Pet Sematary by Stephen King
560 Pages, Published In 1983
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A young family moves from Chicago to a small town in Maine, settling into a home shadowed by a small cemetery on the hill behind it—where generations of locals have buried their beloved pets. The town and its burial ground carry a long, unsettling history, gradually tightening its grip on the family. Fast-paced. Action-packed. An ending leaving readers to extend the horror in their own minds. Dark. Horrific. Dramatic. “Sometimes, dead is better.” And it proves true. One of King’s scariest!
Moby-Dick or, The Whale by Herman Melville
720 Pages, Published In 1851
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Moby Dick (1851) is an ageless classic about the relentless hunt for the elusive white whale. At 751 pages, it reads like an encyclopedia of whales: types of whales, the history of whaling, whale anatomy from jaw to sprout hole to tail, plus the laws and lore of the whaling world. The middle section moves slowly, but the action picks up toward the end, and the finale is unexpected and dramatic. It’s a novel of brutality and beauty, of obsession and the sheer tenacity of its characters.
Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier
449 Pages, Published In 1997
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Cold Mountain is a Civil War novel that, at its heart, is a love story—following a Confederate soldier’s long, perilous walk home to his prewar sweetheart. Told through two parallel timelines, it captures the harrowing nature of war with both tenderness and beauty. The narrative unfolds through stories within stories, slow-paced but never dull, with the dual timelines woven seamlessly. The ending is both unexpected and heartbreaking, leaving a lasting impression of the true cost of war.
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
509 Pages, Published In 2004
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A brilliant, genre-defying novel composed of six interwoven stories spanning time and space—from 19th-century colonial New Zealand to 1900s England, a dystopian Korea, and a post-apocalyptic world in Hawaii. The stories are interlinked, with characters are reincarnations across timelines. The structure is mind-blowing: the first five narratives are interrupted mid-sentence at pivotal moments, followed by the sixth; then it unfolds in reverse, completing each tale in a mirror: 12345654321.
The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese
724 Pages, Published In 2023
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An epic novel that spans three generations, multiple families, and two continents across 724 pages. Set against South India’s evolving landscape—from colonial rule to independence and war (1900-1977), it is a sweeping story of enduring love, generational trauma, and the healing power of compassion. Water connects the characters across time and space. Written by a medical surgeon, the novel brings a depth of medical insight, exploring acoustic neuroma and leprosy that afflict generations.
Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by Matthew Desmond
418 Pages, Published In 2016
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In his Pulitzer Prize-winning Evicted, Desmond follows 8 families in Milwaukee as they struggle to keep a roof over their heads, revealing how eviction is not just a symptom of poverty but also a cause—not just an family misfortune but a systemic issue. “Without stable shelter, everything else falls apart.” Eviction is not just about losing a home—it disrupts employment, education, and health, trapping families in a vicious cycle of instability & hardship. A nonfiction reads like a novel.
The Stand by Stephen King
1153 Pages, Published In 1978
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An epic tale of a superflu pandemic that wipes out 99% of the population and the aftermath as humanity rebuilds. A gripping battle between good and evil. Richly developed human & nonhuman characters. A classic (post-)apocalyptic and horror with themes of love, hope, friendship, and resilience, and philosophical insights on human nature, morality, and society. A Christmas scene at the end is a heartwarming retreat amidst the chaos. Both chilling and thought-provoking. One of King’s finest!
James by Percival Everett
303 Pages, Published In 2024
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James by Percival Everett, a brilliant retelling of Mark Twain’s original The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In James, enslaved Jim, the protagonist, is written in the first person. The story unfolds along the iconic Mississippi River, mirroring the original plot, but the journey is reshaped and the ending is entirely different. Packed with action, in just 303 pages, James explores deeper themes of race and humanity, family and friendship. Powerful, Gripping, Horrifying, also Humorous!
