Eccentric literature
Narration interrupted by the narrator, bawdy humor, irreverence, plot development prioritized over content, genre failure, parody... If you can think of other titles, they are welcome to the list!
created by morGn
last updated April, 2026
Comments
The Adventures of Simplicius Simplicissimus is excellent too
I love this list! Thank you for these recommendations- the picaresque is my favourite subgenre. Another suggestion: Candide (or anything by Voltaire really). Also, I've only just started it, but the Decameron feels like it would fit in here, even though it isn't exactly a picaresque. So would many parts from the Canterbury Tales.
morGnOP
I'm dying to have time to start the Decameron too! Great taste, Although I haven't read them completely yet I don't know if they fit, they are formally stable. The humor comes from the content and satire, not from an ironic commentary on the act of narrating itself, as in the Sternian tradition. I'm also a huge fan of picaresque novels, but it seems that from Tristram Shandy and Jacques the Fatalist onwards, the narrative flow "falls apart" and eccentric, self-aware, narrators are born (that's what I understand).
There should be another list of baroque humor—medieval satire, humanist novellistica (?) would be fan 😊
Oh yes, I completely understand. I really need to get to Tristram Shandy (and so many of the books on here) soon! You have excellent taste. And I'd die for a baroque humour and satire list too, hopefully there might be a few on Pagebound already
morGnOP
If you liked Don Quixote and are enjoying the Decameron, you'll love Tristram! 😊 It’s one of my all-time favorites
Can't wait to get to it!
