Hello, I’m 16 years old, and I'm turning 17 this year. I’m looking for fiction book recommendations that are befitting of my age. I’ve been consuming non-fiction books for the past few years, and I began reading an encyclopedia book this year. Although non-fiction books have been pivotal in forming my identity, and responsible for stimulating my introspective and curious nature—I’m afraid reading the encyclopaedia has deepened my knowledge of the world far too quickly. Becoming exposed to how the world was developed, and how it operated then, and now, shifted my outlook on life. Since then, it has been difficult for me to navigate life over time. My intention is not to dilute this knowledge (I love knowing about the world), but to learn more about being my age. Unconsciously, I had this pressure to mature intellectually because brilliance in children, and adolescents is often praised, but I’ve grown to realise the importance of acting like, “your age”, now that I’ve experienced the implications of rejecting developmental stages. I am open to any genres, and your book recommendations would be greatly appreciated!
by meowtchatea
7 Comments
Just read something that looks fun, has fun characters, a fun storyline…you know, just for fun!
There’s a whole world of brilliant YA waiting for you, or you could go really crazy and read some middle-school preteen books! The world is your mollusc!
Walk into the young adult section of a book store and pick covers you like and that seem interesting. By coming here you’re still seeking optimization and doing what other people suggest.
Also, just go talk to kids your own age.
If ever there’s a post begging for Catcher In The Rye, by J. D. Salinger, this is it.
I can suggest what worked for me at that age. Go back to the classics: On the Road, Slaughterhouse Five, Catcher in the Rye, Scoop.
Hermann Hesse:
· *Siddhartha.*
· *Steppenwolf*.
· *Demian*.
Aldous Huxley:
· *Brave New World*.
· *The Doors of Perception*.
George Orwell:
· *Animal Farm*.
· *Nineteen Eighty-Four*.
Douglas Adams:
· *The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.*
· *The Restaurant at the End of the Universe.*
· *Life, the Universe and Everything.*
· *So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish.*
· *Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency.*
· *The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul.*
*Starship Troopers* by Robert A. Heinlein.
*Fahrenheit 451* by Ray Bradbury.
*The Forever War* by Joe Haldeman.
*Ender’s Game* by Orson Scott Card.
Might I suggest the discworld books by Terry Pratchett? They are suitable for teens and adults and are pretty timeless. The discword is a series of satirical novels set in a fictional world. The books can be read in any order. Each one follows a different theme or issue. I suggest it because of the sheer diversity in stories. Its great for anyone with a good amount of general knowledge and interest in the real world. For example, last year I read Moving Pictures, which is a satire of Hollywood and the movie industry. I was reading it while the SAG strike was happening and it made it the experience much more interesting.
I’ll list some of my favourite discworld novels.
Wyrd Sisters – this is essentially a satire of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, which is my favourite of his plays.
Soul Music – I read this as a teenager when I was going through my rock n roll phase.
The Tiffany Aching series – it’s about a teenager who becomes a witch. Its very funny and subverts a lot of tropes found in coming of age fantasy.
Mort – A teenager becomes Death’s apprentice.
The nice thing about the discworld is that you can pick whatever takes your fancy. You can get just as much enjoyment reading just one book as reading all of them.
The Bell Jar, I wish I’d read it at your age