Recs if you like We the Animals...

In order from #1 (My Brilliant Friend) to 100 (Tree of Smoke)

To celebrate the 250th anniversary of the United States, HarperCollins curated a list of their books they say "define the nation". This is that list of books!

A list published in 2024 by the New York Times, as voted on by 503 novelists, poets, critics, and other book lovers—with a little help from the staff of The New York Times Book Review

my favorite novels featuring experimental, inventive, unconventional narrative forms and structures

according to the New York Times

Queerness + Water

Queer stories that have scenes with water, water as a theme, etc.

The intimacy of nude swimming, water encasing the body, the way a river flows and connects to other bodies of water, the life that lives in its depths, the fact we have not descovered much of the ocean which holds secrets we cannot reach…water is a queer thing, and a theme found continually in queer stories both minutely and wholly encompassing

Adult-audience fiction mostly, some mature YA

Recs welcome!

Can a collection of fragments reveal a hidden masterpiece? Just like a mosaic, the composite novel (AKA novels-in-stories) uses small, distinct pieces to build a singular, striking image (or, in this case, a novel). Note: I’m still reading through these, so we’re exploring together! Some picks may lean toward story cycles (thematic links) rather than the tighter arcs of a traditional novel-in-stories.

Bite-sized books you can read in a single sitting.

Books that make you ask, "Is this real?"

These stories blur the line between fact and fiction through powerful and creative writing (and, sometimes, outright deception). Some of these books are fiction, while others are nonfiction. This list is meant to go beyond historical fiction and autobiographies, though some of these are included.

The list of the 100 best books of the 21st century from the New York Times

also known as first person plural (sometimes referred to as a Greek Chorus), all the books listed here are narrated by multiple characters at once, using “we” instead of “I,” “he,” “she,” or “they.”

A goal to read the 100 books rated in the 21st century (so far) as published by the New York times in 2024, list in order from 100-1 but you can find the original list on the NYT website.