Category: Realist

Intermezzo – Sally Rooney

Posted on October 14, 2026 by

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READ FOR BOOKCLUBChosen by Tessa Set in Dublin, Intermezzo follows two estranged brothers, Peter, a lawyer in his thirties, and Ivan, a younger competitive chess player, as they navigate grief and their complex brotherhood following their father’s death. Through their complicated romantic relationships and… Continue Reading “Intermezzo – Sally Rooney”

Category: Contemporary fiction, Domestic Fiction, Experimental fiction, Family drama, Female Experience, Irish, Literary fiction, Philosophical, Psychological, Realist, Romance, Stream Of ConsciousnessTags:

The Things We Never Say – Elizabeth Strout

Posted on September 27, 2026 by

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READ FOR BOOKERTHON Artie Dam is a 57-year-old history teacher whose seemingly comfortable life is plagued by a troubled mind and an emerging family secret. Written in Strout’s understated, character-driven style, the novel explores marriage, parenthood, loneliness and the things people leave unspoken, against… Continue Reading “The Things We Never Say – Elizabeth Strout”

Category: Contemporary fiction, Domestic Fiction, Family drama, Female Experience, Literary fiction, Philosophical, Political, Psychological, Realist, US fictionTags: ,

The Frozen River – Ariel Lawhon

Posted on September 9, 2026 by

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READ FOR BOOKCLUBChosen by Bridget In Maine, 1789 real life midwife Martha Ballard delivered babies and kept daily notes of her work, community and surroundings. As an advocate for women she spoke up on behalf of a local woman at a rape trial. In… Continue Reading “The Frozen River – Ariel Lawhon”

Category: Cultural, Family drama, Female Experience, Feminism, Historical Fiction, Mystery/Crime, Political, Psychological, Realist, Thriller, US fictionTags:

All Our Yesterdays – Natalia Ginzburg

Posted on May 27, 2026 by

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READ FOR BOOKCLUBChosen by Jodie Published in 1952 and set against the rise of fascism and the Second World War in Italy, All Our Yesterdays explores how history unfolds through ordinary lives rather than extraordinary events. Natalia Ginzburg examines family, love, duty and the… Continue Reading “All Our Yesterdays – Natalia Ginzburg”

Category: Classic literature, Family drama, Female Experience, Feminism, Historical Fiction, Italian fiction, Literary fiction, Political, Realist, Translated, War storyTags:

Prophet Song – Paul Lynch

Posted on October 17, 2025 by

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READ FOR BOOKCLUBChosen by Tessa Prophet Song is set in an alternative Dublin where a tyrannical government is weaving its way into people’s lives, the rebels are rising up and society is slowly collapsing. It focuses on one family who suffer in many ways and… Continue Reading “Prophet Song – Paul Lynch”

Category: Booker Prize, Domestic Fiction, Dystopian, Family drama, Female Experience, Irish, Literary fiction, Philosophical, Political, Psychological, Realist, Speculative Fiction, Thriller, War storyTags: ,

Flesh – David Szalay

Posted on October 11, 2025 by

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READ FOR BOOKERTHON The story of István, a Hungarian teen who lives with his mother and is subjected to a traumatic event. From there we bear witness to a collection of intimate moments set over years, chronicling the demands of life for an everyday… Continue Reading “Flesh – David Szalay”

Category: Booker Prize, Coming of Age, Contemporary fiction, Cultural, Existentialist, Immigrant story, Literary fiction, Philosophical, Psychological, Realist, UK author, War storyTags: ,

The Land In Winter – Andrew Miller

Posted on October 5, 2025 by

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READ FOR BOOKERTHON Bristol, 1962, post-war optimism is fading, and a new, modern world forming. Two young couples live next to each other: a doctor and his wife in a beautiful cottage, a farmer and his wife in a rundown, under-heated farmhouse. Both women… Continue Reading “The Land In Winter – Andrew Miller”

Category: Booker Prize, Domestic Fiction, Family drama, Female Experience, Historical Fiction, Literary fiction, Psychological, Realist, UK authorTags: ,

The Rest Of Our Lives – Ben Markovits

Posted on September 30, 2025 by

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READ FOR BOOKERTHON When Tom Layward’s wife had an affair he resolved to leave her as soon as his youngest daughter turned eighteen. Twelve years later, while taking her to Pittsburgh to start university, he remembers his pact, and keeps driving West. This road… Continue Reading “The Rest Of Our Lives – Ben Markovits”

Category: Booker Prize, Contemporary fiction, Domestic Fiction, Family drama, Literary fiction, Philosophical, Psychological, Realist, Road Trip, US fictionTags: ,

Hum – Helen Phillips

Posted on September 17, 2025 by

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READ FOR BOOKCLUBChosen by Rachel In a climate ravaged dystopian future where robots (Hums) take the every day jobs of humans and surveillance is at an all time high, a woman undergoes experiental facial surgery in order to pay her bills and treat her… Continue Reading “Hum – Helen Phillips”

Category: AI, Climate Fiction, Climate Fiction Prize, Contemporary fiction, Domestic Fiction, Dystopian, Environmental fiction, Family drama, Female Experience, Literary fiction, Political, Psychological, Realist, Science Fiction, Speculative Fiction, Surreal, Thriller, US fictionTags:

Delirious – Damien Wilkins

Posted on April 23, 2025 by

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READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS Retired cop and librarian Mary and Pete are struggling with ailments and deciding whether to move into a retirement home or stay in their family home. Then the police ask to speak to them about the accident that killed… Continue Reading “Delirious – Damien Wilkins”

Category: Contemporary fiction, Domestic Fiction, Family drama, Humour, Kiwi lit, Literary fiction, NZ Book Awards, Psychological, RealistTags: , ,

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