Romance

"The course of true love never did run smooth," wrote William Shakespeare in A Midsummer Night's Dream—and he knew what he was talking about. A text from this study guide collection might be just the thing to remind you of the bliss and pain of love.

Publication year 2019

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Regret, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Natural World: Animals, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Natural World: Food, Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Grandparents, Relationships: Mothers, Society: Class, Society: Community, Society: Economics, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies

Tags Romance, Southern Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Magical Realism, Fantasy


Publication year 2020

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Relationships: Family

Tags Romance, Fantasy, Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Religion / Spirituality


Publication year 2022

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Values/Ideas: Fate, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Identity: Mental Health, Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt

Tags Romance, Sports, Modern Classic Fiction


Publication year 2024

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Relationships: Friendship, Self Discovery

Tags Romance, Humor


Publication year 2010

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Society: War, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Revenge, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed

Tags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Action / Adventure, Fantasy, Romance

Mockingjay, published in 2010 by Scholastic, is the third novel in Suzanne Collins’s bestselling Hunger Games series. The series follows the life of Katniss Everdeen, an adolescent girl living in the futuristic dystopia of Panem. Mockingjay focuses on the civil war between the 13 districts of Panem and the oppressive government of the Capitol. Through Katniss’s experiences in the war, Collins explores cycles of oppression, the meaning of love in wartime, and the power of... Read Mockingjay Summary


Publication year 2015

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Tags Sociology, Humor, Psychology, Psychology, Relationships, Romance

Aziz Ansari’s Modern Romance, published in 2015, is a nonfiction work that combines statistics, interviews, and comedy to explore the current landscape of dating in the modern age. Ansari is an actor and comedian, as well as a writer. He got his start on television in the role of Tom Haverford in Parks and Recreation, which ran on NBC. He starred in Human Giant and went on to perform in several movies. His first comedy... Read Modern Romance Summary


Publication year 2019

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Music, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt

Tags Realistic Fiction, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Romance, Disability, Bullying, Children's Literature, Modern Classic Fiction


Publication year 2011

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Gratitude, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Identity: Mental Health, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Relationships: Family, Self Discovery, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Literature, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt

Tags Modern Classic Fiction, Japanese Literature, Asian Literature, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Romance


Publication year 2015

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Identity: Sexuality, Emotions/Behavior: Memory

Tags LGBTQ, Romance, Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, Mental Illness

More Happy Than Not (2015) is Adam Silvera’s debut novel. It was well received and marked Silvera’s entrance into the growing field of queer young adult fiction. In the Author’s Note, Silvera speaks about his own sexuality and the difficulty of feeling “wrong” when surrounded by his straight friends. This insight and a deft writing hand have allowed him to produce several books featuring young queer protagonists, such as the acclaimed They Both Die at... Read More Happy Than Not Summary


Publication year 2016

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Literature, Emotions/Behavior: Memory

Tags Romance, Historical Fiction, British Literature, History: World

Mothering Sunday is a 2016 novella written by British author Graham Swift. Like much of Swift’s writing, it has a psychological bent, exploring the relationship between history and memory. Swift won the Booker Prize for his 2006 novel Last Orders and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. This guide uses the 2016 Scribner edition of the text.Plot SummaryIt is March 30, 1924 in the upper-middle-class house of Beechwood in Berkshire, Southern England... Read Mothering Sunday Summary


Publication year 2017

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Life/Time: Coming of Age, Self Discovery, Values/Ideas: Equality

Tags Gender / Feminism, Bullying, Realistic Fiction, Romance, Modern Classic Fiction


Publication year 2013

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Identity: Sexuality, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Society: Community

Tags LGBTQ, Romance, Race / Racism, British Literature, Modern Classic Fiction


Publication year 2017

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Mothers

Tags Modern Classic Fiction, Romance, Humor

Mrs. Fletcher is a 2017 comic novel by American author Tom Perrotta. It follows the sexual reawakening of middle-aged divorcée Eve Fletcher after her son, Brendan Fletcher, departs for college. Meanwhile, Brendan finds the campus environment inhospitable to his unthinking “lacrosse bro” misogyny. Mrs. Fletcher is the seventh novel by Perrotta, best known for 1998’s Election (adapted into a movie of the same name, starring Reese Witherspoon) and 2011’s The Leftovers, which was adapted into... Read Mrs. Fletcher Summary


Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Relationships: Family, Identity: Race, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice

Tags History: World, Historical Fiction, Romance, Humor, Great Depression, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction


Publication year 2022

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Relationships: Family, Self Discovery

Tags Romance, Humor


Publication year 1598

Genre Play, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Relationships: Marriage, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal

Tags Classic Fiction, Elizabethan Era, Play: Comedy / Satire, Modern Classic Fiction, Love / Sexuality, Relationships, Class, Gender / Feminism, Renaissance, Education, Education, Romance, Humor

Much Ado About Nothing, a comedy dating from the mid-career period of William Shakespeare was probably written just prior to 1600. The play has the trappings of a theatrical farce with its use of assumptions and misunderstandings. Main characters Benedick and Beatrice are duped into announcing their love for each other while Claudio is fooled into spurning Hero at the altar when he mistakenly believes that she has not been faithful to him. The theme of lovers being tricked... Read Much Ado About Nothing Summary


Publication year 1901

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Values/Ideas: Art, Values/Ideas: Literature, Identity: Femininity

Tags Historical Fiction, Gender / Feminism, Romance, History: World, Classic Fiction


Publication year 2023

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Marriage, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Natural World: Place

Tags New Adult, Romance, Fantasy, Love / Sexuality


Publication year 2018

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Femininity, Relationships: Marriage, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Fame

Tags History: U.S., History: World, Historical Fiction, Romance, American Revolution, Politics / Government


Publication year 1956

Genre Play, Fiction

Themes Society: Class, Identity: Femininity, Society: Economics, Society: Education, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride

Tags Humor, Drama / Tragedy, Historical Fiction, Music, Romance, Classic Fiction, Play: Comedy / Satire

My Fair Lady, a musical by Alan Jay Lerner (book and lyrics) and Frederick Loewe (music), opened on Broadway to tremendous critical and popular success in 1956, starring Rex Harrison and Julie Andrews as Henry Higgins and Eliza Doolittle. Adapted from George Bernard Shaw’s popular play Pygmalion (1914) and inspired by the Greek myth of “Pygmalion and Galatea,” the musical takes place in early-20th-century London, satirizing issues of class hierarchies, gender disparity, and how language... Read My Fair Lady Summary