Appearance Versus Reality

Can we ever fully trust our senses, or are they too unreliable to perceive the world as it is? In this collection, we gather texts that explore the idea of appearance versus reality, from classics such as Aristotle's On the Soul to contemporary bestsellers like Jia Tolentino's Trick Mirror.

A Beautiful Mind

by Sylvia Nasar

Publication year 1998

Genre Biography, Nonfiction

Themes Appearance & Reality

Tags Mental Illness, Science & Nature, World History, Psychology, Psychology, Biography

John Nash is born and raised in Bluefield, West Virginia. As a child, he is introverted and quiet, preferring reading and performing experiments to playing with other children. He is obsessed with codes and patterns and enjoys playing pranks on his sister and schoolmates. Intending to become an engineer like his father, Nash secures a scholarship to study at the Carnegie Institute of Technology. After a year, he abandons engineering to major in mathematics. He... Read A Beautiful Mind Summary

Absolution

by Jeff VanderMeer

Publication year 2024

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Grief, Memory, Death, The Past, Appearance & Reality, Environment, Daughters & Sons

Tags Science Fiction, Horror & Suspense, Fantasy

Absolution, the fourth novel in Jeff VanderMeer's Southern Reach series, unfolds across three interconnected sections, each set at a different point in time relative to the formation of Area X, a mysterious zone of ecological transformation that has sealed off a stretch of the American coast behind an invisible, impassable Border.The first section, "Dead Town," is set twenty years before Area X exists. Old Jim, a veteran operative for a clandestine government agency called Central... Read Absolution Summary

Across the Vanishing Sky

by Catherine Cowles

Publication year 2026

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Grief, Hope, Love, Animals, Appearance & Reality, Environment, Family, Friendship, Justice, Safety & Danger

Tags Romance, Horror & Suspense

Catherine Cowles’s romantic suspense novel Across the Vanishing Sky (2026) is the first installment in the Starlight Grove series. The story follows Braedyn Winslow, a single mother who moves to the small mountain town of Starlight Grove one year after her best friend, Nova, vanished there during a hike. Determined to uncover the truth that the dismissive local sheriff has ignored, Braedyn begins her own investigation, but her mission is complicated by her reclusive new... Read Across the Vanishing Sky Summary

A Deadly Education

by Naomi Novik

Publication year 2020

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Friendship, Teamwork, Fate, Safety & Danger, Fear, Equality, Power & Greed, Good & Evil, Loneliness, Wins & Losses, Appearance & Reality

Tags Horror & Suspense, Romance, Religion & Spirituality, Fantasy, Coming of Age, Social Class

... Read A Deadly Education Summary

A Fable

by William Faulkner

Publication year 1955

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Fear, Hate & Anger, Grief, Death, Fate, Social Class, Colonialism, Politics & Government, War, Nation, Power & Greed, Religion & Spirituality, Order & Chaos, Appearance & Reality, Conflict

Tags Symbolic Narrative, Classic Fiction, Historical Fiction, World War I, Military & War, American Literature, World History

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A Game of Thrones

by George R. R. Martin

Publication year 1996

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Politics & Government, Loyalty & Betrayal, Love, Hate & Anger, Revenge, Shame & Pride, Masculinity, Femininity, Grief, Wins & Losses, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger, Justice, Social Class, War, Economics, Siblings, Mothers, Fathers, Marriage, Family, Daughters & Sons, Appearance & Reality, Friendship, Disability, Gender Identity, Birth, Childhood & Youth, Death, Coming of Age, Future, The Past, Truth & Lies, Trust & Doubt

Tags Fantasy, Action & Adventure, Social Class, Politics & Government, Religion & Spirituality, Trauma & Abuse, Grief & Death

A Game of Thrones is a 1996 epic fantasy novel by George R. R. Martin and is the first in his long-running A Song of Ice and Fire series. The novel introduces the audience to the fictional world of Westeros, where characters become embroiled in a complicated web of plots, conspiracies, and betrayals as they pursue power. A Game of Thrones won numerous awards on publication and was adapted for television in 2011. This guide... Read A Game of Thrones Summary

Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter

by Heather Fawcett

Publication year 2026

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Grief, Loneliness, Love, Memory, The Past, Animals, Appearance & Reality, Nature Versus Nurture, Siblings, Community, Good & Evil, Loyalty & Betrayal, Order & Chaos, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger

Tags Fantasy, Romance, Historical Fiction

Published in 2026, Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter is a cozy fantasy novel by Heather Fawcett, author of the New York Times bestselling Emily Wilde series. The story is set in a magical version of Montréal and centers on Agnes Aubert, a 35-year-old widow whose struggling cat shelter is destroyed in a battle between magicians. Desperate to find a new space before winter, she rents a suspiciously affordable and opulent shop, only to discover it... Read Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter Summary

All Her Fault

by Andrea Mara

Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Guilt, Appearance & Reality, Mothers, Social Class, Safety & Danger, Truth & Lies

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Horror & Suspense, Domestic Fiction, Psychological Fiction

... Read All Her Fault Summary

All Her Little Secrets

by Wanda M. Morris

Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Equality, Justice, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies, Appearance & Reality, Femininity, Race, Mental Health, Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Fear, Grief, Guilt, Hate & Anger, Loneliness, Revenge, Shame & Pride

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Horror & Suspense, Race & Racism, Trauma & Abuse, Modern Classic Fiction

... Read All Her Little Secrets Summary

All In

by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Publication year 2015

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Fear, Grief, Hate & Anger, Memory, Revenge, Shame & Pride, Death, The Past, Appearance & Reality, Family, Fathers, Teamwork, Self Discovery, Community, Good & Evil, Loyalty & Betrayal, Order & Chaos, Religion & Spirituality

... Read All In Summary