LitQueuelitqueue

After

The Only Plane in the Sky

Garrett M. Graff2019

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

1 more ↓

  • The Mountains Sing

    Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai2020

    Four generations of the Trần family navigate the 20th-century history of Vietnam. A grandmother tells her life story to her granddaughter.

    Same elegiac register

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Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • Either/Or

    Søren Kierkegaard1992

    A collection of papers presents two life philosophies: the aesthetic pursuit of pleasure and the ethical commitment to duty.

    elegiac → meditative

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  • The Gulag Archipeligo 1918-1956: An Experiment In Literary Investigation I - Ii.

    Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

    A history of the Soviet forced labor camp system based on survivor reports and the author's own imprisonment. It documents state-run repression.

    elegiac → bleak

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  • Voices from Chernobyl: The Oral History of a Nuclear Disaster

    Svetlana Alexievich

    A collection of first-person testimonies from survivors of the 1986 nuclear accident. It focuses on the human cost and state negligence.

    Same elegiac register, still oral history

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak+1

To recover

elegiac → warm

3 more ↓

  • This Girl

    Colleen Hoover2013

    A husband retells the story of his early relationship to his wife. It uses dual timelines to revisit events from the first book in the series.

    elegiac → earnest

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  • The Score

    Elle Kennedy2016

    A college senior has a one-night stand with a hockey player to get over a breakup. They continue the arrangement as graduation approaches.

    elegiac → playful

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  • The Kaiju Preservation Society

    John Scalzi2022

    A food delivery driver joins a secret organization that travels to an alternate Earth to care for massive, dinosaur-like creatures.

    elegiac → playful

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Faster

3 more ↓

  • Astrophysics for People in a Hurry

    Neil deGrasse Tyson2017

    A summary of the origin of the universe, the laws of physics, and the nature of space and time.

    elegiac → playful

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  • Steal Like an Artist

    Austin Kleon2012

    A series of short, illustrated principles for creative work. It focuses on remixing existing ideas and establishing productive daily habits.

    elegiac → playful

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2

  • Poke the Box

    Seth Godin2011

    A short manifesto encouraging readers to start projects and take initiative. It argues that the greatest risk is staying in place.

    elegiac → earnest

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-2

Slower

3 more ↓

  • The Prophet

    Kahlil Gibran1900

    A prophet waiting for a ship home delivers twenty-six sermons to a crowd. He speaks on topics like love, work, and death.

    elegiac → meditative

    pace-2·prose+1·bleak-2

  • Tao Te Ching

    Lao Tzu1842

    A collection of 81 short poetic verses outlining the principles of the Tao. It focuses on balance, inaction, and the flow of the natural world.

    elegiac → meditative

    pace-2·prose+2·bleak-2

  • The Art of Happiness

    Dalai Lama XIV1998

    The Dalai Lama discusses his philosophy on mental discipline and suffering through interviews with a psychiatrist. It is a guide to secular ethics.

    elegiac → meditative

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Heavier

3 more ↓

  • Animal Farm

    George Orwell1945

    Farm animals overthrow their human owner to run the farm themselves. The pigs gradually seize control and establish a new hierarchy.

    elegiac → sardonic

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  • The Diary of a Young Girl

    Anne Frank2001

    A Jewish teenager records her daily life and thoughts while hiding from the Nazis in a secret annex in Amsterdam.

    elegiac → earnest

    pace-1·prose0·bleak+1

  • A Child Called "It"

    Dave Pelzer1987

    A memoir of the author's childhood survival against severe physical and psychological abuse by his mother in California.

    elegiac → bleak

    pace0·prose-1·bleak+1