Recs if you like Appointment in Samarra...
Christmas with the Cranks
Alternative Xmas reading — think downbeat stories, family dysfunction, holiday loneliness, seasonal depression, black comedy. There's a gift from me to you under the tree in the comments.
Other winter-holiday books welcome as long as they're cranky!
Is your cynicism chronic? Check out my list Bleakness Is My Weakness...
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Pitch Black Comedy
"Turn me over, I'm done on this side!" —St. Lawrence, whilst roasting on a spit
Gallows humor, black comedy, l'humour noir — whatever you call it, this is the place for it. This list includes André Breton's seminal anthology of dark humor, a number of the works excerpted in this anthology, and beyond. You can find a link to the complete contents of Breton's anthology in the comments.
Want more weird humor? Check out my list Nitpicky Neuroticism (Comedy Edition)!
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1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die
I tried to find the latest version (2026).
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cillian murphy’s reading list
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Time Magazine All Time 100 Novels
Time Magazine’s compilation of the 100 best novels published since 1923.
(101 because “The Berlin Stories” is an omnibus of “Mr Norris Changes Trains” and “Goodbye To Berlin.”)
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Joan Didion's Book Recommendations
A reading list compiled by the author and shared in 2015.
2
Cillian Murphy reads
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