Fiction

Sylvia Plath’s only novel, The Bell Jar, was published in 1963 and is a semi-autobiographical account of Plath’s own life as a young woman struggling with depression and bipolar disorder. The novel, which describes the debilitating feeling of depression as being akin to suffocating under a bell jar, is one of the best depictions of… Read More

The Book Thief, written by the Australian author Markus Zusak, is undoubtedly one of the most unique historical novels that set in Nazi Germany. It follows the story of a young German girl named Liesel who is sent to live with foster parents, Hans and Rosa, at the start of the novel. Her foster parents… Read More

Alice Sebald’s 2002 novel The Lovely Bones is a powerful novel that tells the story of a family as told through the eyes of their daughter, Susie Salmon, who was brutally raped and murdered and narrates the novel from the afterlife. The novel follows the Salmon family as they grapple with Susie’s death and strive… Read More

If you ever do a search for the most recommended travel books or stories that inspired people, then chances are that The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho will come up. It’s a book that undoubtedly divides readers with many people I know having strong opinions one way or another about it. For the readers that enjoy… Read More

Kathryn Stockett’s 2009 novel The Help quickly became a bestseller, with much critical acclaim and even an Academy Award Winning film adaptation being released in 2011. The novel, which follows the life and trials of black housemaids in 1960s Mississippi, has also been met with its fair share of criticism, however. Though the novel does… Read More

Madeline Miller’s novels The Song of Achilles and Circe won both critical acclaim and the hearts of readers with the fantastic writing style and in-depth retelling of mythic figures we thought we knew. While modern literature with a basis in Greek epics is certainly nothing new, both of Miller’s novels (published in 2011 and 2018… Read More

Ray Bradbury’s 1953 dystopian novel, Fahrenheit 451, has provoked millions of its readers to question such things like censorship and the role that books and literature play in a free and informed society. This book has piqued the interest of many into reading more dystopia and speculative fiction and leave them searching for more books… Read More

Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts is undoubtedly one of my favourite books of all time. It tells the story of Lin, an Australian who escapes from prison and flees to Bombay (present day Mumbai), India where he begins a new life. The book delves deep into Indian culture and life in Bombay as he forms… Read More