I need a break from things that always seem to make concrete sense. I'm fine from abstract, metaphorical meaning if it must have meaning at all, or at least something that comes close.
To be clear, the story can be linear but I'd like if the environment, characters, and concepts involved diregarded real world logic as much as possible. Maybe a character stuck in a dream, or an alternate reality, something of that nature. Surrealism is the goal.
Not even entirely sure this 'Alice in Wonderland' approach translates well into a novel, but I'm hoping if there is any that someone can point me in the right direction. Goes without saying, but I'd prefer them to also be very good in addition to hitting the mark.
Thanks.
by k1ngfish3r
8 Comments
If you don’t mind kids books, Daniel Pinkwater’s books feel like this to me.
He does have an adult novel, The Afterlife Diet, which from reviews sounds like it might fit your request, though I haven’t read it.
I don’t know if lit fic was quite what you’re looking for, but all of these books feel very abstract and difficult to map onto real world logic at times.
Annihilation by Jeff VanDermeer
The Employees by Olga Ravn
It Lasts Forever and Then It’s Over by Anne de Marcken
Brutes by Dizz Tate
North Sun by Ethan Rutherford
The Vegetarian by Han Kang
The West Passage by Jared Pechacek (This is probably the closest to an “Alice in Wonderland” kind of vibe, it’s like a Hieronymous Bosch painting come to life)
If you don’t mind classics, The Trial by Kafka fits this well, and also The Double by Dostoevsky which is a shorter read.
I’m currently reading Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao, and it fits your criteria perfectly.
This question was just asked here, and I was beaten to the punch on recommending The Unconsoled by Kazuo Ishiguro. It’s about a pianist being bothered by townsfolk (and also maybe his family, who’s to say) while trying to prepare for a concert. It works almost totally on dream logic.
*The Third Policeman* by Flann O’Brien — I have often described it as being like every bad dream I’ve ever had (this is a compliment!).
Katabasis by RF Kuang
Masks Worn By Magical Wives by Hiyadori is perfect for this. The book takes place in a land that is enveloped inside a massive egg created by a snake god. Not metaphorical egg, there is an extended scene that takes place near the edge of the egg. Another example of surreality: The god provides most of what people need, and it seems to think people need political parties, so it just makes up fake political and election posters that kind of just show up around the main city, even though the candidates and parties don’t exist.