LitQueuelitqueue

After

Trick Mirror

Jia Tolentino2019

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

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  • Uncanny Valley

    Anna Wiener2020

    A woman leaves New York publishing for a San Francisco tech startup, observing the industry's culture and excess.

    Same sardonic register

    pace0·prose0·bleak0

Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    sardonic → meditative

    pace0·prose+1·bleak-1

  • The Red Book: Liber Novus

    C.G. Jung2009

    A psychologist records his visions and internal dialogues in an illuminated manuscript created during a period of intense self-exploration.

    sardonic → dreamlike

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak0

  • Capital: A Critique of Political Economy, Volume 1

    Karl Marx2015

    An analysis of the capitalist mode of production focusing on commodities, surplus value, and the exploitation of labor.

    sardonic → clinical

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+1

To recover

sardonic → playful

3 more ↓

  • Mile High

    Liz Tomforde2023

    A professional hockey player and a flight attendant clash on the team's private plane during a season-long road trip.

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1

  • Behind the Net

    Stephanie Archer2024

    A former musician becomes the live-in assistant for a professional hockey goalie she knew in high school.

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1

  • She Went All the Way

    Meg Cabot2002

    A screenwriter and an actor survive a helicopter crash in the Alaskan wilderness and must hike to safety while being pursued by a killer.

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-1

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.

    sardonic → playful

    pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1

  • 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.

    sardonic → playful

    pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1

  • 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.

    sardonic → earnest

    pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1

Slower

3 more ↓

  • 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.

    sardonic → meditative

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

  • How to Read a Book

    Mortimer J. Adler1940

    This is a guide to active reading techniques for different genres. It outlines levels of reading from basic literacy to syntopical analysis.

    sardonic → mysterious

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak0

  • Self-Reliance and Other Essays

    Ralph Waldo Emerson1993

    A collection of 19th-century lectures advocating for individualism and nonconformity. The prose is dense, formal, and philosophical.

    sardonic → meditative, still essays

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

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.

    Same sardonic register

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak+2

  • 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.

    sardonic → earnest

    pace0·prose-1·bleak+2

  • 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.

    sardonic → bleak

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak+2