More like Chocolat
anchored on:literary & generalour worldlate 20th centurymagical realismfaith and religioneurope+2 more
but
- The Satanic Verses
Salman Rushdiestandalone novel1988
similar byfaith and religionliterary & generalmagical realismour world+1 more
The Satanic Verses is the fourth novel by British–Indian writer Salman Rushdie. First published in September 1988, the book was inspired by the life of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. As with his previous books, Rushdie used magical realism and relied on contemporary events and people to create his characters. The title refers to the Satanic Verses, a group of Quranic verses about three pagan Meccan goddesses: Allāt, Al-Uzza, and Manāt. The part of the story that deals with the satanic verses was based on accounts from the historians al-Waqidi and al-Tabari.
- The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ
Philip Pullmanstandalone novel2009
similar byfaith and religionliterary & generalreflectiveour world
Philip Pullman retells the gospel story with one change: Mary gives birth to twin sons, not one. Jesus grows into the moral teacher and healer familiar from scripture, while his brother, given the name Christ, watches from the sidelines, recording and reshaping his brother's story with an eye toward the institution he believes should be built on it. As Jesus preaches humility and doubt, Christ is drawn into a bargain with a mysterious stranger who wants his account shaped into something more useful for the church that will one day claim to speak for both of them. Part of Canongate's Myth series, Pullman's short, provocative reworking of the New Testament.
- The Next Queen of Heaven
Gregory Maguirestandalone novel2010
similar byfaith and religionliterary & generalreflectiveour world+1 more
Gregory Maguire is an American novelist. He is the author of Wicked, Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, and several dozen other novels for adults and children. Many of Maguire's adult novels are inspired by classic children's stories. Maguire published his first novel, The Lightning Time, in 1978. Wicked, published in 1995, was his first novel for adults. It was adapted into a popular Broadway musical in 2003, which was later adapted into a two-part musical film series with the first film released in 2024 and the second film released in 2025.
- Lost Horizon
James Hiltonstandalone novel1933
similar byfaith and religionliterary & generalreflective
Lost Horizon is a 1933 novel by the English writer James Hilton. The book was adapted into a film, also called Lost Horizon, in 1937 by director Frank Capra; and a musical film remake in 1973 by producer Ross Hunter with music by Burt Bacharach. It is the origin of Shangri-La, a fictional utopian lamasery located high in the mountains of Tibet.
- A Girl Named Disaster
Nancy Farmerstandalone novel1996
similar byfaith and religionlate 20th centuryliterary & generalemotional
A Girl Named Disaster is a 1996 novel written by Nancy Farmer. The book explores the qualities needed to survive in a hostile environment, coming-of-age, and the availability of spiritual guidance.
- VALIS
series4 books1981
completed
similar byfaith and religionreflective+3 more
The VALIS trilogy is a set of science fiction/philosophical novels by author Philip K. Dick which include VALIS (1981), The Divine Invasion (1981), and The Transmigration of Timothy Archer (1982). Dick's first novel about the VALIS concept originally titled "VALISystem A", was published as Radio Free Albemuth after Dick's death in 1985.
- The House on Mango Street
Sandra Cisnerosstandalone novel1984
similar bylate 20th centuryliterary & generalreflectivemagical realismemotional
In a series of inter-connected vignettes, this is the story of a young girl growing up in the Hispanic quarter of Chicago. Contains magical realism.
- Nights at the Circus
Angela Carterstandalone novel1984
similar bylate 20th centuryliterary & generalmagical realismwhimsicaleurope
Nights at the Circus is a novel by British writer Angela Carter, first published in 1984 and the winner of the 1984 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction. The novel focuses on the life and exploits of Sophie Fevvers, a woman who is – or so she would have people believe – a Cockney virgin, hatched from an egg laid by unknown parents and ready to develop fully fledged wings. At the time of the story, she has become a celebrated aerialiste. She captivates the young journalist Jack Walser, who runs away with the circus and falls into a world that his journalistic exploits had not prepared him to encounter.
- The Edible Woman
Margaret Atwoodstandalone novel1969
similar bylate 20th centuryliterary & generalreflectiveour world
The Edible Woman is the first published novel by Canadian writer Margaret Atwood, published in 1969. It is the story of a young woman, Marian, whose sane, structured, consumer-oriented world starts to slip out of focus. Following her engagement, Marian feels her body and her self are becoming separated. Marian begins endowing food with human qualities that cause her to identify with it, and finds herself unable to eat, repelled by metaphorical cannibalism. In a foreword written in 1979 for the Virago edition of the novel, Atwood described it as a protofeminist rather than feminist work.
- The Fire Gospel
Michel Faberstandalone novel2008
similar byfaith and religionliterary & generalreflectiveour world
Literary fantasy novel
- Island
Aldous Huxleystandalone novel1962
similar byfaith and religionliterary & generalreflective
Island is a 1962 utopian manifesto and novel by English writer Aldous Huxley, the author's final work before his death in 1963. Although it has a plot, the plot largely serves to further conceptual explorations rather than setting up and resolving conventional narrative tension.
