The year is almost over, and it has seen great new fiction from both new writers getting a share of the limelight and established, come-backing ones. Here’s our list of must-read novels that have come out in 2017.
Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders: This innovative work traces the death and afterlife of Abraham Lincoln’s young son with snippets of civil war memoir and the narratives of bickering ghosts. It’s a most welcome exploration of loss, mourning, and empathy.
Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie: This highly praised novel adapts the Antigone myth through the story of two sisters and their jihadi brother. It compares the role of the modern state with the ageless bonds of love and loyalty.
H(a)ppy by Nicola Barker: This, Barker’s 12th novel, won the Goldsmiths Prize. It’s a testament to the pushing of the novel form toward the heights of artistry, using color and madcap typography to conjure a dystopian future where the artist and creator must rise above a world of surveillance and control.
The Ministry of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy: This long-awaited second novel by the author of the great novel from 20 years ago, “The God of Small Things,” is the story of a kaleidoscope of characters, a sprawling tale of love and resistance in modern India.
Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney: This debut work conjures the wild experiments of James Joyce in a treatise-like study of modern, post-crash Dublin elite. It almost feels post-Irish, with characters engaged in spoken word and the other arts who denounce capitalism while living off inherited wealth.
Hello, my name’s Charles Bishop from Pompano Beach, Florida and I’m a wedding photographer, sports memorabilia collector, and an avid reader. Check out my other writings on this blog.
Charles Bishop Pompano Beach Florida 