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Literary Fiction

Literary works that challenge our understanding of the human experience through richly crafted language, complex characters, and profound themes. These masterfully written stories and reflections explore life's deepest questions while pushing the boundaries of storytelling itself.

Literary Fiction Book Summaries

The Golden Notebook Summary
The Golden Notebook
by Doris Lessing 1962 640 pages
3.77
24.0K ratings
Classics
Feminism
Literature
Big Brother Summary
Big Brother
by Lionel Shriver 2013 384 pages
3.47
14.4K ratings
Book Club
Contemporary
Literary Fiction
The Round House Summary
The Round House
by Louise Erdrich 2012 323 pages
3.98
121.4K ratings
Book Club
Historical Fiction
Mystery
Damnation Spring Summary
Damnation Spring
by Ash Davidson 2021 464 pages
3.90
13.3K ratings
Historical Fiction
Literary Fiction
Contemporary
The Complete Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway Summary
The Complete Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway
by Ernest Hemingway 1987 650 pages
4.29
37.4K ratings
Short Stories
Classics
Literature
Demon Copperhead Summary
Demon Copperhead
by Barbara Kingsolver 2022 560 pages
4.48
661.8K ratings
Book Club
Historical Fiction
Literary Fiction
Love Medicine Summary
Love Medicine
by Louise Erdrich 1984 367 pages
4.01
27.8K ratings
Historical Fiction
Native American
Short Stories
Less Than Zero Summary
Less Than Zero
by Bret Easton Ellis 1985 208 pages
3.60
93.8K ratings
Contemporary
Novels
Classics
Immaculate Conception Summary
Immaculate Conception
by Ling Ling Huang 2025 304 pages
4.04
1.9K ratings
Horror
Science Fiction
Thriller
The Heartbeat Library Summary
The Heartbeat Library
by Laura Imai Messina 2022 400 pages
4.03
3.2K ratings
Japan
Contemporary
Japanese Literature
Interpreter of Maladies Summary
Interpreter of Maladies
by Jhumpa Lahiri 1999 198 pages
4.18
201.5K ratings
Short Stories
Book Club
Contemporary
Wolf Hall Summary
Wolf Hall
by Hilary Mantel 2009 653 pages
3.91
224.9K ratings
Historical Fiction
Historical
Book Club
Truth in Advertising Summary
Truth in Advertising
by John Kenney 2013 320 pages
3.70
3.2K ratings
Humor
Book Club
Contemporary
History of English literature Summary
History of English literature
by Edward Albert 1923 544 pages
3.91
255 ratings
History
Literature
Literary Criticism
Big Swiss Summary
Big Swiss
by Jen Beagin 2023 336 pages
3.68
123.9K ratings
Contemporary
LGBT
Queer
Filthy Animals Summary
Filthy Animals
by Brandon Taylor 2021 288 pages
3.64
9.6K ratings
Short Stories
LGBT
Queer
My Dark Vanessa Summary
My Dark Vanessa
by Kate Elizabeth Russell 2020 373 pages
4.10
391.4K ratings
Contemporary
Literary Fiction
Adult
Certain Women Summary
Certain Women
by Madeleine L'Engle 1992 368 pages
3.74
1.7K ratings
Literary Fiction
Religion
Literature
All the Birds, Singing Summary
All the Birds, Singing
by Evie Wyld 2013 240 pages
3.61
14.4K ratings
Mystery
Contemporary
Australia
Canada Summary
Canada
by Richard Ford 2012 420 pages
3.52
27.7K ratings
Book Club
Canada
Literary Fiction
The Girls Who Grew Big Summary
The Girls Who Grew Big
by Leila Mottley 2025 352 pages
4.20
1.3K ratings
Literary Fiction
Contemporary
Coming Of Age
Cloud Cuckoo Land Summary
Cloud Cuckoo Land
by Anthony Doerr 2021 626 pages
4.25
249.2K ratings
Historical Fiction
Fantasy
Book Club
Illumination Night Summary
Illumination Night
by Alice Hoffman 1987 200 pages
3.75
9.1K ratings
Magical Realism
Contemporary
Fantasy
The Lying Life of Adults Summary
The Lying Life of Adults
by Elena Ferrante 2019 336 pages
3.67
80.6K ratings
Italy
Contemporary
Literary Fiction
A Gentleman in Moscow Summary
