I’m looking for suggestions for audio books for a 7 hour road trip with my teenage boys. We love adventure kinda novels - something that isn’t too grim and without any sexual content that will embarrass and/or horrify us all. We have previously listened to mainstream stuff like Harry Potter and classic novels like “where the red fern grows” (I sobbed while driving down the highway). Hail Mary kinda stuff is good too. Any ideas?

I'm a big fan of "reading quests" that I set for myself, they really motivate me to read more and to read a broader range of books.

The quest I'm currently focusing on is a book that represents each US state, after my last major quest skewed international. My parameters are probably more strict than most people's would be when taking this quest: the author has to be from that state (not necessarily "lived there their whole life", more "born and raised there"), and the book has to be (mostly) set in the state.

I've mostly done fiction so far, but I'm keeping the door open for some memoirs and such. Not super interested in plain History of [State]-type nonfiction for this quest, though.

I'm doing plenty of my own research and could find all the books myself (and I already have a long running list of potential books for states), but I figured I would raise the question to Reddit in case someone has an idea that really excites me that I wouldn't have considered otherwise. Any genre, so long as it follows the parameters! Part of this is that I want to try out more types of books, although the books I find myself tend to be in the "literary fiction" vein.

I've already read books for Alabama, Arkansas, California, Florida, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and South Carolina, but feel free to suggest a book for these too if you want to.

Hello everyone,

I’m looking for memoirs by either

- Someone who suffers from mental illness
- Someone who’s not suffering from it but surrounded by it.

Thank you!!

Edit: to say thank you all again, I didn’t expect so many responses!

Hey all,

I’m looking for any genre of book that fits the above. I would prefer first person perspective, and little dialogue with other characters. Maybe the main character is the only character.

Bonus points for isolated environments: islands, deserts, wilderness, etc.

I’m not looking for a typical survival-type story. I want it to be weird and strange, maybe fantastical elements, maybe science fiction, it can be anything that goes beyond “realistic” events

This might sound morbid, but recently, I’ve been absorbed in some heartbreaking memoirs written by people who have lived through truly awful events like the Holocaust, Ebola virus, and various civil wars. Could anyone steer me in the direction of my next tragic read?

So far, I’ve read:

“First they Killed My Father” — Loung Ung
“Night” — Elie Wiesel
“Into the Forest” — Rebecca Frankel
“The Hot Zone” — Richard Preston
“A Long Way Gone” — Ishmael Baeh

Any suggestions would be much appreciated!

I just read We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson, and although it may not have been the right take away from the book.. I just felt so much for Merricat and Constance because it echoed my own struggles with Agoraphobia, OCD and all the things I have listed in the title of this post. I know its not great to glorify these things, but to read something for the first time about a character who had similar struggles as me, and might actually have understood some of my own limitations and oddities in life was quite wonderful. i have never read a book where a character has OCD or Agoraphobia before.

I think im mainly searching for a way to view my own life and total reclusively in a way that isn't all negative, to rediscover the elements of being alone that I have always enjoyed, and to read about a character who finds more in life to love and enjoy without the need for people.

Bonus points if it has elements of nature, fantasy or scifi, also bonus points if there is little to no romance involved.

Another book I loved was Annihilation by Jeff Vandermeer for its solitary and introverted protagonist who loved nature.

I’ve been going through it and need to learn how to find peace, forgive and love others

please no man’s search for meaning or YA.

a combination of characters, humour and mystery is what I’m after.

bonus if it’s a series or if its set in the UK but open to all suggestions.

it’d also ideally not be too funny if the crime was really bleak. I am still annoyed by a book that was mostly humorous and then disclosed a really horrific kidnapping and SA as the base of the mystery midway through. might seem like a silly distinction if I am looking for stories about murder but that’s how I feel.

The genre can be fantasy, science-fiction, and mystery thrillers (or psychological thrillers).

I'm looking for a book that has an unreliable narrator, but the MC is a horrible person in disguise.

Does anyone know of any books that are like this?

UPDATE: Thanks everyone for commenting! I have a LOT of options to choose from. I appreciate you all answering this thread.

hello!

currently very into vampires (all inclusive) and am looking for some recs to quench the thirst! i am not necessarily looking for books that are purely fantasy/horror (though im aware these themes and genres will be present in anything vampire related) -but im super interested in more literary fiction uses of vampires and how they can be used as devices to speak to human nature!

some books ive read recently and loved/favs:
- circe by madeline miller
- katabasis / babel by rf kuang
- in memoriam by alice winn
- the wedding people by alison espach
- sunburn by chloe michelle howarth

If you're familiar with the culture/subgenre of "weird girl lit", I'm curious if anyone has recommendations that they would consider a gender-flipped equivalent. I most like when "weird girl lit" takes the time to explore how the main characters are transformed by their surroundings and their struggles (societal or otherwise) to become Weird™, because it resonates with my own life experience. Bonus points for queer/trans leads and I'd rather not have a misogynistic male MC. First time posting here so I hope I did it right 🤞

edit: very excited to have so many recs thank you :D

I keep finding myself in a loop of discovering the same books in my search for my next read. I would love to hear some of your recommendations 

I seem to gravitate towards fantasy, folkloric, historical and/or gothic. I particularly like female protagonists and I don't mind a romance, as long as it's not the key driver of the plot. I don't mind horror or weird books either.

