I like to read all kinds of things. In the past couple of years I’ve tried cosy fantasy, sci-fi, graphic novels, and even romance. I’ve found some books I’ve loved among my experiments. But I think the thing that I enjoy most is when a book subverts my expectations. A literary fiction that has a mystery in it. A sci-fi book that has the depth of character development usually found in literary fiction. A novel based on the author’s autobiographical experiences. Or even just books written on certain topics that aren’t normally discussed or by people who don’t normally write such books. I enjoy new reading experiences, and I especially like it when a book nails multiple genres adeptly and enjoyably.
Some books I’ve read that fit into this are:
Andy Weir’s books The Martian and Project Hail Mary
Last Night in Montreal by Emily St. John Mandel (a mystery in literary format)
The Lie of the Land by Amanda Craig (another literary fiction with a thriller-esque sub-plot)
The Trees by Percival Everett (I don’t even know how to describe this one…. it’s kind of hard-boiled detective novel meets horror)
Hell of a Book by Jason Mott (I have zero idea how to describe this one other than to say that it defied categorization but was brilliant)
Have you read any books that didn’t fit into any one genre? Any that subverted your expectations? Any that stood out as having been a unique reading experience?
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Great post. I think I read in a similar way. There a loads of books that don’t fit in a single genre or that have a character who is more developed that you would expect and when you find those you miss reading them when they’re over. The Martian was very good.
I completely agree! That, right there, is my favourite genre.