Friendship

The solace and comfort of true friendship — and the pain of its loss — can rival any romantic or familial relationship. In this collection, we present texts that examine the unique qualities and costs of deep friendships.

Al Capone Shines My Shoes

by Gennifer Choldenko

Publication year 2009

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Friendship, Disability, Siblings, Fame, Safety & Danger, Trust & Doubt

Tags Historical Fiction, Action & Adventure, Children`s Literature, Disability, Realistic Fiction, World History

Al Capone Shines My Shoes (2009) is the second book in Gennifer Choldenko’s Tales from Alcatraz series. The novel is set on the prison island of Alcatraz during the height of the Great Depression. The protagonist and narrator is 12-year-old Matthew “Moose” Flanagan, whose father works as a guard and electrician at the notorious prison. When Moose receives a note from Al Capone, a famous gangster and prisoner of Alcatraz, he finds himself caught up... Read Al Capone Shines My Shoes Summary

A Lesson Before Dying

by Ernest J. Gaines

Publication year 1993

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Friendship, Education, Race

Tags Historical Fiction, Race & Racism, African American Literature, Education, Education, World History, Classic Fiction

A Lesson Before Dying, by Ernest J. Gaines, is an award-winning work of fiction published in 1993. It received the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction that same year. The story is arguably a work of historical fiction based on true accounts of young Black men on death row in Louisiana in the 1940s. Other works by this author include The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman, A Gathering of Old Men, and The Sky... Read A Lesson Before Dying Summary

A Little Life

by Hanya Yanagihara

Publication year 2015

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Friendship, Masculinity, Disability

Tags Coming of Age, Dramatic Literature, Relationships, LGBTQ+, Trauma & Abuse, Depression & Suicide, American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Mental Illness

... Read A Little Life Summary

A Little Princess

by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Publication year 1905

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Friendship, Perseverance, Fathers

Tags Classic Fiction, Children`s Literature, Historical Fiction, World History

The classic children’s novel A Little Princess; Being the Whole Story of Sara Crewe Now Told for the First Time was published in 1905. In this work, Frances Hodgson Burnett (1849-1924), a celebrated Anglo-American novelist and playwright who is also known for the novels Little Lord Fauntleroy (1886) and The Secret Garden (1910), expands her earlier novella, Sara Crewe: or, What Happened at Miss Minchin's (1888), which had originally been serialized in St. Nicholas’ Magazine... Read A Little Princess Summary

All Fours

by Miranda July

Publication year 2024

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Perseverance, Love, Sexual Identity, Aging, Midlife, Future, The Past, Friendship, Marriage, Self Discovery, Community, Education, Art, Literature, Loyalty & Betrayal, Truth & Lies, Family

Tags Gender & Feminism, Modern Classic Fiction, LGBTQ+, Humor

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All My Rage

by Sabaa Tahir

Publication year 2022

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Family, Truth & Lies, Friendship, Immigration, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance

Tags Historical Fiction, Romance, Realistic Fiction, Trauma & Abuse, Modern Classic Fiction

... Read All My Rage Summary

All Quiet on the Western Front

by Erich Maria Remarque

Publication year 1929

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes War, Safety & Danger, Justice, Friendship, Death

Tags Military & War, Historical Fiction, World War I, Education, Education, World History, Classic Fiction

All Quiet on the Western Front is a 1929 novel by Erich Maria Remarque which details the experiences of German soldiers at the frontlines of World War I. At the heart of the novel are graphic portrayals of trench warfare and the psychological trauma inflicted on the soldiers as a result. The novel presents a realistic portrait of a horrific war and provides unflattering accounts of the elite classes responsible for such mass destruction. The... Read All Quiet on the Western Front Summary

All the Glimmering Stars

by Mark Sullivan

Publication year 2024

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Fear, Forgiveness, Guilt, Hope, Joy, Loneliness, Love, Memory, Shame & Pride, Mental Health, Coming of Age, Future, The Past, Food, Place, Family, Friendship, Teamwork, Self Discovery, Colonialism, Community, Globalization, Nation, War, Fate, Justice, Loyalty & Betrayal, Order & Chaos, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies, Wins & Losses

Tags Historical Fiction

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American Buffalo

by David Mamet

Publication year 1975

Genre Play, Fiction

Themes Friendship

Tags US History, World History, Classic Fiction, Drama, American Literature, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Dramatic Literature

American Buffalo is a 1975 off-Broadway play written by American playwright David Mamet. It first premiered in Chicago’s Goodman Theater in 1975, reaching Broadway in 1977. Along with two other plays, The Duck Variations (1971) and Sexual Perversity in Chicago (1974), American Buffalo established Mamet as a reputable writer. The play explores friendship and greed among the working classes. The 1976 publication from Grove Press (New York) serves as the basis for this guide.The play... Read American Buffalo Summary

American Fantasy

by Emma Straub

Publication year 2026

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Nostalgia, Aging, Midlife, The Past, Friendship, Self Discovery, Fame, Music

Tags Contemporary Literature, Romance

Emma Straub’s 2026 novel, American Fantasy, is a work of contemporary fiction from the New York Times best-selling author of titles such as All Adults Here and This Time Tomorrow. The story is set on a four-day fan cruise for Boy Talk, a fictional 1980s boy band whose members are now in their fifties. Told from the alternating perspectives of a disillusioned band member, a recently divorced 50-year-old fan attending alone, and the cruise’s overworked... Read American Fantasy Summary

Amerika

by Franz Kafka, Transl. Willa Muir

Publication year 1927

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Immigration, Friendship, Coming of Age, Family, Loyalty & Betrayal, Social Class

Tags Classic Fiction, Immigration & Refugeeism, Coming of Age, Action & Adventure, Satirical Literature, Social Class

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A Moveable Feast

by Ernest Hemingway

Publication year 1964

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Literature, Friendship

Tags Travel Literature, American Literature, French Literature, Classic Fiction, Biography

A Moveable Feast was written by Ernest Hemingway and published posthumously in 1964, three years after his death. The title, A Moveable Feast, is a play on the term used for holy days that do not consistently fall on the same date every year. The memoir’s structure mirrors this concept, featuring 20 separate yet related stories that make up Hemingway’s own collection of inconsistent holy days. The memoir blends fact with fiction as Hemingway recalls... Read A Moveable Feast Summary

Amsterdam

by Ian McEwan

Publication year 1998

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Good & Evil, Friendship, Revenge, Art, Power & Greed

Tags Historical Fiction, Horror & Suspense

Ian McEwan’s Amsterdam, a satirical novel published in 1998, won the prestigious Booker Prize. McEwan is a highly regarded British author, known for acclaimed works such as Atonement, The Children Act, and Saturday. Set in London during the late 1990s, Amsterdam captures the cynical atmosphere of post-Thatcherite Britain, particularly the codependent relationship between politics and the press. The novel follows two successful middle-aged friends, a composer and a newspaper editor, who make a fateful euthanasia... Read Amsterdam Summary