LitQueuelitqueue

After

The Oregon Trail

Rinker Buck2015

5 of 6 directions open — nothing to recover from

More like it

1 more ↓

  • All Creatures Great and Small

    James Herriot1972

    A young veterinarian begins his practice in the Yorkshire Dales during the 1930s. He treats livestock and pets while meeting local farmers.

    Same warm register, still memoir

    pace0·prose0·bleak0

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.

    warm → meditative

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+1

  • The Argonauts

    Maggie Nelson2015

    A memoir of the author's relationship with her partner and her pregnancy. It mixes personal narrative with academic theory on gender and family.

    warm → meditative, still memoir

    pace0·prose+2·bleak0

  • Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison

    Michel Foucault

    A philosophical history examines the shift from public torture to modern prison surveillance. It analyzes how power controls the body.

    warm → clinical, still history

    pace0·prose+2·bleak+2

Faster

3 more ↓

  • Pillow Thoughts

    Courtney Peppernell2016

    A collection of short poems and prose pieces organized by emotional state. It focuses on themes of heartbreak, healing, and loneliness.

    warm → tender

    pace+2·prose-1·bleak0

  • 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.

    warm → playful

    pace+2·prose-1·bleak0

  • 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.

    warm → playful

    pace+2·prose-1·bleak0

Slower

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    warm → sardonic, still memoir

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+2

  • No Archive Will Restore You

    Julietta Singh2018

    The author examines the history of her own body through the lens of race, desire, and pain. It is a collection of fragments and academic theory.

    warm → meditative, still memoir

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak+1

  • Confessions

    Augustine of Hippo

    A 4th-century bishop writes a spiritual autobiography addressed to God. He recounts his sinful youth and his eventual conversion to Christianity.

    warm → meditative

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak0

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • Rena's Promise: A Story of Sisters in Auschwitz

    Rena Kornreich Gelissen

    A woman details her three years in Auschwitz, where she focuses on keeping her younger sister alive through the first transport of women.

    warm → earnest, still memoir

    pace+1·prose0·bleak+3

  • Auschwitz: A Doctor's Eyewitness Account

    Miklós Nyiszli1960

    A Jewish prisoner forced to assist Josef Mengele describes the daily operations of the gas chambers and medical experiments at Auschwitz.

    warm → clinical, still memoir

    pace+1·prose0·bleak+3

  • 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.

    warm → bleak, still memoir

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak+3