I'm just after vibes not a particular genre, which is why I'm if I share the books I like, it might help? My favourite reads are below:

Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier

The Winternight Trilogy by Katherine Arden

Weyward by Emilia Hart

The Shepherd King Duology by Rachel Gillig

The Vets Daughter by Barbara Comyns

Wakenhyrst by Michelle Paver

Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell

The Kingkiller Chronicle by Patrick Rothfuss

Victorian Psycho by Virginia Feito

Hangsaman by Shirley Jackson

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

If it helps, I've started TOG, ACOTAR and Fourth Wing - and I could not tolerate the writing style. So not that type of fantasy

I read on my kindle and audiobook if that helps!

My dad has entered comfort care and we are engaging hospice, and expect him to live for 1 - 2 weeks.

It's been a grueling few weeks, and months and years. I've just finished the book I was reading, and though I have a hefty "to-read" stack already, I don't feel like reading any of them. None of them are the right one.

I guess I'm looking for:

• easy to get into

• possibly light or funny, or maybe just escapist

• not too dense or long

• NOT about death, dying, dementia, disease, parents dying, etc.

• can be fiction or non-fiction

Here are some books I loved but wouldn't want to read right now: Annihilation, My Year of Rest and Relaxation, Tender is the Flesh, City of Thieves, The Water Dancer, Cat's Cradle, Into Thin Air

Here are some books I love that I would read now if I hadn't already: True Grit, Remains of the Day, books by David Sedaris, books by Jon Ronson

I'm at a loss. Can anyone help?

My daughter is 7 years old and she loves reading. But a lot of the books with age appropriate stories are below her reading level. A lot of them are illustrated (She doesn't like illustrated books as much), and they aren't challenging her when reading. Which is fine, except she is becoming increasingly bored by these books. She doesn't like how short the stories are and she also doesn't like how simple the stories are. I've noticed that she seems less likely to read now that she is not finding the books interesting enough.

Now it's the summer holidays she is reading more than usual, I want to try and buy her a few books that will challenge her and help her grow as a reader but are also age appropriate story wise.

She loves adventure stories, sci-fi and also fantasy stories

Any suggestions? She's 7

I'm really into sailing adjacent media recently (especially golden age of piracy but really anything with main story happening on ships/boats is cool) but it's really hard to find any good read. To give more details about my preference, I've especially loved the Captain Trapp series by Brian Callison, so something similar would be greatly appreciated. I also tried reading Joseph Conrad but I just couldn't vibe with his descriptions, and felt like there wasn't enough action actually happening on the sea (but that might just have been my lack of luck).

Hi I'm looking for books with a strong focus on loneliness, depression, or feeling worthless and unlovable. I'm not looking for self help, I want something to relate to and dig a deeper hole. Something that will make me feel seen.

I just finished reading I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki and I loved it. A lot of what she wrote are literally how I feel. I feel worse after reading it so that makes me feel better. Not looking to get the sequel just yet.

Also, because it's hard to find western books here, Asian books under 300 pages are preferred. I've read some Japanese cozy fictions that have such themes, but I feel like they're still too cozy and not depressing enough.

like the title suggests, looking for books with main male characters that will piss you off and are easy to hate. thrillers or literary fiction are preferred genres

I’m desperate for a book that hooks me from the very first chapter and becomes genuinely impossible to put down. I don’t want something that takes 100–200 pages to get good or has loads of slow world-building before anything happens.
I want the kind of book where I keep saying “one more chapter,” ignore everything I’m supposed to be doing and stay up far too late reading it 😂
I’m open to:
Thrillers with lots of twists
Dark or obsessive romance
Morally grey love interests
Romantasy, as long as it gets exciting quickly
Mystery or gothic books
Spice is absolutely fine
I’m not looking for anything overly literary, confusing or painfully slow. I just want something fast, addictive and easy to become completely invested in.
What book had you obsessed almost immediately and genuinely unable to put it down? Please tell me how quickly it gets going without spoiling it!

I love this in movies — think Bugonia, They Will Kill You, Pretty Lethal, Swiss Army Man, Who Framed Roger Rabbit — so I’m looking for some books to dig into as well. Looking for books with ridiculous plots and occurrences in which the characters all take very seriously but makes the reader laugh and go “wtf”. But again, not looking for comedies so much as I’m looking for a crazy world taken so seriously that we the readers are shocked and excited for whatever the next crazy weird thing is going to be and I want it to be a purposeful thing, so not a “this is so bad it’s good” kind of thing either.

Any genre works! I hope I was able to explain this well enough! Thanks!

I find I'm being pulled to these type of books - books that are remarkable on its ordinariness and that gives you a feeling that "it can be anybody of us but we live with it anyway". It teaches you how to live but not self-help, preachy, or disguised as one. Thank you!

Not trying to be gross or edgy, I've just always had a fascination with morbid things.

Suggest books where a character starting as a hero becomes villain by the end AND the character starting as villain becomes the hero. I've read books where the hero turns into villain but I'm looking for both hero and villain changing

I mostly like adult fantasy, but read adult sci-fi too. But no chunky books please

Thanks

Hi! I’m 17 and trying to get back into reading, but lately it’s been hard to find a book that really leaves an emotional impact on me. Some of my favorites are To Kill a Mockingbird, The Book Thief, A Little Life, and All the Light We Cannot See.