I've dabbled in literary fiction from my time in school and initially getting back into reading, but its become a genre that I've grown to love. Literary fiction (LitFic) is an introspective and, sometimes dark and emotional, genre revealing much about people, human relationships, and the way we interact with the world. If you're interested in delving more into the genre or looking for some new recommendations, here are some potential options!
Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell
This is a good recommendation whether you're a fan of Shakespeare or not since it delves a lot more into the personal. Hamnet is a modern piece of speculative fiction that imagines the life of the Shakespeare family, focusing on the wife and children of a writer who spends his time in London. The titular character, Hamnet develops and passes from an illness, which deeply impacts the rest of the family. It traces the complex family dynamics and how they ultimately come to a head with this one event. The novel focuses on themes of grief, family, and art.
Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin
Giovanni's Room is an emotional powerhouse of a novel: it's short but packs a punch. Written in the 1950s, the novel follows a character grappling with a lot of inner turmoil, which we see up front and get more context for throughout the novel. David left his life, and shame, in America, to find himself in a similar situation in his present-day Paris. The novel explores the life David has within the titular Giovanni's Room but how it was never going to last because of societal expectations and David's own internal shame. The novel explores themes of race, sexuality, romantic relationships, family, love, and shame.
No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai
A friend recommended this book to me, and sometimes I don't know whether to thank him or demand he takes it back. No Longer Human is a Japanese novel published in the 1940s. It follows the main character, Oba Yozo, throughout the course of his life as he feels alienated from the world around him. From a young age, he feels himself putting on a show and performing his ability to be just like everyone else. He promptly moves through life trying to perform and trying to feel, which can be more damaging. No Longer Human explores human connection, emotion and action, performance, and the idea of being human.
The Last Tale of the Flower Bride by Roshani Chokshi
The Last Tale of the Flower Bride is a blend of twisted childhood whimsy with mysterious circumstances. The novel switches to the past and present as it gives two points of view on one mysterious character. One view is her childhood best friend who has her complex issues and finds solace and magic in her fantastical beliefs. The other is her husband who loves her but can never know her as she keeps herself and past at a difference. The novel explores themes of complex entanglements, being haunted by the past, and the dangers of being ungrounded.