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Literature

Great books shape how we see ourselves and our world, whether through timeless stories or illuminating reflections on the craft of writing itself. These transformative works explore life's deepest questions while teaching us to read between the lines of human experience.

Literature Book Summaries

The Life of a Stupid Man Summary
The Life of a Stupid Man
by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa 1927 55 pages
3.69
9.2K ratings
Classics
Short Stories
Japanese Literature
The Vendor of Sweets Summary
The Vendor of Sweets
by R.K. Narayan 1967 144 pages
3.75
2.8K ratings
India
Indian Literature
Classics
The Bell Summary
The Bell
by Iris Murdoch 1958 296 pages
3.92
9.8K ratings
Classics
Novels
British Literature
Tortilla Flat Summary
Tortilla Flat
by John Steinbeck 1935 256 pages
3.83
60.2K ratings
Classics
Literature
Historical Fiction
The Arabian Nights Summary
The Arabian Nights
Tales of 1001 Nights, Volume 1
by Anonymous 982 pages
4.01
4.2K ratings
Classics
Fantasy
Short Stories
Albert Camus Summary
Albert Camus
Elements of a Life
by Robert Zaretsky 2010 200 pages
4.13
164 ratings
Philosophy
Biography
Biography Memoir
On Beauty Summary
On Beauty
by Zadie Smith 2005 445 pages
3.78
88.2K ratings
Contemporary
Book Club
Literary Fiction
Marcovaldo Summary
Marcovaldo
by Italo Calvino 1963 128 pages
3.84
15.9K ratings
Short Stories
Italian Literature
Classics
The Custom of the Country Summary
The Custom of the Country
by Edith Wharton 1913 370 pages
4.06
15.2K ratings
Classics
Historical Fiction
American
A Christmas Carol Summary
A Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens 1843 184 pages
4.09
889.1K ratings
Christmas
Classics
Fantasy
The Museum of Innocence Summary
The Museum of Innocence
by Orhan Pamuk 2008 536 pages
3.78
35.9K ratings
Turkish Literature
Turkish
Romance
Vathek Summary
Vathek
by William Beckford 1786 180 pages
3.24
7.0K ratings
Gothic
Classics
Horror
The Invisible Man Summary
The Invisible Man
by H.G. Wells 1897 192 pages
3.63
208.7K ratings
Science Fiction
Horror
Fantasy
A Jane Austen Education Summary
A Jane Austen Education
How Six Novels Taught Me About Love, Friendship, and the Things That Really Matter
by William Deresiewicz 2011 255 pages
3.84
4.0K ratings
Memoir
Books About Books
Biography
Too Loud a Solitude Summary
Too Loud a Solitude
by Bohumil Hrabal 1976 112 pages
3.98
24.9K ratings
Czech Literature
Classics
Novels
Shakespeare's Freedom Summary
Shakespeare's Freedom
by Stephen Greenblatt 2010 160 pages
3.82
166 ratings
Literary Criticism
Literature
History
The Iliad / The Odyssey Summary
The Iliad / The Odyssey
by Homer 1556 pages
4.07
81.4K ratings
Classics
Poetry
Mythology
Alamut Summary
Alamut
by Vladimir Bartol 1938 510 pages
4.31
13.0K ratings
Historical Fiction
Classics
Novels
Early Socratic Dialogues Summary
Early Socratic Dialogues
by Plato 399 pages
4.06
398 ratings
Philosophy
Classics
Greece
Lady Chatterley’s Lover Summary
Lady Chatterley’s Lover
by D.H. Lawrence 1928 376 pages
3.50
133.3K ratings
Romance
Classics
Literature
The Sense of an Ending Summary
The Sense of an Ending
by Julian Barnes 2011 150 pages
3.74
187.0K ratings
Book Club
Contemporary
Literary Fiction
The Tartar Steppe Summary
The Tartar Steppe
by Dino Buzzati 1940 198 pages
4.21
37.2K ratings
Classics
Italian Literature
Italy
The Words You Should Know to Sound Smart Summary
The Words You Should Know to Sound Smart
1200 Essential Words Every Sophisticated Person Should Be Able to Use
by Robert W. Bly 2009 256 pages
3.85
155 ratings
Self Help
Writing
Communication
Franny and Zooey Summary
Franny and Zooey
by J.D. Salinger 1957 201 pages
3.96
233.0K ratings
Short Stories
Literature
Classics
Writing for Emotional Impact Summary
Writing for Emotional Impact
Advanced Dramatic Techniques to Attract, Engage, and Fascinate the Reader from Beginning to End
