Why am I passionate about this?
As a writer, I want my novels to be deeply humane and beautifully written, with characters who are worth your time and love and worry. And as a reader, I want my plots to keep you up past bedtime. Unsurprisingly, these same qualities show up in novels I remember the longest. In days of yore (the 1980s) the rap on “literary novels” was that they had poetic writing and no plot. I’m glad to say that’s no longer true (if it ever was). Gorgeous writing and riveting plots can and do go together! In that spirit, I hope you’ll love my book selections.
Monica's book list on literary reads that contain surprises
Why did Monica love this book?
I’m just gonna say up front: some of you will hate this novel, so I’ll describe it as clearly as I can.
The narrator is a famous blogger who rose to international fame over a one-sentence post, after which she surrenders to a life lived online, described in poetic, incandescent, at times infuriatingly overwritten prose. That’s Part 1, which ends with a thudding fall to earth: a text from Mom saying Come home. Part Two is a switcheroo in both style and content, and that’s all I can tell you without wrecking the novel’s unexpected turn.
I know what this sounds like—impenetrable show-offing, and at times it is—but it’s like nothing I’ve ever read and I can’t stop thinking about it. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
4 authors picked No One Is Talking About This as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.
'Patricia Lockwood is the voice of a generation' Namita Gokhale 'A masterpiece' Guardian 'I really admire and love this book' Sally Rooney 'An intellectual and emotional rollercoaster' Daily Mail 'I can't remember the last time I laughed so much reading a book' David Sedaris 'A rare wonder . . . I was left in bits' Douglas Stuart * WINNER OF THE DYLAN THOMAS PRIZE 2022 * * SHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2021 * * SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2021 * * A BBC BETWEEN THE COVERS BOOK CLUB PICK * ______________________________________________ This is a story about…