I love lit fic. I love it. And for some readers that sounds so boring. I have heard people describe lit fic as character based more than plot based. And I would say that is likely true, but that does not mean it is boring or devoid of action or emotion.
If you are one of those people who thinks they hate lit fic, here are some books I ask you to read to see if your opinion changes.
Lit Fic + Good Romance:
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen is a little historical fiction, a little coming of age and a little romance. It is not for those that cannot stand animal cruelty. It is set in the early days of Bartum and Bailey’s Circus. A young veterinarian leaves home and finds the circus. He falls in love with the trapeze artist who is in a relationship with the ringmaster. He is abusive to her and the animals. Enter our hero, the veterinarian!
Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood is a little historical fiction, a little coming of age and a little romance. It is 3 stories in one. It is the story of two sisters in Toronto during WWII. It is the story of 2 unknown lovers who meet secretly. And it is the sci-fi story the lovers create while they are together. There is a ton of mystery in this story surrounding one of the sister’s deaths and who the lovers are. There is not one of the three that is more intriguing!
Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton is a classic. It is a tragic love story. It is short and will leave you destroyed.
Lit Fic + Awesome Magical Realism:
Beloved by Toni Morrison is one of the most popular examples of magical realism in literature. Runaway slave Sethe’s home is visited by a ghost that appears to be the baby of the daughter she killed. She haunts the house, scares the other children away and also represents so much more.
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabiel Garcia Marquez is my, and most people’s, favorite book of his. Marquez is known as the Father of Magical Realism. He is a Colombian author, and One Hundred Years of Solitude is epic. It spans seven generations of one family. It is about the damages of solitude and the importance of the past and our memories. One character eats earth. Many are killed in wars and uprisings. There is a matron of a brothel who many seek for her advice. And of course someone returns from the dead and another has butterflies following her around.
Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward is the story of 13 year old Jojo and his coming of age. After failing to help slaughter a goat, Jojo is feeling like he let down his grandfather. The next day his mother takes Jojo to see his own father in prison. In the car, Jojo finds a gris-gris bag and instructions on how to use it from his grandfather. Through this journey, Jojo learns much about himself, his family and their abilities.
Lit fic is a genre of its own, but so often lit fic books span multiple topics. If you need to have some romance in your books, you can find it in lit fic. You can even find some spicy scenes: looking at you Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver, Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera and The Story of a New Name by Elena Ferrante and Lauren Groff in so many of your books 😉
-Ang
I have a love/hate relationship with recommending books to people. When I know nothing about a person’s reading preferences and they ask me “what should I read next,” I cringe. The pressure is on, but all I can do is tell them about a book I like. I also feel this way when I see these requests on online forums/pages. How in the world should I know what you should read next? Reading is deeply personal. I need to know you!
Most of my close friends are readers. And with each of them, I share something in common when it comes to reading, but there are books I loved that Casey will love, Lauren will like, and Katie will hate so I have to take what I know about each person and their reading into account.
I have learned what books each of them will likely enjoy (clearly, I have been wrong before) by listening to what books they liked in the past AND WHY. The why is huge.
In fact, Kate and I love so many of the same books; we share a favorite book The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood. But Kate hates another one of my favorite books, Milkman by Anna Burns. She dnf’ed it twice. Kate is a plot driven reader. If the book is slow, if it is too character or theme driven, she’s not really interested.
At Recycle Read Repeat, we have customers who have been with us for years. This makes us so proud. But more than proud we are touched; it’s like we have new friends. We often write notes to them explaining why we have chosen a book - especially when it is not obvious. We await their feedback anxiously and figure out ways to humbly, or not so humbly, brag to each other when we nail the recommendation.
Just like with our friends, though, there are times when we don’t nail it. The feedback comes in and we see the terrifying 2 star review. But nothing changes (besides the humble brag step). Whether our customers send us 5 star feedback or 2 star feedback, we do the same thing - analyze the data and continue to build our nerdy book relationship with them!
- Ang
Eric Jerome Dickey was a very popular writer in the 1990s. He recently passed from cancer in 2021 at the young age of 52. Until about 4 weeks ago, I had no idea he was still publishing books until I learned of his passing.
He had an interesting career. Graduating from Memphis State University with a degree in engineering, he moved to L.A. to work for Rockwell International as a software developer. Then decided he wanted to pursue the arts: acting, comedy and writing.
He published 15 novels in a variety of genres. And his book The Business of Lovers published in 2020 is one of this month’s Customer 5 star Favs.
I was nervous sending this book out to our customer; I kept thinking to myself: Is he still relevant? But he is just one of those writers whose reputation you can trust.
Here is what our customer Sam said, “This book was spot on. I couldn’t put it down. The story line was amazing and the ending was absolutely perfect.” And she added in her note of what she wanted to read next: “keep doing what you're doing.”
Another book that received 5 stars this month, is one I have never heard of: This Burns My Heart by Samuel Park.
Here is what Linda had to say about it:
This book was so. Damn. Good. Just my style blending history, Asian culture (in this case Korea), and romance. It reminded me of a Lisa See book who is one of my all-time favorite authors. The book spanned many years of Soo-Ja's life from a girl in her early twenties to a mother in her late thirties and it really took me on a journey of her struggle with the choices she made as a young woman. I felt very connected to her, even though I may not have made the same mistakes she has, as a woman in my early thirties I understand having to deal with the fallout of decisions I made when I was younger and more naïve. Not only that, but in her older years she is a perpetual people pleaser and will say whatever makes everyone else happy even if it means biting her tongue and suffering herself which I really really relate with. Every time Soo-Ja and Yul reunited my heart was in my throat hoping maybe this time something would work out between them, reading this as a hopeless romantic really really pulled at my heartstrings. The ending definitely made me cry, I wish there were a tiny bit more wrap-up (like an epilogue) but I was still satisfied with how it played out.
Working in a bookstore is the coolest! I get to learn about so many books. But running this subscription service is even better because of the feedback we receive!
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KATE:
The Monsters We Defy by Leslye Penelope
This historical fantasy is full of mystery and African American folk magic. Penelope weaves together real pieces of history and gives the reader a glimpse into 1920's Black Washington society full of fancy soirees, bootleggers, lady gangster bosses and jazz musicians.
Old Babes in the Woods by Margaret Atwood
Margaret Atwood is my favorite author. I read Handmaid's Tale when I was in high school and have been devouring her books ever since. This new collection of short stories is classic Atwood - it's beautifully written and showcases deep relationships with a thread of humor and humility throughout.
ANG:
The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls by Anissa Gray
This is a beautifully written domestic fiction told from multiple perspectives. Gray develops characters that are complex, sympathetic and frustrating against the back drop of the the matriarch’s trial for defrauding the community she claimed to be helping.
NICOLE:
Shrill by Lindy West
Shrill is a collection of essays that are also the memoir of Lindy West in which she focuses on modern feminism, politics, body image, learning to take up space and use your voice, choosing how you want to show up in the world and how to take care of the people who are often left behind by society.
Untamed by Glennon Doyle
I stayed away from this book for a long time because it was so popular and I was skeptical about all of the hype. But my curiosity won and I must say I am really enjoying reading it (I am just over half way through). Untamed is also a memoir that consists of a collection of musings by Glennon Doyle in which she uses her life experience to show what it takes to unlearn everything that society tells you in terms of how to act (especially for women) and how to show up and live your life from an authentic space.
