Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray (Penguin, $2). The story of clever, ruthless Becky Sharp, who schemes her way from the bottom to the top of British society. But then it gets more complicated. Thackeray’s observations of human nature are often cutting, but he’s also sympathetic.
Stern by Bruce Jay Friedman (Grove, $12). Perhaps the most hilarious book I’ve ever read. A blackly, bleakly comic novel about the adventures—“plight” might be a better word—of a suburban everyman. Friedman has been compared to Philip Roth—they both mine a certain vein of Jewish humor—but Friedman is more idiosyncratic and definitely more surreal.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Bleak House by Charles Dickens (Signet, $8). The tale of three young people told against the backdrop of Jarndyce v. Jarndyce, a court case about a contested will that has gone on for so long it has become a punch line in the courts of London. Bleak House is sad and funny and deeply absorbing, once you get into it, like all of Dickens’ books.
The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith (Vintage, $14). A deeply scary but compelling novel about a charming, amoral sociopath named Tom Ripley whose sexual confusion is the very least of his “issues.” A beautiful book about envy, money, power, sex, and murder.
The Strange Life of Ivan Osokin by P.D. Ouspensky (Kessinger, $25). A philosophical novel that asks whether we are perhaps destined to live this life over and over until we get it right—which is why we sometimes get the feeling that we have been here before.
The Great Gatsby
-
Air strikes in the Caribbean: Trump’s murky narco-warTalking Point Drug cartels ‘don’t follow Marquess of Queensberry Rules’, but US military air strikes on speedboats rely on strained interpretation of ‘invasion’
-
A tour of Sri Lanka’s beautiful northThe Week Recommends ‘Less frenetic’ than the south, this region is full of beautiful wildlife, historical sites and resorts
-
Crossword: September 14, 2025The Week's daily crossword puzzle
-
Jessica Francis Kane's 6 favorite books that prove less is moreFeature The author recommends works by Penelope Fitzgerald, Marie-Helene Bertino, and more
-
Keith McNally's 6 favorite books that have ambitious charactersFeature The London-born restaurateur recommends works by Leo Tolstoy, John le Carré, and more
-
Garrett Graff's 6 favorite books that shine new light on World War IIFeature The author recommends works by James D. Hornfischer, Craig L. Symonds, and more
-
Helen Schulman's 6 favorite collections of short storiesFeature The award-winning author recommends works by Raymond Carver, James Baldwin, and more
-
Beatriz Williams' 6 timeless books about history and human relationshipsFeature The best-selling author recommends works by Jane Austen, Zora Neale Hurston, and more
-
Aysegul Savas' 6 favorite books for readers who love immersive settingsFeature The Paris-based Turkish author recommends works by Hiromi Kawakami, Virginia Woolf, and more
-
Geoff Dyer's 6 favorite books about the realities of warFeature The award-winning author recommends works by Ernie Pyle, Michael Herr, and more
-
Laura Lippman's 6 favorite books for those who crave a high-stakes adventureFeature The Grand Master recommends works by E.L. Konigsburg, Charles Portis, and more
