Literary theme analysis, by a book like {foo}
Books about Allegory
Haroun and the Sea of Stories
by Salman Rushdie
A fantastical journey to the depths of the imagination, reclaiming the power of storytelling.
At the beginning of the story, protagonist Haroun Khalifa lives with his father Rashid, a famous storyteller and doctor, and his mother Soraya, until the latter is seduced by their neighbor 'Mr. ... (Wikipedia)
How to Read Literature Like a Professor
by Thomas C. Foster
A guide to exploring literature’s hidden meanings and uncovering the underlying themes.
While many books can be enjoyed for their basic stories, there are often deeper meanings interwoven in these literary texts... How to Read Literature Like a Professor helps us to discover those ... (Goodreads)
The Waste Lands
by Stephen King
A post-apocalyptic adventure of survival and courage in a world of chaos.
The story begins five weeks after the end of, The Drawing of the Three, . Roland , Susannah , and Eddie have moved east from the shore of the Western Sea, and into the woods of Out-World. After an ... (Wikipedia)
Paradise Lost
by John Milton
Epic poem of the Fall of Man, exploring the depths of human nature and the consequences of sin.
John Milton's Paradise Lost is one of the greatest epic poems in the English language. It tells the story of the Fall of Man, a tale of immense drama and excitement, of rebellion and treachery, of ... (Goodreads)
Metamorphoses
by Ovid
A collection of tales of transformation, featuring gods and mortals.
Prized through the ages for its splendor and its savage, sophisticated wit, The Metamorphoses is a masterpiece of Western culture–the first attempt to link all the Greek myths, before and after ... (Goodreads)
The Illustrated Man
by Ray Bradbury
A collection of short stories about the human condition and its connection to the universe.
That The Illustrated Man has remained in print since being published in 1951 is fair testimony to the universal appeal of Ray Bradbury's work. Only his second collection (the first was Dark Carnival ... (Goodreads)
The Last Battle
by C.S. Lewis
Epic conclusion to the Chronicles of Narnia, with a battle between good and evil.
In the north of Narnia, a clever and greedy ape named Shift persuades a well-meaning but simple-minded donkey called Puzzle to dress in a lion's skin (an echo from Aesop's story of The Ass in the ... (Wikipedia)
That Hideous Strength
by C.S. Lewis
A battle between good and evil, as a group of revolutionaries attempt to overthrow a sinister scientific organization.
The book, written during the final period of World War II , takes place at an undetermined year "after the end of the war". Mark Studdock is a young academic who has just become a Senior Fellow in ... (Wikipedia)
Edgedancer
by Brandon Sanderson
A young woman's journey of redemption, as she learns to control her magical powers.
From #1, New York Times, bestselling author Brandon Sanderson, a special gift edition of, Edgedancer, a short novel of the Stormlight Archive., Three years ago, Lift asked a goddess to stop her from ... (Goodreads)
Piercing the Darkness
by Frank E. Peretti
A supernatural battle of good and evil set in a small town.
It follows the journey of Sally Beth Roe as she tries to escape her past and slowly overcomes her constant struggle to discern the Truth. Also told is the story of another small town, similar to that ... (Wikipedia)
Sign of the Unicorn
by Roger Zelazny
A man embarks on a quest to save the kingdom from a mysterious force.
Corwin returns to Castle Amber bearing the body of one of the spined, bloodshot-eyed humanoid creatures that had pursued Random to Flora's house on Earth—one that had moments earlier killed his ... (Wikipedia)
Lords and Ladies
by Terry Pratchett
Discworld characters must battle sinister forces to save their kingdom from a magical upheaval.
A Discworld Novel. It's a hot Midsummer Night. The crop circles are turning up everywhere-even on the mustard-and-cress of Pewseyy Ogg, aged four. And Magrat Garlick, witch, is going to be married in ... (Goodreads)
The Old Curiosity Shop
by Charles Dickens
An adventure of a young girl, Nell, and her grandfather's quest to find a fortune.
