sweet disposition

Literary Fiction I really enjoy as someone who is mostly an SFF reader

some of these have speculative elements; others are books that I just think go hard. here we are:

Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell:

most of David Mitchell's books are simply a blast IMO if you're only going to readone it has to be Cloud Atlas. if there was ever a book that has everything it is Cloud Atlas. as a word of warning I will say: if you are unfamiliar it consists of 6 nested stories and the opening section (The Pacific Journal of Adam Ewing) is a bit dense but if you power through it you will get to other sections like the 1930s doomed gay romance and the fast food clone dystopia that are a great time.

Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino:

I would warmly recommend reading this one if you are into writing fantasy in particular. a breezy 165 pages where each chapter is a description of a different fictional city.

The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark:

we now enter into 'books that simply fuck'. I feel like The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie is potentially a tough sell if you are not already into the classics given that the premise does not sound very exciting but i gotta say: dude trust me. this one ranks on '100 books to read before you die' or whatever lists over and over for a reason. probably the most perfectly constructed novel i have ever read. and under 200 pages.

Fictions by Jorges Luis Borges:

this is another one i would recommend if you are into writing fiction. "Pierre Menard, Author of the Quixote" in particular has been living rent free in my mind for years. im always wanting to reference it. i wanna be like 'wow this is a real Pierre Menard, Author of the Quixote' situation but i worry no-one will know what I'm talking about and i will sound like the Gregory Berrycone guy. anyway Borges is really good.

The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood:

i've read a good chunk of Margaret Atwood and this is solidly my favourite. just an absolutely banging read. the sections about the titular blind assassin are extremely cool. the plot creeps along to this like slow-burning reveal that will have you like ohh... OHHH!!

We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson:

as w Blind Assassin this is another one that will slow burn you into a big oh... OH NO?? i read it in a single day (it's under 200 pages) (I like a book that is short) and it really cracks along.

Black Narcissus by Rumer Godden:

i would just like to say that Rumer Godden is a wildly underrated writer. i came across her first via her children's books and subsequently sought out her adult fiction and was like FUCK me. anyway: Black Narcissus is about a group of English nuns trying to set up a convent in the Himalayas and instead get into some messed up psychological horror. has a movie adaptation that offended the Catholic Legion of Decency.

Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier:

this is one of ur classic books where everyone says its really really good and then you read it and are like wowie that was really really good.

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka:

instead ask:

is it SINCERE

was it CATHARTIC

was it FUN TO MAKE

is it MADE BY ME

The moon will guide you through the night with her brightness, but she will always dwell in the darkness, in order to be seen