The Past
In George Orwell's 1984 a character says, "Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past." The past may be behind us, but its events—and how we remember them—have a profound effect on the present. In this collection explore texts that examine the complications and complexities of the past.
Publication year 2013
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Hope, Love, Memory, Language, Race, Future, The Past, Family, Friendship, Community, Education, Immigration, Nation, War, Fate, Justice, Music, Safety & Danger, Trust & Doubt, Conflict, Animals, Good & Evil, Loyalty & Betrayal, Truth & Lies, Self Discovery
Tags Children`s Literature, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Romance, Fantasy, Action & Adventure
Publication year 2023
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Truth & Lies, Community, The Past
Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Horror & Suspense, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 2025
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Loneliness, Coming of Age, The Past, Appearance & Reality, Friendship, Self Discovery, Community, Wins & Losses, Trust & Doubt
Tags Romance, Sports, Contemporary Literature
Publication year 2009
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Love, Coming of Age, The Past, Appearance & Reality, Self Discovery, Fate, Good & Evil, Religion & Spirituality
Tags Fantasy, Romance
Publication year 2025
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Forgiveness, Grief, Guilt, Hate & Anger, Loneliness, Love, Memory, Revenge, Race, Sexual Identity, Death, The Past, Appearance & Reality, Fathers, Siblings, Self Discovery, War, Loyalty & Betrayal, Power & Greed, Religion & Spirituality, Safety & Danger
Tags Romance, Fantasy, Mythology
Publication year 2025
Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction
Themes Memory, Regret, Shame & Pride, The Past, Family, Nation, Politics & Government, War, Good & Evil, Loyalty & Betrayal, Truth & Lies
Tags US History, European History, World War II, Memoir & Autobiography, Politics & Government, Espionage
Publication year 1987
Genre Poem, Fiction
Themes Loneliness, Memory, Childhood & Youth, The Past, Family, Fathers, Colonialism
Publication year 1989
Genre Short Story, Fiction
Themes Race, Death, The Past
Tags Race & Racism, Social Justice, Health, American Literature
Publication year 2019
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Grief, Love, Death, The Past, Appearance & Reality, Fate, Power & Greed
Tags Fantasy, Romance, Mystery & Crime Fiction
Publication year 2019
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Conflict, Hate & Anger, Memory, Language, Mental Health, Coming of Age, The Past, Food, Family, Friendship, Grandparents, Immigration, War, Justice
Tags Children`s Literature, Military & War, Modern Classic Fiction, World History, Historical Fiction, Mental Illness, Realistic Fiction, Korean War
Publication year 2019
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Love, Death, The Past, Aging, Sexual Identity, Family
Tags Romance, LGBTQ+
Publication year 2026
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Apathy, Disability, The Past
Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Horror & Suspense
Ilona Bannister’s 2026 novel, Five, is a psychological thriller that unfolds in the minutes leading up to a tragedy on a suburban London train platform. The narrative centers on five individuals whose lives are about to intersect: Emma, a desperate single mother; her difficult six-year-old son, Gideon; Liam, a wealthy businessman and Gideon’s biological father; Mrs. Worth, a reticent elderly woman; and Sonny, a young man planning to die by suicide. Using a ticking-clock structure... Read Five Summary
Publication year 1984
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes The Past
Tags British Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, French Literature, World History, Historical Fiction, Classic Fiction
Flaubert’s Parrot is a novel by Julian Barnes, published in 1984. The book is a collection of biographical research, literary criticism, and philosophical considerations on the relationship between writers and their works, told from the perspective of Geoffrey Braithwaite, a 60-year-old retired doctor and widower. Having become something of an amateur expert on celebrated author Gustave Flaubert, Geoffrey searches for the truth about the French writer’s life. His quest for information revolves around determining which... Read Flaubert's Parrot Summary
Publication year 1966
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes The Past, Memory, Disability
Tags Science Fiction, Classic Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Education, Education, Psychology, Psychology
Daniel Keyes’s science fiction novel Flowers for Algernon (1966) is the story of a man’s journey from having an intellectual disability to gaining extraordinary intelligence—and his regression when an experimental procedure to “correct” his disability goes wrong. Keyes first published a short story titled “Flowers for Algernon” in 1959, which won the Hugo Award for best science fiction short story, before publishing it as a full-length novel, which won the Nebula award for science fiction... Read Flowers For Algernon Summary
Publication year 1988
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Truth & Lies, Shame & Pride, Good & Evil, Power & Greed, Education, The Past, Perseverance
Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Italian Literature, Historical Fiction, Philosophy
Originally published in Italian in 1988, Foucault’s Pendulum is a postmodern conspiracy thriller by Italian author Umberto Eco. Eco, a scholar of semiotics, culture, and medieval philosophy, was best known for writing stories that investigated the overlap between these topics, such as his 1980 historical mystery novel, The Name of the Rose.Foucault’s Pendulum concerns Casaubon, Belbo, and Diotallevi, three editors at an Italian publishing house who devise a grand narrative of world history based on... Read Foucault's Pendulum Summary
Publication year 1996
Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction
Themes Memory, Family, Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Fear, Gratitude, Grief, Hope, Love, Race, Death, The Past, Politics & Government, War, Good & Evil, Justice, Power & Greed, Religion & Spirituality, Safety & Danger
Tags World War II, Holocaust
Four Perfect Pebbles is a Holocaust memoir written by Marion Blumenthal Lazan and co-authored by Lila Perl. It was originally published in 1996, 51 years after Marion and her family were liberated from the death train by Russian troops in Nazi Germany. Marion was five years old when she and her family moved to a refugee camp in Holland, which was later converted into a transit camp for Auschwitz. The Blumenthals also lived at the... Read Four Perfect Pebbles Summary
Publication year 2019
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Femininity, Gender Identity, Masculinity, Sexual Identity, Death, Future, The Past, Marriage, Social Class, Economics, Art, Good & Evil, Religion & Spirituality, Science & Technology
Tags Science Fiction, Historical Fiction, LGBTQ+, Modern Classic Fiction
Frankissstein is a novel by Jeanette Winterson that combines speculative and historical fiction in revisiting Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel, Frankenstein. Winterson is a prolific author, known for her explorations of physical reality, gender, sexuality, and identity. Her first novel, Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit, won the 1985 Whitbread Prize for First Novel, and Frankissstein was longlisted for the 2019 Booker Prize. Winterson is a professor of Creative Writing at the University of Manchester, and... Read Frankissstein Summary
Publication year 2016
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Love, Religion & Spirituality, Perseverance, Disability, Race, Coming of Age, The Past, Self Discovery, Community, Politics & Government, War, Equality, Good & Evil, Justice
Tags Historical Fiction, Romance, World War II
Publication year 2022
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Love, The Past, Fame, Beauty
Tags Modern Classic Fiction, Romance, Realistic Fiction, Relationships