Book Category: Essential
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The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
Beautifully written, impossible to put down, with an ending full of shocking twists. Probably perfect. You should read it.
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The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers
McCullers writes about misfits, loneliness and the need for human connection in a way that fully overwhelmed me.
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What We Talk About When We Talk About Love by Raymond Carver
A bunch of short stories that you’ll want to re-read as soon as you finish.
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James by Percival Everett
Everett’s interpretation of the slave character from Huckleberry Finn is subversive, funny, thrilling and thought-provoking.
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Conscientious Objections by Neil Postman
This is a gateway drug for Neil Postman’s work. If you don’t know him, this is a good starting point.
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A Love Affair by Dino Buzzati
An overlooked classic. The 1963 story of an older Italian man becoming obsessed with a younger woman. It’s well-traveled ground but I’ve never read anything like this.
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Skippy Dies by Paul Murray
The book that put Murray on the map is funny, sad and addictive, and maybe even better than his high-profile follow up The Bee Sting.
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Foster by Claire Keegan
Claire Keegan’s short but beautiful book hit me in a specific and memorable way.
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Meet Me in the Bathroom by Lizzy Goodman
If you’re a music fan of a certain vintage, this book by Lizzy Goodman is absolutely essential.
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Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell
Orwell’s classic is, well, classic.