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I'm running out of books - Literary fiction recommendations please.

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KStockHERO · 27/03/2025 15:33

I'm rapidly reaching the end of my "To Read" book list. The problem is that I have no idea what to read next, nothing is really grabbing me.

I love literary fiction, especially if its depressing 😛

I'm not that keen on period classics. I'm not sure why, I just struggle to get into them. So I'm after something from C20 and beyond.

To give you an idea - I loved loved loved "The Luminaries" and "A Little Life". I'm waiting for Ngozi Adiche's new one to be out in paperback. I've read the whole of Ishiguro's back catalogue.

I hated "The Vegetarian", "Brotherless Night" was alright but "Enter Ghost" and "Orbital" both bored me to absolute tears.

What shall I read next? HELP!

OP posts:
Latecoming · 31/03/2025 12:00

KStockHERO · 31/03/2025 11:13

Thanks for all your suggestions.

I've ordered:
"A Boy Called Leon" - recommended by a friend
"Brideshead Revisited"
"The God of Small Things"
"Crow Lake"

And have lots more on the list for when I run out of these!

I was toying with getting "Disgrace" by JM Coetzee but the picture of the skinny dog on the front made me hesitate. Is there animal cruelty in this book? I can't cope with that 😆

Well, there's considerably more human-to-human cruelty (it's an incredibly bleak novel, even for Coetzee), but from what I remember, and I haven't it since it came out, there is a scene where house intruders shoot dogs, and instances where dogs are euthanised, because one character runs a boarding kennel and another a rescue shelter in post-apartheid SA.

Original poster
KStockHERO · 31/03/2025 14:12

Latecoming · 31/03/2025 12:00

Well, there's considerably more human-to-human cruelty (it's an incredibly bleak novel, even for Coetzee), but from what I remember, and I haven't it since it came out, there is a scene where house intruders shoot dogs, and instances where dogs are euthanised, because one character runs a boarding kennel and another a rescue shelter in post-apartheid SA.

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Thank you for the warning ⚠️

I'll give it a go. The only book I've ever cried at was "The People in the Trees" where Yanagihara described the lab beagles.
Human on human cruelty in books I can cope with 😬

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