 |
| This post contains affiliate links. I earn a commission from qualifying purchases. |
If you have an MFA in writing or literature, then you're very familiar with literary fiction. It was the only thing I was allowed to read and write in school. Once I left school, I learned that the majority of readers have no idea what "literary fiction" means. Aren't all books literature?
Let's demystify it. What do pretentious MFA people mean by "literary fiction"? Here are a few traits that will help you spot a literary book in the wild:
- Prioritizes artistic merit over entertainment value.
- Prioritizes character development over plot.
- Focuses on the psychology of characters.
- Explores motivation, morality, identity, relationships, or societal issues.
- Does not rely on genre tropes.
- Often features a writing style that is experimental or draws attention to itself.
Let's not lie to ourselves. A lot of literary fiction is dense, serious, pompous, and depressing. I love it, though. It's one of my favorite genres because it makes me see the world in new ways. Sometimes I'm stunned by how an author puts a complex emotion or problem into words. It makes me feel less alone.
If you're new to literary fiction, here are some books that will ease you into the genre. These novels straddle the line between mainstream commercial fiction and Very Serious Literature.
Literary Fiction Book Recommendations For Beginners
If You Like Young Adult Books
Do you want to read about young people grappling with growing up? Here are a few literary coming-of-age stories that prove that growing up is hard to do.
The Secret History by Donna Tartt
Under the influence of their charismatic classics professor, a group of clever, eccentric misfits at an elite New England college discover a way of thinking and living that is a world away from the humdrum existence of their contemporaries. But when they go beyond the boundaries of normal morality they slip gradually from obsession to corruption and betrayal, and at last—inexorably—into evil.
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will be busier still.
By her brother's graveside, Liesel's life is changed when she picks up a single object, partially hidden in the snow. It is The Gravedigger's Handbook, left behind there by accident, and it is her first act of book thievery. So begins a love affair with books and words, as Liesel, with the help of her accordion-playing foster father, learns to read. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor's wife's library, wherever there are books to be found.
But these are dangerous times. When Liesel's foster family hides a Jew in their basement, Liesel's world is both opened up, and closed down.
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
The Bell Jar chronicles the crack-up of Esther Greenwood: brilliant, beautiful, enormously talented, and successful, but slowly going under—maybe for the last time. Sylvia Plath masterfully draws the reader into Esther's breakdown with such intensity that Esther's insanity becomes completely real and even rational, as probable and accessible an experience as going to the movies. Such deep penetration into the dark and harrowing corners of the psyche is an extraordinary accomplishment and has made The Bell Jar a haunting American classic.
If You Like Mystery, Thriller, Or Horror
Do you like the tense, spooky stuff? The things that will make you question what's real and give you nightmares in the process? Here are three literary books that will take your anxiety to new heights. I hope you enjoy creepy houses.
Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier
"Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again. . ."
With these words, the reader is ushered into an isolated gray stone mansion on the windswept Cornish coast, as the second Mrs. Maxim de Winter recalls the chilling events that transpired as she began her new life as the young bride of a husband she barely knew. For in every corner of every room were phantoms of a time dead but not forgotten—a past devotedly preserved by the sinister housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers: a suite immaculate and untouched, clothing laid out and ready to be worn, but not by any of the great house's current occupants. With an eerie presentiment of evil tightening her heart, the second Mrs. de Winter walked in the shadow of her mysterious predecessor, determined to uncover the darkest secrets and shattering truths about Maxim's first wife—the late and hauntingly beautiful Rebecca.
This Sweet Sickness by Patricia Highsmith
David Kelsey has an unswerving conviction that life is going to work out exactly as he planned it. He just needs to fix The Situation: his one true love is married to another man. Under an alias, David sets up a dream home for the two of them in a nearby town. Annabelle will take him back, of that he is certain. David will win her over—whatever it takes.
Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
After receiving a frantic letter from her newlywed cousin begging for someone to save her from a mysterious doom, Noemí Taboada heads to High Place, a distant house in the Mexican countryside. She’s not sure what she will find—her cousin’s husband, a handsome Englishman, is a stranger, and Noemí knows little about the region.
Noemí is also an unlikely rescuer: She’s a glamorous debutante, and her chic gowns and perfect red lipstick are more suited for cocktail parties than amateur sleuthing. But she’s also tough and smart, with an indomitable will, and she is not afraid: Not of her cousin’s new husband, who is both menacing and alluring; not of his father, the ancient patriarch who seems to be fascinated by Noemí; and not even of the house itself, which begins to invade Noemi’s dreams with visions of blood and doom.
Her only ally in this inhospitable abode is the family’s youngest son. Shy and gentle, he seems to want to help Noemí, but might also be hiding dark knowledge of his family’s past. For there are many secrets behind the walls of High Place. The family’s once colossal wealth and faded mining empire kept them from prying eyes, but as Noemí digs deeper she unearths stories of violence and madness.
And Noemí, mesmerized by the terrifying yet seductive world of High Place, may soon find it impossible to ever leave this enigmatic house behind.
If You Like Science Fiction Or Fantasy
Literary fiction comes in speculative flavors! Here's one book that's a bit futuristic and one that's a bit magical. It's always impressive when a book can use speculative elements to talk about real life.
