10 for Tuesday – Literary Fiction Books for Genre Readers
Another Tuesday another list. I get into a lot of interesting conversations about books. For the next few weeks, I’m going to make lists of books that I fanboy over.
Here are 10 literary fiction books for genre readers.
A Visit From the Goon Squad, by Jennifer Egan – This is my all-time favorite novel. It’s daring, audacious, brilliant, etc… etc… etc… This book is about an extended circle of friends and their acquaintances. It’s also an examination of chaos theory through the lens of the entertainment industry. It shows us that carefully constructed non-linear storytelling isn’t just for Quinten Tarantino movies. Go read this book.
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, by Michael Chabon – While this book about two Jewish guys making comics in New York in and around New York is grounded in realism, it reads at times like a thriller and a superhero story at others. It’s a perfect entry point for genre readers to get into literary fiction. Chabon has written a wonderful love letter to the golden age of comics.
The Things They Carried, by Tim O’Brien – This book is near and dear to my heart. I read this in my undergrad, and without it, my Dead Weight books wouldn’t exist. It’s a fictionalized memoir about a soldier in Viet Nam. It’s an exploration of the effects of war on the individual. It’s a personal story that’s part-heartbreaking, part-uplifting, and at times fantastical and surreal.
Lullabies for Little Criminals, by Heather O’Neill – Even without any speculative elements, this story reads kind of like a low-fantasy novel. It’s about a thirteen-year-old girl whose dad is a hustler always looking for the elusive big score. This is by no means a book for children. I don’t know that I’d even consider it YA. But it’s a hell of a read with gut punch after gut punch.
If on a Winter’s Night, a Stranger, by Italo Calvino – This is a weird one. It’s super meta. It’s in 2nd person. It’s weird and delightful. If you can let go of needing a traditional story told in a straightforward manner, this book is a whole lot of fun.
The Third Policeman, by Flann O’Brien – I love this book. It’s about exploring atomic theory badly in a two-dimensional police station in rural Ireland. Oh, and the protagonist murdered someone and is trying to hide it. My best advice for this one, like Douglass Adams or Phillip K Dick’s more esoteric work, don’t try and figure this one out as you go, just enjoy the ride.
Cloud Atlas, by David Mitchell – This is a multi-genre book that goes from historical fiction, to mystery, to psychological thriller, to cyberpunk, to post-apocalyptic, and then does it again in reverse order. I think the only reason the genre community didn’t talk about this book more is because a literary fiction writer wrote it, and the publisher didn’t really market it to us. It’s a great read, and the clever bits are actually clever and not just gimmicky.
Notes from a Coma, by Mike McCormack – I struggled a bit on which Mike McCormack book to include here. I decided that Notes From a Coma is more accessible than Solar Bones. The story revolves around people familiar with the protagonist talking about him going into an experimental program to put prisoners into comas for the duration of their sentence. The protagonist isn’t a criminal, he has his own reasons for wanting in on the experiment.
Swamplandia, by Karen Russel – Who doesn’t want a surreal story about a dysfunctional family running a creepy alligator-wrestling theme park in the 10,000 Islands section of Florida?
Fat City, by Leonard Gardner – It’s a boxing novel set in California in the mid-20th century, but with a few slight changes, it could easily be a lof fantasy set in the seediest parts of a kingdom or a grungy steampunk. It explores the various relationships that a wanna-be boxer forges as he chases fortune and glory.
Happy reading!
(P.S. – I use Amazon referral links because I’m a hustling creative in late-stage, free-market capitalism.)
