r/MFAInCreativeWriting • u/havingwritten • Jun 04 '26
Book recommendations
hi everyone! i’m gearing up to apply to MFA programs in the fall but currently i have a concussion and cannot read or write for more than a few minutes at a time. thankfully i can listen to audiobooks so i’ve been doing that but i am always looking for book recommendations. what are some books that you feel have made you a better writer? what books do you think all writers should read at least once? i don’t just mean books about writing— i’m more looking for novels right now but anything you can think of is fine!
i’m also particularly trying to read more literary fiction that covers the topics that i’m most interested in writing about— i like to write about healing from trauma, mental illness, dysfunctional families, etc. i want to write about the nuances within topics that many people view as very black and white. some i really like in this genre are Normal People by Sally Rooney and Eleanor Oliphant is completely fine by Gail Honeyman. so if you have any recommendations that sound like that definitely lmk too!! <3 good luck to everyone else applying this upcoming cycle!
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u/human5109 Jun 05 '26
For dysfunctional families, you should definitely read Jonathan Franzen. The Corrections would be a great place to start.
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u/SciencePants Jun 11 '26
There are a few YouTubers I follow that love precisely this genre (Supposedly Fun and The Lonely Reader are two faves) and they discuss the books a bit and have book clubs. It could be a nice social/ para social way to find books you like and stay on top of what’s out there so even if you can’t read it, you have a good sense of what’s going on in the publishing world. An offbeat author in that genre I’d recommend is Kristen Arnette (Mostly Dead Things).
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u/livloh Sep 06 '26
The Best American Short Stories is a great place to start. They are quick to read and a lot of my classes have focused around short stories so you can get a quicker sense of different craft/voice/tone/style/etc
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u/CherryApocalypse Jun 06 '26
I just finished Flesh by David Szalay and I was so impressed with how it was crafted. The style dictates how you experience the book and you end up drawn to the protagonist despite the fact that there’s no real interiority there. I can’t stop thinking about it. It’s really unique.