Truth & Lies

Whether exploring the consequences of concealing the truth or excavating the mysterious nature of truth itself, the titles in this collection discuss the intersections among honesty, factualness, legitimacy, deception, falsehood, and lies.

The Cloisters

by Katy Hays

Publication year 2022

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Friendship, Religion & Spirituality, Truth & Lies, Education

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Horror & Suspense, Fantasy, Gothic Literature, Religion & Spirituality, Modern Classic Fiction, Arts & Culture

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The Coddling of the American Mind

by Greg Lukianoff, Jonathan Haidt

Publication year 2018

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Community, Safety & Danger, Truth & Lies

Tags Anthropology, Education, Education, Sociology, Parenting, Psychology, Psychology, Philosophy, Philosophy, Arts & Culture, Politics & Government

The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas are Setting Up a Generation for Failure is a psychology book written by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt and published in 2018. The nonfiction work, which expounds upon an essay the authors wrote for The Atlantic in 2015, became a bestseller and National Book Critics Circle Award nominee. The book argues that parents and schools, in an overabundance of caution, have taught children... Read The Coddling of the American Mind Summary

The Comfort of Crows

by Margaret Renkl

Publication year 2023

Genre Essay Collection, Nonfiction

Themes Grief, Memory, Aging, Death, Future, The Past, Animals, Climate, Environment, Plants, Food, Nature Versus Nurture, Objects & Materials, Place, Family, Self Discovery, Community, Education, Globalization, Beauty, Equality, Fate, Good & Evil, Justice, Order & Chaos, Safety & Danger, Truth & Lies

Tags Animals, Science & Nature

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The Conference of the Birds

by Farid ud-Din Attar

Genre Novel/Book in Verse, Fiction

Themes Truth & Lies

Tags Religion & Spirituality, Classic Fiction, Narrative Poem, Animals

Considered widely as a masterpiece of Persian literature, Farid ud-Din Attar’s epic poem, The Conference of the Birds, tells the story of thirty birds on a journey to find their ideal Sovereign, the Great Simorgh, the mythical bird that dwells on Mount Qaf, a legendary mountain that encompasses the earth. First published in 1077 CE and consisting of more than 4,500 lines, the central concern of the poem is Sufism, a mystical doctrine of Islam... Read The Conference of the Birds Summary

The Conscious Lovers

by Richard Steele

Publication year 1722

Genre Play, Fiction

Themes Marriage, Social Class, Conflict, Guilt, Love, Femininity, Masculinity, Appearance & Reality, Daughters & Sons, Power & Greed, Truth & Lies

Tags Classic Fiction, Comedy & Satire, Restoration

The Conscious Lovers is a sentimental comedy play by 18th-century playwright Richard Steele. The play was first performed at Drury Lane in 1722, and it was published the same year with a different Epilogue. The Conscious Lovers, which is based loosely on Andria, or The Woman of Andros, a comedy by ancient Roman playwright Terence, is an explicitly moral comedy, following characters that are rewarded for their uprightness: Bevil Jr. wants to marry Indiana, a woman... Read The Conscious Lovers Summary

The Conversion of the Jews

by Philip Roth

Publication year 1958

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Religion & Spirituality, Truth & Lies, Power & Greed

Tags Satirical Literature, Education, Education, Jewish Literature, American Literature, Classic Fiction

“The Conversion of the Jews,” originally published in 1958 in the literary magazine The Paris Review, is a satirical postmodern short story by American novelist Philip Roth (1933-2018). The short story was later included in a collection of Roth’s stories titled Goodbye Columbus (1959), which won the National Book Award for Fiction. This guide references the version collected in The Oxford Book of Jewish Stories (1998).“The Conversion of the Jews” centers around the precocious and... Read The Conversion of the Jews Summary

The Couple Next Door

by Shari Lapena

Publication year 2016

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Truth & Lies, Marriage, Fear, Mothers

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

The Couple Next Door, Shari Lapena’s 2016 international best-seller, begins as a classic detective story. As the mystery deepens, the novel turns into a tense psychological study of a dysfunctional family, the calculating logic of emotional manipulation, the spiral of post-partum depression, and the corrupting power of greed. Paramount Television optioned the novel for a TV series adaptation in 2018. Shari Lapena is the author of eight novels for adults, including The Couple Next Door... Read The Couple Next Door Summary

The Cricket In Times Square

by George Selden

Publication year 1960

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Friendship, Equality, Music, Nostalgia, Beauty, Truth & Lies, Self Discovery, Animals, Place

Tags Children`s Literature, Fantasy, Action & Adventure, Animals, Diversity, Science & Nature, Education, Education, Classic Fiction

Trapped in a picnic basket, Chester Cricket travels from his peaceful Connecticut home to the bustling Times Square subway station in George Selden’s classic children’s novel, The Cricket in Times Square (1960). There, Chester makes three good friends who help him navigate—and enjoy—his new city life: Mario Bellini, a young boy whose parents run a struggling newsstand; Tucker, a sociable mouse; and Tucker’s best friend, the cultured Harry Cat. Mishaps in the newsstand set Mama... Read The Cricket In Times Square Summary

The Crossing

by Cormac McCarthy

Publication year 1994

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Apathy, Loneliness, Masculinity, Race, Truth & Lies, Religion & Spirituality, Globalization, Community, Family, Appearance & Reality, Place, Justice

Tags Coming of Age, Western, Historical Fiction, Action & Adventure, American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Classic Fiction

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The Crying of Lot 49

by Thomas Pynchon

Publication year 1966

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Fate, Truth & Lies, Order & Chaos

Tags Satirical Literature, Postmodernism, American Literature, US History, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, World History, Classic Fiction

The Crying of Lot 49 (1966) is a short novel by Thomas Pynchon that handles topics related to the US counterculture movement and the 1960s at large. In the novel, Oedipa Maas unearths a centuries-old conspiracy about warring mail-delivery firms. This discovery leads her along an absurdist investigation of the firms and their motivations. The novel has been heralded as one of the best English-language novels of the 20th century and is considered a primary... Read The Crying of Lot 49 Summary

The Darkest Child

by Delores Phillips

Publication year 2004

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Perseverance, Fear, Hate & Anger, Hope, Revenge, Mental Health, Race, Sexual Identity, Childhood & Youth, Coming of Age, Daughters & Sons, Family, Mothers, Social Class, Politics & Government, Equality, Justice, Truth & Lies

Tags Historical Fiction, Coming of Age, Southern Literature, Race & Racism, African American Literature, World History

The Darkest Child (2004) is a coming-of-age historical fiction novel by Delores Phillips. The teenage protagonist and first-person narrator, Tangy Mae Quinn faces racism and segregation in the Jim Crow South, as well as domestic abuse, poverty, and nonconsensual sex work. Despite these challenges, Tangy finds eventual escape when she leaves her abusive mother, Rozelle, and her past behind her to pursue her own goals, which are rooted in education. The novel explores The Role... Read The Darkest Child Summary