The events of the book seem to take place around 1825. In Chapter 29, Miss Monflathers refers to the death of Lord Byron , who died on 19 April 1824. When the inquest rules (incorrectly) that Quilp ... (Wikipedia)
Worlds' End
by Neil Gaiman
A mythical road trip through a surreal landscape of forgotten stories and folk tales.
A "reality storm" draws an unusual cast of characters together. They take shelter in a tavern, where they amuse each other with their life stories. Although Morpheus is never a focus in these ... (Goodreads)
Sword & Citadel
by Gene Wolfe
Epic fantasy quest to reclaim a lost kingdom and restore balance to the world.
Severian , an apprentice in the torturers' guild, barely survives a swim in the River Gyoll. On his way back to the Citadel (whose towers appear to be disused rockets), Severian and several other ... (Wikipedia)
The Divine Comedy, Volume II: Purgatorio, Part 1: Text
by Dante Alighieri
A journey of redemption and spiritual growth in the afterlife, exploring the depths of human nature.
Edition bilingue. ... (Goodreads)
The Divine Comedy
by Dante Alighieri
A poetic journey through the afterlife, guided by the Roman poet Virgil.
The Divine Comedy describes Dante's descent into Hell with Virgil as a guide; his ascent of Mount Purgatory and encounter with his dead love, Beatrice; and finally, his arrival in Heaven. Examining ... (Goodreads)
The Faerie Queene
by Edmund Spenser
A classic tale of heroism, courage, and love in a mythical kingdom.
The Faerie Queene was the first epic in English and one of the most influential poems in the language for later poets from Milton to Tennyson. Dedicating his work to Elizabeth I, Spenser brilliantly ... (Goodreads)
The Man Who Was Thursday: A Nightmare
by G.K. Chesterton
A man is recruited to a secret society, only to discover the sinister truth behind it.
In Edwardian-era London, Gabriel Syme is recruited at Scotland Yard to a secret anti- anarchist police corps. Lucian Gregory, an anarchistic poet, lives in the suburb of Saffron Park. Syme meets him ... (Wikipedia)
Paradiso
by Dante Alighieri
Journey of salvation through the heavenly realms of Paradise, guided by Beatrice.
Dorothy L. Sayers's landmark translation follows Dante's terza rima stanza's and brings his poetry vividly to life. Her work was completed after her death by Barbara Reynolds, who provides a foreword ... (Goodreads)
The Golden Ass
by Apuleius
A young man’s misadventures, transformed into a donkey, as he embarks on a journey of transformation.
The prologue establishes an audience and a speaker, who defines himself by location, education, occupation, and his kinship with the philosophers Plutarch and Sextus of Chaeronea . The narrator ... (Wikipedia)
From a Buick 8
by Stephen King
A small Pennsylvania town discovers a mysterious car that holds ancient mysteries and supernatural secrets.
The novel is a series of recollections by the members of Troop D, a Pennsylvania State Police barracks in western Pennsylvania . After Curtis Wilcox, a well-liked member of Troop D, is killed by a ... (Wikipedia)
The Nonexistent Knight & The Cloven Viscount
by Italo Calvino
Two novellas exploring the nature of identity, morality, and existence through the stories of a knight made of empty armor and a nobleman split in two.
The protagonists of this novel are two paladins of Charlemagne: the non-existent knight, named Agilulf (he is in fact a lucid empty armor) and an inexperienced and passionate young man, Rambaldo. The ... (Wikipedia)
Finnegans Wake
by James Joyce
A dream-like exploration of the subconscious, featuring wordplay, puns, and allusions.
A story with no real beginning or end (it ends in the middle of a sentence and begins in the middle of the same sentence), this "book of Doublends Jined" is as remarkable for its prose as for its ... (Goodreads)
Dream Country
by Neil Gaiman
A collection of short stories that explore the boundaries of dreams, reality, and fantasy.
The third volume of the Sandman collection is a series of four short comic book stories. In each of these otherwise unrelated stories, Morpheus serves only as a minor character. Here we meet the ... (Goodreads)
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Pearl, and Sir Orfeo
by Unknown
Epic poem of a knight's quest to save his kingdom, and two moral tales of faith and love.
