The Glass Castle

We Were Dreamers

Simu Liu2022

Actor Simu Liu recounts his childhood in China, his upbringing in Canada, and his path from accounting to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Same earnest register, still memoir

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Too Like the Lightning

Ada Palmer2016

In a 25th-century utopia, a convict narrates the discovery of a boy who can perform miracles. The prose uses 18th-century styles and gender terms.

earnest → sardonic

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Valis

Philip K. Dick1981

A man experiences a beam of pink light that imparts vast information. The narrative explores his mental breakdown and search for God in California.

earnest → meditative

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Shadow & Claw

Gene Wolfe1983

A torturer travels across a far-future Earth where technology is indistinguishable from magic. He recounts his exile in dense, archaic prose.

earnest → meditative

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The Pioneer Woman

Ree Drummond2011

A city woman moves to a remote cattle ranch after falling in love with a cowboy. She details her transition to country life and farm chores.

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Everything Beautiful in Its Time

Jenna Bush Hager2020

The author reflects on the lives and deaths of her grandparents, including a former President and First Lady. It is a series of personal essays.

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Happy, Happy, Happy

Phil Robertson2013

The founder of Duck Commander recounts his life from a difficult upbringing to business success. He focuses on his faith and outdoor lifestyle.

Same earnest register, still memoir

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Ready Player One

Ernest Cline2008

A teenager in a dystopian future hunts for a digital easter egg inside a massive simulation. The quest relies on 1980s pop culture trivia.

earnest → propulsive

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All Systems Red

Martha Wells2017

A self-aware security android hacks its own governor module to watch soap operas while protecting a team of scientists on a distant planet.

earnest → wry

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Skin Game

Jim Butcher2014

Wizard Harry Dresden joins a team of villains to rob a vault in the Underworld. It is a fast-paced heist set in a modern fantasy Chicago.

earnest → propulsive

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Beelzebub's tales to his grandson

Georges Ivanovitch Gurdjieff1950

An extraterrestrial being explains the history and strange behaviors of humanity to his grandson during a long space voyage.

earnest → meditative

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M Train

Patti Smith2015

A musician travels to various cafes and gravesites around the world. She reflects on her late husband, her favorite books, and her daily rituals.

earnest → elegiac, still memoir

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The Education of Henry Adams

Henry Adams

A man writes a sardonic third-person account of his life and his failure to adapt to the technological shifts of the late 19th century.

earnest → sardonic, still memoir

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When Rabbit Howls

Truddi Chase1987

A woman and her ninety-two distinct personalities document her history of severe childhood trauma and her journey through therapy.

earnest → bleak, still memoir

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Wasted

Marya Hornbacher1998

A detailed memoir of the author's decade-long struggle with anorexia and bulimia. It documents hospitalizations and the physical decay of the body.

earnest → bleak, still memoir

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A House in the Sky

Amanda Lindhout2013

A freelance journalist is kidnapped in Somalia and held for fifteen months. The memoir details her captivity and the conditions she endured.

earnest → tense, still memoir

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