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Thursday, May 30, 2013

Armchair BEA: Literary Fiction


I sort of think of literary fiction as a catch all category, but I'm sure it doesn't think of itself like that. This category of books thinks very highly of itself! It's a phrase that has sort of acquired a snooty reputation. But like any category, it has its good books and its bad. Just because a book is considered literary fiction doesn't mean it's going to be all perfect and wonderful.

I also think of these books as pretty deep thinking. They are usually on the serious side with a bit of a subject to tackle. For this reason, many of my favorite books are literary fiction...because I tend to like the serious stuff. You have to use your brain to read them (usually) and they truly get you invested and involved.

Some of my favorites are:

The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford
Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson
The History of Love by Nicole Krauss
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Room by Emma Donoghue
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy
The Angel's Game by Carols Ruiz Saffron
The Daughter of Fortune by Isabel Allande

Well, there's a start anyway!

What would you put on your list?

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20 comments:

  1. Caroline Starr RoseMay 30, 2013 at 11:53 AM

    House of the Spirits, Memoirs of a Geisha, Gilead, AS Byatt's Possession, Angle of Repose, and Silence.

    Some favorite YA literary would include The Brides of Rollrock Island, Paper Covers Rock, Where Things Come Back, and any Beth Kephart book.

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    1. SueyMay 30, 2013 at 5:32 PM

      Caroline: I have read some of those! Yes, I agree!

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  2. Man of la BookMay 30, 2013 at 12:41 PM

    Some great books (I even read a few on your list. Here is mine http://manoflabook.com/wp/?p=9145

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  3. AnonymousMay 30, 2013 at 12:59 PM

    I loved the Night Circus!

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  4. AndiMay 30, 2013 at 1:37 PM

    Excellent choices! Some books I've loved and some I still wanna read. Cloud Atlas is one of those literary fiction books that I find intimidating but still want to read. It comes to mind right this second because it was mocking me last night from my shelves. lol

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    1. SueyMay 30, 2013 at 5:33 PM

      Andi: I can't remember if that one is on my shelf or not... hmmm.... I wonder...

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  5. AnonymousMay 30, 2013 at 4:13 PM

    Great choices-The House of the Spirits is one of my favorite books-have you read that?
    Kerri @ Turn the Page Reviews
    http://turnthepagereviews.com

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    1. SueyMay 30, 2013 at 5:34 PM

      Kerri: Now this one I KNOW is on my shelves, I've been dying to read it for a long time. What AM I waiting for?

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    2. AnonymousMay 30, 2013 at 10:21 PM

      It's so good! Isabel Allende is one of my all-time favorite authors.

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  6. AnonymousMay 30, 2013 at 6:07 PM

    I really enjoyed The Night Circus! I agree that literary fiction, at least ones you connect with, gets you invested and involved! I'm going to bookmark post to look at some of the books you listed!

    and thanks for stopping by my blog, too!

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    1. SueyMay 30, 2013 at 10:01 PM

      ablightedone: I hope you can get to some of them. They are good, I promise!

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  7. Sarah Reads Too MuchMay 30, 2013 at 6:12 PM

    Oh goodness, you named some wonderful books. Why doesn't Edgar Sawtelle get more love? That was such a good book! And The Night Circus, All the Pretty Horses, The History of Love!! And others, but it really isn't fair to just re-hash your list.

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  8. UnknownMay 30, 2013 at 7:10 PM

    I've heard great things about The Night Circus! And I read All The Pretty Horses a long, long time ago. Great choices!

    Jessica@Lovin' Los Libros

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    1. SueyMay 30, 2013 at 10:02 PM

      Jessica: I need to try some more Cormac books I'm thinking.

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  9. AmandaMay 30, 2013 at 7:43 PM

    I love Allende! I need to read more of her works. I'm not sure if I'd consider The Night Circus as literary fiction - it's writing definitely fits the standards, but it's subject matter is definitely more along the lines of genre fiction. Guess it shows the intermingling of the two!

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    1. SueyMay 30, 2013 at 10:02 PM

      Amanda: I thought that when I listed, but it has the style of literary fiction but the subject of what... fantasy? I'm not even sure how to categorize that book!

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  10. Meg @ A Bookish AffairMay 31, 2013 at 1:56 PM

    The History of Love and Daughter of Fortune are amazing!

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