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and Pearl are two poems by an unknown author written in about 1400. Sir Gawain is a romance, a fairy-tale for adults, full of life and colour; but it is also much more ... (Goodreads)
The Pilgrim's Regress
by C.S. Lewis
A man's journey through various lands and philosophies in search of an island that represents his ideal life.
The first book written by C. S. Lewis after his conversion,, The Pilgrim's Regress, is, in a sense, the record of Lewis s own search for meaning and spiritual satisfaction—a search that eventually ... (Goodreads)
'Salem's Lot
by Stephen King
A small town's battle against an ancient evil that threatens to consume its inhabitants.
Ben Mears, a writer who spent part of his childhood in Jerusalem's Lot , Maine , has returned after 25 years. He quickly becomes friends with high-school teacher Matt Burke and strikes up a ... (Wikipedia)
The Buried Giant
by Kazuo Ishiguro
An elderly couple's journey through a mythical land, confronting the forgotten secrets of the past.
Following the death of King Arthur , Saxons and Britons live in harmony. Along with everyone else in their community, Axl and Beatrice, an elderly Briton couple, suffer from severe selective amnesia ... (Wikipedia)
The Citadel of the Autarch
by Gene Wolfe
The final book in the "Book of the New Sun" series, following Severian's journey to become the Autarch and save the dying sun.
Volume Four of the Book of the New Sun. Severian the Torturer continues his epic journey across the lands of Urth, a journey as fraught with peril as it is with wonder. Exiled from his guild he is an ... (Goodreads)
Tales from Outer Suburbia
by Shaun Tan
A collection of surreal and whimsical short stories set in the suburbs, exploring the magic and mystery of everyday life.
Breathtakingly illustrated and hauntingly written, Tales from Outer Suburbia is by turns hilarious and poignant, perceptive and goofy. Through a series of captivating and sophisticated illustrated ... (Goodreads)
Fables - Book One
by Bill Willingham
A collection of morality tales and fables featuring anthropomorphic animal characters.
For the first time ever, Bill Willingham's acclaimed, Eisner Award-winning series FABLES is presented in a deluxe hardcover edition collecting issues #1-10. When a savage creature known only as the ... (Barnes & Noble)
The Absolute Sandman, Volume One
by Neil Gaiman
A collection of tales of dreams, fantasy and horror, exploring the power of imagination.
One of the most popular and critically acclaimed comic book titles of all time,, New York Times, best-selling author Neil Gaiman 's masterpiece, The Sandman, set new standards for mature, lyrical ... (Goodreads)
Fables, Vol. 2: Animal Farm
by Bill Willingham
A collection of stories exploring the power of knowledge and the consequences of ignorance.
Ever since they were driven from their homelands by the Adversary, the non-human Fables have been living on the Farm—a vast property in upstate New York that keeps them hidden from the prying eyes of ... (Goodreads)
The Nonexistent Knight
by Italo Calvino
A knight's surreal quest to find an elusive castle, full of mysterious characters and adventures.
The protagonists of this novel are two paladins of Charlemagne: the non-existent knight, named Agilulf (he is in fact a lucid empty armor) and an inexperienced and passionate young man, Rambaldo. The ... (Wikipedia)
Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead
by Olga Tokarczuk
An elderly woman's journey of self-discovery, as she investigates a series of mysterious animal deaths.
In a remote Polish village, Janina devotes the dark winter days to studying astrology, translating the poetry of William Blake, and taking care of the summer homes of wealthy Warsaw residents. Her ... (Goodreads)
Hansel and Gretel
by Neil Gaiman
A retelling of the classic fairy tale, with a darker twist and a more empowered Gretel.
"This all happened a long time ago, in your grandmother's time, or in her grandfather's. A long time ago. Back then, we all lived on the edge of the great forest." Neil Gaiman and Lorenzo Mattotti ... (Goodreads)
Zel
by Donna Jo Napoli
A retelling of Rapunzel, exploring the psychological and emotional complexities of captivity and freedom.
