Memory

In many ways, who we are is shaped by what we remember, yet our recollections aren't always a reliable account of the past. This collection gathers texts that explore the ideas, theories, and challenges conjured by memory.

The Basketball Diaries

by Jim Carroll

Publication year 1978

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Coming of Age, Memory, Love, Perseverance, Conflict, Safety & Danger

Tags Addiction & Substance Abuse, Relationships, Trauma & Abuse, Sports, Modern Classic Fiction, Classic Fiction, Biography

The Basketball Diaries: The Classic About Growing Up Hip On New York’s Mean Streets is an autobiography written by Jim Carroll and published in 1978. The book comprises a series of short diary entries which serve as anecdotes and insights into his daily life as a teenager on the streets of New York City in the 1960s. Jim Carroll became a celebrated writer and poet, overcoming his addiction to heroin in the mid-1970s and publishing... Read The Basketball Diaries Summary

The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant

by W.D. Wetherell

Publication year 1983

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Coming of Age, Love, Memory, Beauty

Tags Classic Fiction, American Literature, Life-Inspired Fiction, Coming of Age, Humor, Love & Sexuality, Sports, Education, Education

W. D. Wetherell’s short story “The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant,” first published in 1983 and later anthologized in 1985’s The Man Who Loved Levittown, has been popular ever since for its gently humorous depiction of youthful infatuations. Wetherell reaches into his own past to present a tale that’s both lyrically beautiful and achingly funny. In the story, a 14-year-old boy gets a crush on an older girl and must make a painful decision... Read The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant Summary

The Bastard of Istanbul

by Elif Shafak

Publication year 2006

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Memory

Tags Historical Fiction, Middle Eastern Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Asian Literature, World History

Elif Shafak’s 2006 novel The Bastard of Istanbul weaves together the stories of two rival cultures, those of the Turks and the Armenians—peoples who haven’t yet healed from the wound opened by the 1915 Armenian Genocide. Shafak uses the stories of two families—the Turkish Kazancis and the Armenian Tchakhmakchians—who live seemingly disparate lives on two different continents but are connected by a past that reveals how deeply interconnected these families and historical enemies are. Shafak uses... Read The Bastard of Istanbul Summary

The Battle of Blenheim

by Robert Southey

Publication year 1798

Genre Poem, Fiction

Themes Wins & Losses, Memory, Aging, Childhood & Youth, The Past, Place, Grandparents, War

Tags Narrative Poem, Military & War, European History

“The Battle of Blenheim,” also known as “After Blenheim,” is a satirical, antiwar poem by English Romantic poet Robert Southey, written in 1798 and published in the Morning Post newspaper on August 9 of that year. The poem, which is in the form of a ballad, looks back at the Battle of Blenheim, which was fought around the Bavarian town of Blindheim, in southern Germany, on August 2, 1704, during the War of the Spanish... Read The Battle of Blenheim Summary

The Berry Pickers

by Amanda Peters

Publication year 2023

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Family, Indigenous Identity, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Forgiveness, Grief, Guilt, Hate & Anger, Loneliness, Memory, Death, The Past, Mothers, Siblings, Globalization, Loyalty & Betrayal, Truth & Lies

Tags Historical Fiction, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Horror & Suspense, Canadian Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, World History

... Read The Berry Pickers Summary

The Birds

by Daphne du Maurier

Publication year 1952

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Fear, Memory, War

Tags Horror & Suspense, Animals, Cold War, Mystery & Crime Fiction, British Literature, Gothic Literature, Classic Fiction

Daphne du Maurier’s short story “The Birds” was first published in her 1952 collection, The Apple Tree: A Short Novel and Several Long Stories. It is a Gothic horror story about a man who must protect his family from the brutal and inexplicably organized attacks perpetrated by the birds. Du Maurier’s tale evokes the social isolation of individuals in 1950s England, the British civilians’ memories of helplessness during the Blitz, and the fear of destructive... Read The Birds Summary

The Blind Owl

by Sadegh Hedayat

Publication year 1936

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Guilt, Loneliness, Memory, Mental Health, Death, The Past, Appearance & Reality, Art, Truth & Lies

Tags Horror & Suspense, World History, Philosophy, Philosophy, Classic Fiction

... Read The Blind Owl Summary

The Bone Clocks

by David Mitchell

Publication year 2014

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Good & Evil, Hope, Memory, Gender Identity, Indigenous Identity, Death, Future, Appearance & Reality, Climate, Social Class, War, Loyalty & Betrayal, Power & Greed

Tags Fantasy, Science Fiction, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, Magical Realism

The Bone Clocks (2014) is a work of literary fantasy and the sixth novel by English author David Mitchell. It was longlisted for the 2014 Man Booker Prize, and also received the 2015 World Fantasy Award.Spanning nearly 60 years and featuring five different narrators, The Bone Clocks follows Holly Sykes, a young woman from Kent, England, who becomes embroiled in a secret war between two groups of immortal beings called the Horologists and the Anchorites... Read The Bone Clocks Summary

The Book of Laughter and Forgetting

by Milan Kundera

Publication year 1979

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Good & Evil, Politics & Government, Love, Memory, Sexual Identity, The Past, Nation

Tags Philosophy, Magical Realism

The Book of Laughter and Forgetting (1979) by Milan Kundera is a  Postmodern novel that blends fiction, essay, and memoir to interrogate memory, history, and personal identity in the shadow of political repression. Structured as seven interconnected parts, the book combines satire, eroticism, and philosophical digression to illustrate how forgetting shapes both private lives and collective history. Although Kundera wrote the novel in Czech, it was banned in his homeland and was first published in... Read The Book of Laughter and Forgetting Summary

The Bourne Identity

by Robert Ludlum

Publication year 1980

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Love, Memory, Mental Health, The Past, Self Discovery, Globalization, Nation, Politics & Government, War, Justice, Order & Chaos, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger, Truth & Lies

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Horror & Suspense

... Read The Bourne Identity Summary

The Breakdown

by B.A. Paris

Publication year 2017

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Guilt, Trust & Doubt, Memory, Perseverance, Fear, Revenge, Mental Health, Loyalty & Betrayal, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger, Truth & Lies

Tags Horror & Suspense, Psychological Fiction, Relationships, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction

The Breakdown (2017) is a psychological thriller and B. A. Paris’s follow-up to her internationally bestselling debut, Behind Closed Doors. The Breakdown was a Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Best Mystery and Thriller in 2017. It has been adapted into a film titled Blackwater Lane, released in 2024 and starring Minka Kelly, Maggie Grace, and Dermot Mulroney. The novel portrays Cass Anderson’s battle with guilt and fear after a woman is murdered near her home... Read The Breakdown Summary

The Brooklyn Nine

by Alan Gratz

Publication year 2009

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Family, Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Fear, Guilt, Hope, Loneliness, Memory, Daughters & Sons, Friendship, Grandparents, Fathers, Mothers, Teamwork, Disability, Indigenous Identity, Gender Identity, Race, Immigration, Social Class, Community, Education, War, Nation, Self Discovery, Politics & Government, Place, Equality, Fate, Loyalty & Betrayal, Safety & Danger, Wins & Losses, Truth & Lies, Aging, Childhood & Youth, Coming of Age, The Past, Midlife, Death

Tags Historical Fiction, Children`s Literature, Sports, Realistic Fiction, World History

... Read The Brooklyn Nine Summary