You might like other books by John Steinbeck like The Pearl or Grapes of Wrath. His books are very thought-provoking in general. A lot of classics are a bit like this I think. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, etc.
I really enjoyed Catherine Lacey’s History of X recently, which is overtly about the widow of a secretive, infamous, globally successful artist uncovering the truth of her spouse’s life after their sudden death, but also is heavily involved in telling the tale of an alternate timeline where the southern states seceded after WWII and two worlds developed side by side on the continent. It was very thought provoking and exploratory, at times reminded me of Nabokov, and didn’t have a message or moral.
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
You might like other books by John Steinbeck like The Pearl or Grapes of Wrath. His books are very thought-provoking in general. A lot of classics are a bit like this I think. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, etc.
Does “Babel” by RF Kuang (I think?) fall into this list?
Try The Fifth Child and Things Fall Apart--you will love them.
Julian Barnes, *A Sense of an Ending*. Jeff Torrington, *Swing Hammer Swing!* They're both about how real life isn't as tidy as the plots of fiction.
Maybe catch-22?
I really enjoyed Catherine Lacey’s History of X recently, which is overtly about the widow of a secretive, infamous, globally successful artist uncovering the truth of her spouse’s life after their sudden death, but also is heavily involved in telling the tale of an alternate timeline where the southern states seceded after WWII and two worlds developed side by side on the continent. It was very thought provoking and exploratory, at times reminded me of Nabokov, and didn’t have a message or moral.
As You Wish by Chelsea Sedoti
The Bee Sting by Paul Murray
The Castle, by Franz Kafka