I really like books where the author goes to that extra degree to really make you feel like you are living alongside your characters.
What are some of the all time must read character driven books?
Some of those books where I have really felt carried along by the characters and their lives include Roots, London Belongs To Me, loads of Emile Zola books, Les Miserables.
by magicpjj
4 Comments
Was going to mention Les Miserables but Hugo’s other books are fantastic too. But to offer other suggestions, The Lonesome Dove series by Larry McMurtry (You can read them separately but each one of his books is just as good as the last), Don Quixote by Cervantes, Hour of the Star by Clarice Lispector, The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann, Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susana Clarke
Are you okay with fantasy? Robin Hobb’s Realm of the Elderlings.
The First Law Trilogy (The Blade Itself, Before They Are Hanged, and Last Argument of Kings), by Joe Abercrombie is character-driven grim dark fantasy. It’s also part of a larger First Law Series.
The Farseer Trilogy (Assassin’s Apprentice, Royal Assassin, and Assassin’s Quest) is a character-driven fantasy by Robin Hobb. It’s also part of a larger Realm of the Elderling Series.
The Fault in Our Stars is a character-driven tearjerker YA realistic romance by John Green.
A Man Called One is a character-driven humorous, feel-good realistic novel by Fredrik Backman.
Problematic novel overall, but Scarlett O’Hara (Gone With the Wind) is the most vividly-written character I’ve ever read.