by Karl Iglesias 2005 238 pages
4.26
682 ratings
Writing
Film
Reference
From Here to Eternity Summary
From Here to Eternity
by James Jones 1951 816 pages
4.08
17.9K ratings
Classics
Historical Fiction
War
How to Talk About Books You Haven't Read Summary
How to Talk About Books You Haven't Read
by Pierre Bayard 2007 185 pages
3.44
4.8K ratings
Books About Books
Philosophy
Essays
The Written World Summary
The Written World
The Power of Stories to Shape People, History, Civilization
by Martin Puchner 2014 537 pages
3.92
1.8K ratings
History
Books About Books
Literature
Brave New World and Brave New World Revisited Summary
Brave New World and Brave New World Revisited
by Aldous Huxley 1958 340 pages
4.16
170.1K ratings
Science Fiction
Dystopia
Classics
Great Expectations Summary
Great Expectations
by Charles Dickens 1861 544 pages
3.80
850.5K ratings
Classics
Literature
Historical Fiction
Othello Summary
Othello
by William Shakespeare 1603 319 pages
3.89
424.2K ratings
Classics
Plays
School
What Is Existentialism? Summary
What Is Existentialism?
by Simone de Beauvoir 1944 128 pages
3.91
1.3K ratings
Philosophy
Classics
Essays
Gilead Summary
Gilead
by Marilynne Robinson 2004 247 pages
3.85
119.4K ratings
Historical Fiction
Book Club
Literary Fiction
The Plot Against America Summary
The Plot Against America
by Philip Roth 2004 391 pages
3.81
66.4K ratings
Historical Fiction
Alternate History
Literature
Atlas Shrugged & The Fountainhead Summary
Atlas Shrugged & The Fountainhead
by Ayn Rand 1995
4.10
5.0K ratings
Classics
Philosophy
Politics
The Well-Educated Mind Summary
The Well-Educated Mind
A Guide to the Classical Education You Never Had
by Susan Wise Bauer 2003 432 pages
3.99
3.8K ratings
Books About Books
Reference
Self Help
The World According to Garp Summary
The World According to Garp
by John Irving 1978 610 pages
4.11
234.8K ratings
Classics
Literature
Contemporary
The War of the End of the World Summary
The War of the End of the World
by Mario Vargas Llosa 1981 568 pages
4.25
12.0K ratings
Historical Fiction
Literature
Novels
Frankenstein Summary
Frankenstein
The 1818 Text
by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley 1818 260 pages
3.89
1.7M ratings
Horror
Science Fiction
Gothic
The Glass Bead Game Summary
The Glass Bead Game
by Hermann Hesse 1943 558 pages
4.10
40.9K ratings
Classics
Philosophy
Literature
Their Eyes Were Watching God Summary
Their Eyes Were Watching God
by Zora Neale Hurston 1937 238 pages
3.99
372.8K ratings
Classics
Historical Fiction
School
The Lover Summary
The Lover
by Marguerite Duras 1984 117 pages
3.71
66.2K ratings
France
Romance
French Literature
Faust, First Part Summary
Faust, First Part
by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 1808 327 pages
3.86
130.1K ratings
Plays
Poetry
German Literature
The Death of Virgil Summary
The Death of Virgil
by Hermann Broch 1945 493 pages
4.14
1.7K ratings
Historical Fiction
Classics
German Literature
Prokleta avlija Summary
Prokleta avlija
by Ivo Andrić 1954 120 pages
4.25
10.8K ratings
Classics
Historical Fiction
School
The Names Summary
The Names
by Don DeLillo 1982 339 pages
3.64
4.8K ratings
Novels
American
Greece
Characters, Emotion & Viewpoint Summary
Characters, Emotion & Viewpoint
Techniques and Exercises for Crafting Dynamic Characters and Effective Viewpoints
by Nancy Kress 2005 232 pages
4.05
2.2K ratings
Writing
Reference
Crafts
The Call of the Wild Summary
The Call of the Wild
by Jack London 1903 172 pages
3.91
456.5K ratings
Classics
Adventure
Young Adult
Doctor Zhivago Summary
Doctor Zhivago
by Boris Pasternak 1957 592 pages
4.01
100.5K ratings
Historical Fiction
Russia
Russian Literature
Jitterbug Perfume Summary
Jitterbug Perfume
by Tom Robbins 1984 342 pages
4.23
79.2K ratings
Fantasy
Humor
Magical Realism
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