The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood
It opens with these simple, resonant words: "Ten days after the war ended, my sister drove a car off the bridge." They are spoken by Iris, whose terse account of her sister Laura's death in 1945 is followed by an inquest report proclaiming the death accidental. But just as the reader expects to settle into Laura's story, Atwood introduces a novel-within-a-novel. Entitled The Blind Assassin, it is a science fiction story told by two unnamed lovers who meet in dingy backstreet rooms. When we return to Iris, it is through a 1947 newspaper article announcing the discovery of a sailboat carrying the dead body of her husband, a distinguished industrialist.
Swamplandia! by Karen Russell
The Bigtree alligator wrestling dynasty is in decline—think Buddenbrooks set in the Florida Everglades—and Swamplandia!, their island home and gator-wrestling theme park, is swiftly being encroached upon by a sophisticated competitor known as the "World of Darkness."
Ava, a resourceful but terrified twelve-year-old, must manage seventy gators and the vast, inscrutable landscape of her own grief. Her mother, Swamplandia!’s legendary headliner, has just died; her sister is having an affair with a ghost called the Dredgeman; her brother has secretly defected to the World of Darkness in a last-ditch effort to keep their sinking family afloat; and her father, Chief Bigtree, is AWOL. To save her family, Ava must journey on her own to a perilous part of the swamp called the "Underworld," a harrowing odyssey from which she emerges a true heroine.
If You Like Romance
If you think finding a needle in a haystack is difficult, try finding a literary fiction book with a happy ending. I'm not educated enough to locate a book that meets the definition of "romance" and "literary fiction." Romance relies heavily on tropes. Literary fiction avoids tropes. Here's the only book I could find to bridge the gap. If you have literary romance recommendations, please let me know.
The Seven Husbands Of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Aging and reclusive Hollywood movie icon Evelyn Hugo is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life. But when she chooses unknown magazine reporter Monique Grant for the job, no one is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now?
Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband has left her, and her professional life is going nowhere. Regardless of why Evelyn has selected her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career.
Summoned to Evelyn’s luxurious apartment, Monique listens in fascination as the actress tells her story. From making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave show business in the ‘80s, and, of course, the seven husbands along the way, Evelyn unspools a tale of ruthless ambition, unexpected friendship, and a great forbidden love. Monique begins to feel a very real connection to the legendary star, but as Evelyn’s story nears its conclusion, it becomes clear that her life intersects with Monique’s own in tragic and irreversible ways.
If You Want A Bite-Sized Reading Experience
If you're new to literary fiction, then maybe you haven't heard of composite novels. They're collections of interlinked short stories that tell a larger story. It's like a novel made up of bite-sized bits! They're easy to pick up and put down, so you can read them while you're stuck in waiting rooms or long lines. Here are two of my favorites.
The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
The Things They Carried is a ground-breaking meditation on war, memory, imagination, and the redemptive power of storytelling.
The Things They Carried depicts the men of Alpha Company: Jimmy Cross, Henry Dobbins, Rat Kiley, Mitchell Sanders, Norman Bowker, Kiowa, and the character Tim O’Brien, who has survived his tour in Vietnam to become a father and writer at the age of forty-three.
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
Olive Kitteridge: indomitable, compassionate and often unpredictable. A retired schoolteacher in a small coastal town in Maine, as she grows older she struggles to make sense of the changes in her life. She is a woman who sees into the hearts of those around her, their triumphs and tragedies.
We meet her stoic husband, bound to her in a marriage both broken and strong, and a young man who aches for the mother he lost—and whom Olive comforts by her mere presence, while her own son feels overwhelmed by her complex sensitivities.
What's your favorite literary fiction book?
I have read "The Bell Jar" and enjoyed it, but I also like her poetry. "The Things They Carried" is classic, as well as everything else I have read by OBrien.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read any of these but am interested in Mexican Gothic and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. I think quite of bit of horror is being dubbed as literary fiction nowadays. I'm not intimidated by the genre but also don't really seek it out much.
ReplyDeleteI didn't think I read a lot of literary fiction but I've enjoyed a few on your list!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed Mexican Gothic! Silvia Moreno-Garcia is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very thoughtful post, and I like the read IYL. My relationship with literary fiction is love/hate. I think I am too middlebrow and hate how so many try to be shocking just to be shocking and vulgar. It puts me off.
ReplyDeleteI've never actually know what literary fiction is, other than by vibes. Sometimes I'll read a book and think, "This feels like literary fiction," but I couldn't tell you why. From your list, I think my vibes were pretty correct 😄 I've never read any of these, but I do sometimes find myself drawn to these kinds of books and experimental styles, even if I don't always end up liking them.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! Lit Fic was what I started reading when I first discovered the online book community and really started to get into reading again. I seem to have left that genre behind over the years in favour of more fantasy and romance. I do want to get back into it though since I've got tons of backlist books that I still haven't read but I'll space it out between the less heavy/serious reads. Evelyn Hugo is one of my all-time favourites and Rebecca is high on the list of priority reads for me this year.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE Kit's explanation, "knew it by vibes" because YES. That is how I have always felt too. It is weird because I like some of it and then I abhor some of it so I can never figure out whether I like the genre! I have not read any of these except Mexican Gothic, which I did in fact like! Oh and The Book Thief but you can't "like" that book, you can just appreciate it I guess?
ReplyDeleteGreat question and a great answer, Aj! And I love your reading recommendations. Rebecca and The Blink Assassin are special favorites of mine.
ReplyDelete