High in the mountains, Zel lives with her mother, who insists they have all they need – for they have each other. Zel's life is peaceful and protected -- until a chance encounter changes everything. ... (Goodreads)
Fever Dream
by Samanta Schweblin
A woman's surreal, unsettling journey into the depths of her subconscious.
Waking up disoriented in a clinic, Amanda begins a conversation with a young boy named David. He urges Amanda to try to remember what happened before she came to the clinic. Through the constant ... (Wikipedia)
The Decameron
by Giovanni Boccaccio
A collection of tales of love, adventure, and comedy set in medieval Florence.
The Decameron (c.1351) is an entertaining series of one hundred stories written in the wake of the Black Death. The stories are told in a country villa outside the city of Florence by ten young noble ... (Goodreads)
The Fifth Gospel
by Ian Caldwell
A murder mystery set in the Vatican, exploring the relationship between two brothers and the secrets of the Catholic Church.
A mysterious exhibit is under construction at the Vatican Museums. The curator is murdered at a clandestine meeting on the outskirts of Rome a week before it opens. That same night, a violent ... (Goodreads)
Beatrice and Virgil
by Yann Martel
An exploration of the Holocaust through allegory, with a taxidermist and a howler monkey.
This is the story of a donkey named Beatrice and a monkey named Virgil. It is also the story of an extraordinary journey undertaken by a man named Henry. It begins with a mysterious parcel, and it ... (Goodreads)
The Stone Raft
by José Saramago
The Iberian Peninsula breaks off from Europe and drifts into the Atlantic, causing chaos and adventure for its inhabitants.
What if, one day, Europe was to crack along the length of the Pyrenees, separating the Iberian peninsula? In Saramago's lovely fable, the new island is sent spinning, like a great stone raft, towards ... (Goodreads)
Welcome to Night Vale
by Joseph Fink
A mysterious small town in the desert, where strange happenings are the norm.
From the creators of the wildly popular Welcome to Night Vale podcast comes an imaginative mystery of appearances and disappearances that is also a poignant look at the ways in which we all struggle ... (Goodreads)
The Reader
by Traci Chee
In a world where reading is forbidden, a girl discovers a mysterious book and embarks on a dangerous journey to uncover the truth about her past.
An instant New York Times Bestseller, this is a stunning debut set in a world where reading is unheard-of. Perfect for fans of Inkheart and Shadow and Bone Finalist for the Kirkus Prize and nominated ... (Goodreads)
Bestiario
by Julio Cortázar
Collection of surreal and dreamlike stories that explore the boundaries between reality and fantasy.
In these eight masterpieces there is no room for the smallest sign of stumbling or youthful undertones: they are perfect. These stories that speak about objects and daily happenings, pass over to ... (Goodreads)
Cabal
by Clive Barker
A supernatural battle between good and evil in a nightmarish alternate reality.
Boone, a young man suffering from an unspecified mental disorder , is told by his trusted psychiatrist, Decker, that he is responsible for brutal serial murders in Calgary . Boone, however, has no ... (Wikipedia)
The Source of Magic
by Piers Anthony
A wizard's quest to unlock the secrets of magic, save the kingdom from destruction.
On his way to Queen Iris 's masquerade ball in honor of Trent's accession to the throne one year before, Bink is attacked by a floating sword, which he deflects using his talent of protection against ... (Wikipedia)
Not Wanted on the Voyage
by Timothy Findley
A retelling of the biblical story of Noah's Ark, exploring themes of power, gender, and morality.
The story centres around Dr. Noah Noyes, an authoritarian doctor and father whose obsession with God's law leads him to neglect his family; his wife, Mrs. Noyes, an alcoholic who talks to animals; ... (Wikipedia)
Den of Wolves
by Juliet Marillier
A young queen must navigate political intrigue and personal struggles to save her kingdom from a looming threat.
The “powerful and emotionally-charged” fantasy series from the author of the Sevenwaters novels continues, as Blackthorn and Grim face haunting secrets and old adversaries... Feather bright and ... (Goodreads)
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