- 1Q84
series3 books2009
similar byfaith and religionlate 20th centuryliterary & generalmagical realismour world+1 more
1Q84 is a novel written by Japanese writer Haruki Murakami, first published in three volumes in Japan in 2009–2010. It covers a fictionalized year of 1984 in parallel with a "real" one. The novel is a story of how a woman named Aomame begins to notice strange changes occurring in the world. She is quickly caught up in a plot involving Sakigake, a religious cult, and her childhood love, Tengo, and embarks on a journey to discover what is "real".
- Lent
Jo Waltonstandalone novel2019
similar byfaith and religionreflectiveliterary & generalour worldeurope
"Young Girolamo's life is a series of miracles. It's a miracle that he can see demons, plain as day, and that he can cast them out with the force of his will. It's a miracle that he's friends with Pico della Mirandola, the Count of Concordia. It's a miracle that when Girolamo visits the deathbed of Lorenzo "the Magnificent," the dying Medici is wreathed in celestial light, a surprise to everyone, Lorenzo included. It's a miracle that when Charles VIII of France invades northern Italy, Girolamo meets him in the field, and convinces him to not only spare Florence but also protect it. It's a miracle than whenever Girolamo preaches, crowds swoon. It's a miracle that, despite the Pope's determination to bring young Girolamo to heel, he's still on the loose...and, now, running Florence in all but name. That's only the beginning. Because Girolamo Savanarola is not who--or what--he thinks he is. He will discover the truth about himself at the most startling possible time. And this will be only the beginning of his many lives." - publisher
- Life of Pi
Yann Martelstandalone novel2001
similar byfaith and religionliterary & generalreflective
Life of Pi is a Canadian philosophical novel by Yann Martel published in 2001. The protagonist is Piscine Molitor "Pi" Patel, an Indian boy from Pondicherry, who explores issues of spirituality and metaphysics from an early age. After a shipwreck, he survives 227 days while stranded on a lifeboat in the Pacific Ocean with a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker, raising questions about the nature of reality and how it is perceived and told.
- Phases of Gravity
Dan Simmonsstandalone novel1989
similar bylate 20th centuryliterary & generalreflectiveour world
Follows Richard Baedecker, an Apollo astronaut who walked on the moon, through his midlife crisis. He meanders through India, Glen Oak Illinois, the mountains of Colorado, and the coastline of Oregon, checking up on his son and his former Apollo crewmates.
- God Is Dead
Ron Currie & Jr.standalone novel2007
similar byfaith and religionliterary & generalreflectiveour world
God is Dead (2007) is the debut novel of American author Ron Currie Jr. The book is a collection of related shorter stories about a world where God has come to earth and died.
- Bless Me, Ultima
Rudolfo Anayastandalone novel2024
similar byfaith and religionliterary & generalreflectivemagical realismemotional
Bless Me, Ultima is a coming-of-age novel by Rudolfo Anaya centering on Antonio Márez y Luna and his mentorship under his curandera and protector, Ultima. It has become the most widely read and critically acclaimed novel in the New Mexican literature canon since its first publication in 1972. Teachers across disciplines in middle schools, high schools and universities have adopted it as a way to implement multicultural literature in their classes. The novel reflects Hispano culture of the 1940s in rural New Mexico. Anaya's use of Spanish, mystical depiction of the New Mexican landscape, use of cultural motifs such as La Llorona, and recounting of curandera folkways such as the gathering of medicinal herbs, gives readers a sense of the influence of indigenous cultural ways that are both authentic and distinct from the mainstream.
- Eloisa: Or, a Series of Original Letters
Jean-Jacques Rousseaustandalone novel1761
similar byliterary & generalreflectiveclass conflictemotionaleurope+1 more
The love between Julie d'Étange and her private teacher St Preux, made impossible because of their relative stations, leads to a dead-end. Julie eventually marries old M. de Wolmar, who acquaints them with his Utopian estate, characteristic of the Age of enlightenment.
- Manalive
G. K. Chestertonstandalone novel1912
similar byfaith and religionliterary & generalwhimsicalour world
Manalive (1912) is a book by G. K. Chesterton detailing a popular theme both in his own philosophy, and in Christianity, of the "holy fool", such as in Dostoevsky's The Idiot and Cervantes' Don Quixote.
- Stranger in a Strange Land
Robert A. Heinleinstandalone novel1961
similar byfaith and religionreflectiveour world
Stranger in a Strange Land is a 1961 science fiction novel by the American author Robert A. Heinlein. It tells the story of Valentine Michael Smith, a human who comes to Earth in early adulthood after being born on the planet Mars and raised by Martians, and explores his interaction with and eventual transformation of Terran culture.
- The Green Mile
Stephen Kingstandalone novel1996
similar byliterary & generalmagical realismemotional+1 more
The Green Mile is a 1996 serial novel by American writer Stephen King. It tells the story of death row supervisor Paul Edgecombe's encounter with John Coffey, an unusual inmate who displays inexplicable healing and empathetic abilities. The serial novel was released in six volumes before being republished as a single-volume work. The book is an example of magical realism. The subsequent film adaptation was a critical and commercial success. The Green Mile won the Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel in 1996. In 1997, The Green Mile was nominated as Best Novel for the British Fantasy Award and the Locus Award. In 2003 the book was listed on the BBC's The Big Read poll of the UK's "best-loved novel".
