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Literary fiction

From beach reads to brainy books and everything in between.

Literary fiction overview

Literary fiction, as opposed to genre or popular fiction, focuses on style and depth, and is often character-driven.

Read with pride

Paul Takes the Form of a Mortal Girl by Andrea Lawlor
Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin
On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters
Juliet Takes a Breath by Gabby Rivera
A Safe Girl to Love by Casey Plett
Orlando by Virginia Woolf
The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi
Nevada by Imogen Binnie
Cover Story by Celia Laskey
Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield
Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
Rainbow Milk by Paul Mendez
Sexing the Cherry by Jeanette Winterson

Booker Prize longlist

Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange
Wild Houses by Colin Barrett
Held by Anne Michaels
Creation Lake by Rachel Kushner
This Strange Eventful History by Claire Messud
Playground by Richard Powers
Enlightenment by Sarah Perry
James by Percival Everett
My Friends by Hisham Matar
Headshot by Rita Bullwinkel

Staff picks

Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr
Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart
The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb
Love Medicine by Louise Erdrich
Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver
The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
Go Tell it on the Mountain by James Baldwin
Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy
Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
Night of the Living Rez by Morgan Talty
Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson
Barometer Rising by Hugh MacLennan
Late Nights on Air by Elizabeth Hay

New to literary fiction? Try one of these books:

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