardcover book is available for preorder from Red Racer Books .

You can purchase "Josef, the Indy Car Driver," on Amazon or other online retailers; or check with local bookstores. It's also available to check out from the Indianapolis Public Library, along with Workman's 2017 book, " The Spectacle: Celebrating the History of the Indianapolis 500 ."

About Josef Newgarden

Newgarden drives for Team Penske and won the 2023 Indy 500. Find out more about him at the link below.

Who is Josef Newgarden? Get to know Team Penske driver set for Indy 500 race at IMS