Searching for study guides on books selected by some of the nation's top book clubs, curated by Oprah, Reese Witherspoon, the PBS NewsHour, the New York Times, and the American Library Association? Look no further. This collection covers critically-acclaimed classics like Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe and Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel García Márquez to contemporary, buzzworthy novels like Girl, Woman, Other. We hope this compilation of study guides provides your own book club with lively discussion topics and keen insights.
Publication year 2017
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family
Tags Modern Classic Fiction, LGBTQ
This Is How It Always Is, a novel by Laurie Frankel, was published in 2017. It was a New York Times best seller, one of People magazine’s Top 10 Books of 2017, and a Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club Pick. Other works by this author include One Two Three and Family Family.Plot SummaryDr. Rosie Walsh is pregnant with her fifth son, Claude. She lives in Madison, Wisconsin, with her writer husband, Penn Adams... Read This Is How It Always Is Summary
Publication year 2009
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Relationships: Marriage, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Emotions/Behavior: Love
Tags Humor, Psychological Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 2019
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Society: Class
Tags Historical Fiction, Great Depression, History: World, Action / Adventure
Publication year 2020
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Fate, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Mental Health, Self Discovery
Tags Romance, Holidays & Occasions, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 2022
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Fathers, Relationships: Daughters & Sons
Tags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, Magical Realism, Fantasy
Publication year 2019
Genre Biography, Nonfiction
Themes Identity: Femininity, Identity: Sexuality, Identity: Masculinity
Tags Love / Sexuality, Gender / Feminism, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Women's Studies (Nonfiction), Modern Classic Fiction, Biography
Publication year 2008
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family
Tags Historical Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, Canadian Literature
Through Black Spruce, published in 2008, is Canadian author Joseph Boyden’s second novel. His first, Three Day Road (2005), is a work of historical fiction based on the life of Xavier Bird. Through Black Spruce focuses on Xavier’s son, Will Bird, and his granddaughter, Annie Bird. Boyden uses storytelling as a narrative framework to share the Bird family’s story. Annie and Will narrate alternating chapters, telling stories about their past year as the reader also... Read Through Black Spruce Summary
Publication year 2009
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Life/Time: Aging, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Relationships: Family
Tags Psychological Fiction, Historical Fiction, Relationships, Grief / Death, American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction
Tinkers (2009) is Paul Harding’s debut novel. It delves into the life of a dying man, George Washington Crosby, as he reflects on his past and his family history. The narrative weaves together George’s memories with stories from his father’s life, and it explores the themes of mortality, memory, and the interconnectedness of generations. The novel, which is considered literary fiction, won the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the 2010 PEN/ Robert W. Bingham... Read Tinkers Summary
Publication year 2017
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Regret, Identity: Sexuality, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Life/Time: The Past
Tags LGBTQ, Romance, Historical Fiction
Genre Essay Collection, Nonfiction
Tags Self Help, Relationships, Psychology, Psychology, Biography
Publication year 1998
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Identity: Sexuality, Identity: Gender, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Self Discovery
Tags History: World, Victorian Literature / Period, Historical Fiction, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Romance, LGBTQ, Victorian Period
Publication year 2023
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Values/Ideas: Literature, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Life/Time: The Past, Natural World: Flora/plants, Natural World: Place
Tags Realistic Fiction, American Literature, Agriculture, Arts / Culture, Relationships, Modern Classic Fiction, Historical Fiction, Romance
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Identity: Disability, Relationships: Teams, Values/Ideas: Art
Tags Romance, Historical Fiction, Relationships, Gender / Feminism, Disability, Race / Racism, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 2022
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Society: Class, Self Discovery, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice
Tags Historical Fiction, LGBTQ, Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, History: World
Publication year 2019
Genre Essay Collection, Nonfiction
Themes Society: Community, Identity: Femininity, Natural World: Appearance & Reality
Tags Gender / Feminism, Women's Studies (Nonfiction), Modern Classic Fiction, Psychology, Psychology, Self Help, Arts / Culture, Politics / Government
Publication year 2022
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Identity: Disability, Identity: Language, Life/Time: Coming of Age
Tags Disability, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, LGBTQ, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 2022
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies
Tags Historical Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction, History: World
Publication year 2025
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Regret, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Life/Time: The Past
Tags Relationships
Publication year 2014
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt
Tags Love / Sexuality, Modern Classic Fiction, Romance
Publication year 2008
Genre Short Story Collection, Fiction
Tags Indian Literature, Asian Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Asian Literature
Unaccustomed Earth is a 2008 story collection by Pulitzer-Prize-winning author Jhumpa Lahiri. Part 1 contains four stories with distinct characters and plotlines, while Part 2 follows the story of Hema and Kaushik through three different stories. Each story chronicles an important phase or event within the lives of the characters it addresses, and most of the protagonists are Bengali or Bengali-American individuals. Most of the storylines seem take place in the 1980s or 1990s, with... Read Unaccustomed Earth Summary