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
241 Pages, Published In 2006
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The 2007 Pulitzer Prize winner by Cormac McCarthy is about a father and a son traveling along The Road, through a ravaged, burned America, to the coast in a post-apocalyptic world. Bleak, Dark, Depressing, Suffocating, Devastating. No chapters, No quotation marks, No names, No grammar, No Plot. Nothing matters. “What would you do if I died? If you died I would want to die too. So you could be with me? Yes. So I could be with you. Okay” The only light is the love the father has for his son.
Go as a River by Shelley Read
320 Pages, Published In 2023
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Go as a River, a debut by Shelley Read, is a historical fiction about a young woman’s journey set in a small town of Colorado against the backdrop of Vietnam War. As the sole female in a family of reckless men, she flees from home in teens, single-handedly relocates her family’s peach farm, and endures unbearable losses and hardship, with courage, hope and resilience. It’s also about mountains, trees, and the flowing river. Beautifully written; intriguing opening; tantalizing closing.
Prophet Song by Paul Lynch
310 Pages, Published In 2023
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Prophet Song is a dystopian tale of a mother of four (infant to teens) attempting to hold her family together after Ireland descends into totalitarian control and then a civil war. Chaotic, sad and upsetting throughout; Violent, dark and heartbroken in the end. Unique writing style: long chapters (30+ pages each) with no paragraph breaks and no quotation marks for dialogues. Suffocating to read, just like the story. Winner of the 2023 Booker Prize. Poignant, powerful, and prescient.
Five Little Pigs by Agatha Christie
288 Pages, Published In 1942
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A detective fiction from the Hercule Poirot series. A grown daughter asks Poirot to investigate a 16 years old case: her mother was sentenced to life (and died shortly after in prison) for poisoning her philandering dad. By interviewing 5 suspects (5 little pigs), Poirot manages to uncover the truth from their weary memories, using subtle clues and his keen understanding of human psychology. Loved Agatha’s simple sentences, sharp dialogues, memorable characters and intriguing plots!
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
311 Pages, Published In 1966
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A story of a lab mouse and a mentally disabled boy. Both undergo a brain surgery to increase IQ and become a genius, albeit briefly. What an emotional roller coaster about love, friendship, and what really matters in life! From a series of progress reports written by the boy, you’ll learn the transformation and also feel it evidenced in his writing ability. The ending “P.S. please if you get a chanse put some flowrs on Algernons grave in the bak yard.” brought me to tears. A true classic!
Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart
430 Pages, Published In 2020
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A debug novel about a young boy growing up with his alcoholic mother in the 1980s Glasgow. The 2020 Booker Prize for Fiction is based on Scottish-American writer’s own childhood experience. It’s horrifying, anguish, sad throughout, and without a real hope. A tiny bit of hope kindled in the middle of the book then was squelched quickly. Stuart stated “It was a difficult process” to write the book. It’s even harder to read but it makes you think!
Babel by R. F. Kuang
544 Pages, Published In 2022
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A perfect blend of historical fiction and fantasy. The story is set in 19th-century England during the global colonization and liberation in all parts of the world. Four foreign students are sent to study in Oxford University’s prestigious Royal Institute of Translation (Babel) and discover the secret ways the British Empire uses the power of silver bars to maintain its supremacy and plots the Opium Wars against China. The book is both epic and magical!
Tom Lake by Ann Patchett
309 Pages, Published In 2023
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It’s a story of a mother telling her secret past to her three grown daughters on a farm. The stories of her “glory” teens into 20s as an actress, dating with a movie star, the trips, her love, loss and drama. The plot is simple; its development is slow; and the writing is beautiful. It reads like a meditation book of love, family and life.
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
213 Pages, Published In 2015
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Four light, poignant stories about friendship, family, love and loss, weaved around the time travel trips to the past and future in a cozy cafe.
Hang the Moon by Jeannette Walls
364 Pages, Published In 2023
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One of the best historical fictions I’ve ever read. It’s about a woman’s journey to independence in the Prohibition era of 1920s rural Virginia. The characters will stay with you for a long time. The plot is complex and so is the history. The writing is beautiful. A book I’d recommended for slow reading.