LitQueuelitqueue

After

Wave

Sonali Deraniyagala2013

5 of 6 directions open — nothing heavier

More like it

1 more ↓

  • A River in Darkness

    Masaji Ishikawa2018

    A man describes his thirty-six years living in North Korea after moving there from Japan. He recounts extreme poverty and his eventual escape.

    Same bleak register, still memoir

    pace+1·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.

    bleak → meditative, still memoir

    pace0·prose+2·bleak-3

  • The Gulag Archipeligo 1918-1956: An Experiment In Literary Investigation I - Ii.

    Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

    A history of the Soviet forced labor camp system based on survivor reports and the author's own imprisonment. It documents state-run repression.

    Same bleak register, still memoir

    pace0·prose+2·bleak0

  • 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.

    bleak → sardonic, still memoir

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak-1

To recover

3 more ↓

  • This Time Together: Laughter and Reflection

    Carol Burnett2010

    The comedian shares anecdotes from her career in television and film. The book is a series of short chronological reflections.

    bleak → warm, still memoir

    pace0·prose-1·bleak-3

  • Untamed

    Glennon Doyle2020

    A woman recounts leaving her marriage and rebuilding her life after falling in love with another woman. It is a series of personal manifestos.

    bleak → earnest, still memoir

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-3

  • Unfinished

    Priyanka Chopra Jonas2021

    The actress details her childhood in India, her time in American schools, and her transition from pageantry to a global film career.

    bleak → earnest, still memoir

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak-3

Faster

3 more ↓

  • House to House: An Epic Memoir of War

    David Bellavia

    An American infantry sergeant provides a room-by-room account of the Second Battle of Fallujah. It focuses on close-quarters urban combat.

    bleak → tense, still memoir

    pace+2·prose0·bleak-1

  • Red Platoon: A True Story of American Valor

    Clinton Romesha

    A Medal of Honor recipient provides a tactical account of the 2009 Battle of Kamdesh at Combat Outpost Keating.

    bleak → propulsive, still memoir

    pace+2·prose0·bleak-2

  • Lions of Kandahar: The Story of a Fight Against All Odds

    Rusty Bradley

    A Special Forces officer recounts the 2006 battle for Sperwan Ghar. The focus is on tactical decisions during a multi-day engagement.

    bleak → propulsive, still memoir

    pace+2·prose0·bleak-2

Slower

3 more ↓

  • Gödel, Escher, Bach

    Douglas R. Hofstadter1979

    An exploration of how cognition emerges from hidden neurological patterns. It uses math, art, and music to explain self-referential systems.

    bleak → playful

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak-3

  • 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.

    bleak → meditative, still memoir

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak-2

  • Either/Or

    Søren Kierkegaard1992

    A collection of papers presents two life philosophies: the aesthetic pursuit of pleasure and the ethical commitment to duty.

    bleak → meditative

    pace-1·prose+2·bleak-2