A Gentleman in Moscow
by Amor Towles 2016 462 pages
4.32
625.2K ratings
Historical Fiction
Book Club
Historical
Nocturnes Summary
Nocturnes
Five Stories of Music and Nightfall
by Kazuo Ishiguro 2009 221 pages
3.51
31.1K ratings
Short Stories
Music
Contemporary
Mina's Matchbox Summary
Mina's Matchbox
by Yōko Ogawa 2006 282 pages
3.77
5.4K ratings
Japan
Historical Fiction
Japanese Literature
Despair Summary
Despair
by Vladimir Nabokov 1934 212 pages
3.91
11.1K ratings
Classics
Russia
Russian Literature
Ask Again, Yes Summary
Ask Again, Yes
by Mary Beth Keane 2019 388 pages
3.93
200.4K ratings
Book Club
Contemporary
Literary Fiction
A Gate at the Stairs Summary
A Gate at the Stairs
by Lorrie Moore 2009 322 pages
3.17
18.6K ratings
Book Club
Novels
Literary Fiction
The Djinn in the Nightingale's Eye Summary
The Djinn in the Nightingale's Eye
Five Fairy Stories
by A.S. Byatt 1994 274 pages
3.85
4.4K ratings
Short Stories
Fantasy
Fairy Tales
This Strange Eventful History Summary
This Strange Eventful History
by Claire Messud 2024 448 pages
3.58
4.5K ratings
Historical Fiction
Literary Fiction
Africa
Angle of Repose Summary
Angle of Repose
by Wallace Stegner 1971 569 pages
4.24
61.0K ratings
Historical Fiction
Classics
Book Club
The Smell of Apples Summary
The Smell of Apples
by Mark Behr 1993 200 pages
3.55
1.3K ratings
South Africa
Africa
Historical Fiction
The Mars Room Summary
The Mars Room
by Rachel Kushner 2018 338 pages
3.44
46.3K ratings
Contemporary
Literary Fiction
Book Club
On Such a Full Sea Summary
On Such a Full Sea
by Chang-rae Lee 2014 407 pages
3.49
11.7K ratings
Dystopia
Science Fiction
Speculative Fiction
Pages for You Summary
Pages for You
by Sylvia Brownrigg 2001 274 pages
3.91
9.2K ratings
LGBT
Romance
Queer
Speedboat Summary
Speedboat
by Renata Adler 1976 192 pages
3.76
7.1K ratings
Classics
Short Stories
Novels
The Knockout Queen Summary
The Knockout Queen
by Rufi Thorpe 2020 277 pages
3.73
14.1K ratings
Contemporary
LGBT
Young Adult
Chemistry Summary
Chemistry
by Weike Wang 2017 224 pages
3.74
25.1K ratings
Contemporary
Literary Fiction
Adult
Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay Summary
Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay
by Elena Ferrante 2013 418 pages
4.36
178.3K ratings
Historical Fiction
Italy
Italian Literature
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet Summary
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet
by David Mitchell 2010 479 pages
4.03
66.5K ratings
Historical Fiction
Japan
Historical
The Diver's Clothes Lie Empty Summary
The Diver's Clothes Lie Empty
by Vendela Vida 2015 224 pages
3.45
7.5K ratings
Mystery
Travel
Book Club
Hieroglyphics Summary
Hieroglyphics
by Jill McCorkle 2020 312 pages
3.32
1.7K ratings
Literary Fiction
Historical Fiction
Family
Trust Exercise Summary
Trust Exercise
by Susan Choi 2019 257 pages
3.13
37.4K ratings
Literary Fiction
Book Club
Contemporary
The Heart of Winter Summary
The Heart of Winter
by Jonathan Evison 2025 368 pages
4.12
4.8K ratings
Romance
Historical Fiction
Literary Fiction
Little Blue Encyclopedia Summary
Little Blue Encyclopedia
by Hazel Jane Plante 2019 200 pages
4.26
1.4K ratings
Queer
LGBT
Transgender
The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls Summary
The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls
by Anissa Gray 2019 294 pages
3.63
21.0K ratings
Contemporary
Book Club
Literary Fiction
Park Avenue Summary
Park Avenue
by RenΓ©e Ahdieh 2025 320 pages
3.78
1.4K ratings
Contemporary
Romance
Thriller
The Dogs of Babel Summary
The Dogs of Babel
by Carolyn Parkhurst 2003 278 pages
3.58
19.3K ratings
Mystery
Book Club
Animals
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