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Picks · Literary · short · avoiding Horror, Thriller/Mystery

Five book club picks for a literary · short · avoiding horror, thriller/mystery group

These books were chosen from our 150-book editorial catalog using the same matching algorithm we use on the quiz. They're a starting point — refine for your specific group with the 2-minute quiz.

Top pick

The Nickel Boys

by Colson Whitehead

Pulitzer winner about a reform school - devastating and essential

Four more your club will like

  1. 2.
    On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous
    by Ocean Vuong

    Poetic letter from son to mother exploring identity and war's aftermath

  2. 3.
    The Year of Magical Thinking
    by Joan Didion

    Didion's unflinching grief memoir - elegant prose sparks deep conversation

  3. 4.
    The Remains of the Day
    by Kazuo Ishiguro

    Understated brilliance about regret and duty

  4. 5.
    Crying in H Mart
    by Michelle Zauner

    Grief, Korean food, and identity - a memoir that hits every reader differently

Refine these for your specific group

These picks fit a literary · short · avoiding horror, thriller/mysterygroup on average. The 2-minute quiz tunes them to your group's actual taste — and once you have a club going, ratings improve future picks.