Have you really enjoyed reading a work that qualifies and want to recommend it to others? This is the prime spot to help people out with those recommendations.
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Plays With Words:
Written in a stylistically unconventional way. HARD MODE: Fits the definition of Experimental Literature.
- Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
- Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace
- Ella Minnow Pea: A Progressively Lipogrammatic Epistolary Fable by Mark Dunn
- Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
- Finnegans Wake by James Joyce
- House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski
- A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
I asked this question a few months back and had a ton of replies. I’ll leave a link to the thread and highlight my two favourite books so far.
Children of Time - Adrian Tchaikovsky “Evolutionary storytelling”. It tells the story of an entire civilization as it grows and evolves from nothing, whilst simultaneously telling a story that takes place over a much more conventional timescale. Very good book IMO, with two slightly-less-strong sequals
Idaho Winter - Tony Burgess What a bizarre book this was. I don’t know if it’s a good book, but it was weird and kept me entertained so that’s good enough for me.
Spoiler for what made it weird
The author gets dragged into the story at one point and becomes a character in the book by accident
Removed by mod
New Release:
New for 2024/2025 (no reprints or new editions). First translations into your language of choice are allowed. HARD MODE: This is the first work you’ve read by this author.
The gathering, by C.J. Tudor
Nuclear war: a scenario, by Annie Jacobsen
Among the Stars:
Features space, astronomy, or stardom. HARD MODE: The title references the theme, too.
The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal
Mr Palomar by Italo Calvino.
Also qualifies for hard mode (the character is named after an observatory).
The Three-Body Problem, by Cixin Liu
- Binti by Nnedi Okorafor
- Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey
- 2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke
- Who Censored Roger Rabbit? by Gary K. Wolf (movie stars count)
Institutional:
Set at a non-commercial institution or facility, like a school, science lab, or prison. HARD MODE: Not a school.
The institute, by Stephen King
- Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption by Stephen King
- Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett
- The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
- Any of The Scholomance Series by Naomi Novik
What’s Yours Is Mine:
Theft, piracy, fraud, or espionage is a major topic or plot point. HARD MODE: No MacGuffins.
The Recognitions by William Gaddis
Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson
- The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner
- The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
- The Palace Job by Patrick Weekes
- The Redemption of Althalus by Leigh Eddings & David Eddings
- Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John le Carré
- Catch Me If You Can: The True Story of a Real Fake by Frank W. Abagnale with Stan Redding
- On Stranger Tides by Tim Powers
It Takes Two:
Written by two or more authors. HARD MODE: Written by three or more authors.
- This Is How You Lose the Time War by Max Gladstone, Amal El-Mohta
- Good Omens by Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman
- Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey (Corey is a pseudonym for the team of Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck)
Stranger in a Strange Land:
The primary PoV is dropped into a completely unfamiliar situation or location. HARD MODE: Not portal fiction or isekai.
- Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
- A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain
- A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs
Bookception:
Features a book-related aspect. HARD MODE: Something other than a book, like an author or library.
- The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean
- The Golden Enclaves by Naomi Novik
- Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
- The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
- The Neverending Story by Michael Ende
ALT - Pseudonymous Work
Published under a pen name. HARD MODE: The author generally never writes under their own name.
- Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey
- A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain
- Swordheart by T. Kingfisher
- A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark
- Assassin’s Apprentice by Robin Hobb
- The Beast Master by Andre Norton
- Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John le Carré
Older Than You Are
Published before your birthdate. HARD MODE: Published before 1924.
- Gravity’s Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon
- Ulysses by James Joyce
This category is a bit tougher to recommend because the qualification depends on your age, but these are all over 100 years old and I’ve enjoyed all of them.
- Lud-in-the-Mist by Hope Mirrlees
- Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift
- King Solomon’s Mines by H. Rider Haggard
- The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
- Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
- A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain
- A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs
Family Drama:
Family is important, but sometimes it’s also the cause of problems. Family dynamics are fundamental to the narrative. HARD MODE: Involves three or more generations of family members.
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
- Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
- The Sandman Graphic Novels by Neil Gaiman
- The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins
- The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
“100 Years of Solitude” Gabriel García Márquez (this works for HARD MODE)
It’s About Time:
The passage or manipulation of time is a major theme or plot driver. HARD MODE: Backward in time, not forward.
Won’t fit the hard mode, but Charles Sheffield’s Tomorrow and Tomorrow was an interesting read. The first third wasn’t really my thing, but after that the book goes way far into the future.
- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button by F. Scott Fitzgerald
- The Time Machine by H.G. Wells
- This Is How You Lose the Time War by Max Gladstone, Amal El-Mohtar
- 11/22/63 by Stephen King
- The Man Who Folded Himself by David Gerrold
It’s a Holiday:
Takes place during a specific holiday, which is significant to the plot. HARD MODE: Not Christmas, a fictional variation of Christmas, or other winter festival.
- Hogfather by Terry Pratchett
- Hallowe’en Party by Agatha Christie
- We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
- V for Vendetta by Alan Moore
- Walpurgisnacht by Gustav Meyrink, Mike Mitchell
- A Night in the Lonesome October by Roger Zelazny
One Less:
A book that’s been on your TBR list for a long time. HARD MODE: Overlaps with at least one other bingo square theme.
