Looking for a book that has well-fleshed out characters, that is written with care, that made you feel like they could be a real person. If the author delves into difficult subjects, there should be a nuanced understanding of what people in those situations might actually feel, and then lead you to understand the character’s POV.
*If you want to make your kitchen feel like a coffee shop, include elements that lead you to associate it with that space – deep wood table or counter, nice textiles, cozy seating, glass jars to display ingredients/beans, cute mugs, muted lighting.*
*Now imagine a kitchen where every piece of decor has the word CAFE emblazoned on it. Tacky and doesn’t work so well.*
I’m currently reading A Court of Thorns and Roses, and while it’s fun, the characters are painfully shallow and have no subtlety to them. Their actions are also incongruent with their words, and not in a way that seems intentional – so I find myself unable to connect with any character in the book. I want to feel what this person is feeling through engaging writing and by joining them in their thoughts, not just to be told how they feel and expected to care.
I was reflecting on this and remembered my first time reading As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner. Depressing as hell, absolutely – but the people in that book and the narration makes the characters so realistic you think you could know them. I felt like I was taken for a real ride there. Similarly The Song of Achilles, which is arguably YA just like ACOTAR – but I was totally swept up in the beauty, tragedy, and human-ness.
by Somnadi
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Frederick Backmans books. My favorites are A Man called Ove and Britt Marie was Here .
{{Now is Not the Time to Panic by Kevin Wilson}} really captures the feeling of being a teenager well.
{{The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath}} was really good for being relatable for early adulthood or entering adulthood.
{{Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert}} provides a really good portrait of Emma by Flaubert.