Selected Reading List

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Seven Empty Houses

Seven Empty Houses

Samanta Schwebin

Schweblin, an Argentinian writer, has written the finest story I've yet read about someone experiencing dementia…

Cuba Libre

Cuba Libre

Elmore Leonard

A cowboy suddenly finds himself running horses for someone, he's not sure who, and the cash is mucho over the market rate.

The Hunted

The Hunted

An unfortunate bit of timing has our hero captured in a front page story standing amidst the rubble of a hotel bombing.

The River Between

The River Between

Ngugi wa Thiong'O

Set in colonial Kenya and centered on the conflict between traditional Kikuyu culture and the influences of British colonialism and Christianity, The River Between is one of Ngugi wa Thiong'O's first novels.

Things Become Other Things

Things Become Other Things

Craig Mod

The walk and the environs are the stage settings for the people Mod encounters, who share this forgotten land south of Nara - the Kii peninsula.

Speedboat

Speedboat

Renata Adler

There is a vibrant quality running through the narrator's life that I would equate to a good noir detective novel that keeps the page-turning pace up, with the occasional weirdo wandering into the story (more than a few times)

M31

M31

Stephen Wright

UFO nutjobs find themselves in an extremely well-written novel.

Hitch-22

Hitch-22

Christopher Hitchens

Christopher Hitchens reflects on his upbringing, the influences that shaped him, and the philosophical foundations of his worldview.

Quicksand

Quicksand

Junichiro Tanizaki

Quicksand is a silkily nuanced novel of erotic gamesmanship and obsession.

The Kreutzer Sonata

The Kreutzer Sonata

Leo Tolstoy

A novella that is the confession of Pozdnyshev, a man who recounts the tragic unraveling of his life and marriage. Very Russian fare.

The War Against Cliché

The War Against Cliché

Martin Amis

Essays on the intricacies of literature, focusing on the importance of originality, and the tremendous lack thereof.

The Wager

The Wager

David Grann

A tale of an unusual 18th century mutiny.

Josephine the Singer

Josephine the Singer

Franz Kafka

Narrated by fellow mouse, who reflects on Josephine's (a mouse) significance within their society.

The Guide

The Guide

R.K. Narayan

A young man falls for a dancer and in promoting her falls into debt, and finally prison. The novel starts with his release from prison.

Malgudi Days

Malgudi Days

R.K. Narayan

Short tales by R.K. Narayan taking place in the fictional town of Malgudi.

The Map and the Territory

The Map and the Territory

Michel Houellebecq

The contemporary art world comes face to face with one Michel Houellebecq.

The Festival of Insignificance

The Festival of Insignificance

Milan Kundera

The trivial moments in life often hold greater meaning than grand events? Find out here.

Hunter of Stories

Hunter of Stories

Eduardo Galeano

Why not write the big story of the past by telling the little ones?

Trust

Trust

Hernan Diaz

A tale that revolves around a wealthy financier, Benjamin Rask, and his enigmatic wife, Helen.

The Dog of the South

The Dog of the South

Charles Portis

Ray Midge, a bean counter in Arkansas, is our leading man and narrator. One day, his wife leaves him for Guy Dupree, but what's worse is that she takes his car.