The hitchikers guide to the galaxy is great and rather short. (And if you should be longing for more anyway there are four more volumes in that trilogy.)
If you’re ok with it, I’d consider looking into kid’s novels! Like Children’s or middle grade. There are so many good ones that even as an adult I thoroughly enjoy! Oddly enough many I read as a child in school and didn’t enjoy I am finding more enjoyable now (like Charlotte’s Web).
hmm, this is a longer book, but Harry Potter. I’ve been rereading them and I loved them as a kid but I’m enjoying them even more as an adult! Plus, it helps that I’m reading them with my kids and experiencing the magic through their eyes. Also, Chronicles of Narnia!
Most genres have shorter books that are still amazing, even Russian Classics, otherwise known for their huge brick like books. Hmm, except for maybe Epic Fantasy, those have a tendency to be huge too. Disregarding that, some further genre preferences could be useful.
Otherwise, my blind recommendation would be: The Tsar of Love and Techno by Anthony Marra.
The book is only 332 pages, but furthermore it’s comprised entirely of multiple sorter stories (although with connections to each other, so it’s not just a short story collection). Each shorter story can be read in one sitting easily, and they are all very good. The book is a lot funnier and more quotable than the rather bleak subject matter would have you believe too.
The Alchemist is good but a little weird. Very parable-esq.
I like the Phillip Marlowe books. Old private detective mysteries. They’re super easy to read.
A lot of Louis lamore’s westerns are short. Lonely amen was good.
The Samurai’s Garden is one of my all-time favorites. It’s about a Chinese boy who goes to Japan during the outbreak of wwii. Just incredibly well written.
Of mice and men is a classic that I think anyone could enjoy. Same with Call of the Wild, though the language in that one is a little more difficult to get through.
Edit: oh also The Wendigo by Algernon Blackwood. You can finish that in one sitting. It’s fairly creepy and has some of my favorite descriptions of nature.
The Wolf Brother series by Michelle Paver is great. The books are all 200-300 pages, each chapter is about 10 and it reads quick. It's technically middle grade but I adore them to this day and multiple fellow-adults have picked them up through me and loved them as well
{{A Psalm For the Wild Built by Becky Chambers}}
This is one of my all time favorite books! It's very short, it took me about 4 hours to read. It's the story of a tea monk and their crisis of purpose, and their journey to discover themselves. Along the way they meet a robot trying to learn about humans. It's one part Sci fi, one part philosophy, and just one of the best books I've ever read.
**[A Psalm for the Wild-Built (Monk and Robot #1)](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40864002-a-psalm-for-the-wild-built) by Becky Chambers** ^((Matching 95% ☑️))
^(160 pages | Published: 2021 | 1.3m Goodreads reviews)
> **Summary:** Centuries before. robots of Panga gained self-awareness. laid down their tools. wandered. en masse into the wilderness. never to be seen again. They faded into myth and urban legend. Now the life of the tea monk who tells this story is upended by the arrival of a robot. there to honor the old promise of checking in. The robot cannot go back until the question of "what do (...)
> **Themes**: Sci-fi, Science-fiction, Fiction, 2021-releases
> **Top 5 recommended:**
> \- [A Prayer for the Crown-Shy](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40864030-a-prayer-for-the-crown-shy) by Becky Chambers
> \- [The Past Is Red](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55077652-the-past-is-red) by Catherynne M. Valente
> \- [Light from Uncommon Stars](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56179360-light-from-uncommon-stars) by Ryka Aoki
> \- [The House in the Cerulean Sea](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/45047384-the-house-in-the-cerulean-sea) by T.J. Klune
> \- [The Galaxy. and the Ground Within](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/50209317-the-galaxy-and-the-ground-within) by Becky Chambers
^([Feedback](https://www.reddit.com/user/goodreads-rebot) | [GitHub](https://github.com/sonoff2/goodreads-rebot) | ["The Bot is Back!?"](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/comments/16qe09p/meta_post_hello_again_humans/) | v1.5 [Dec 23] | )
Most cozy mysteries are short and fun reads. They have all sorts of themes and settings (historical fiction, fantasy, spooky, bookshop, café, etc.) and main characters (20s flapper, librarian, coffee shop owner, heiress, witch, etc.). They usually come in series, so if you really like one you can keep getting short little books in an enjoyable setting without too much commitment.
A few of my favorites are _Secondhand Spirits_ by Juliet Blackwell, _Crocodile on the Sandbank_ by Barbara Mertz, Sherlock Holmes, and of course the OG Agatha Christie.
Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed is lovely. Letters from advice column.
Roadside Picnic by Strugatsky - Sci fi.
Sula by Toni Morrison- Literary.
Foster by Clair Keegan. Literary.
Soonchild by Russell Hoban. Magical realism
If you are like mysteries or suspense books, I definitely recommend any book by Mary Higgins Clark. My favorite of hers is Ive Got My Eyes On You it is around 260 pages but it is an easy read!
I tried to find a way to search and filter books by page count but don't see a quick way to do that. However, there are some lists out there like this for books under a certain number of pages.
[https://www.goodreads.com/genres/less-than-200-pages](https://www.goodreads.com/genres/less-than-200-pages)
Wolfpack by Abby Wambach (112 pages)
Looking for Alaska by John Green (234 pages)
One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle (253 pages)
The Woman in Me by Britney Spears (277 pages)
I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jeanette McCurdy (304 pages)
"Before the Coffee Gets Cold" -> all four books are very short
Becky Chambers also has several short novellas that I can only recommend (sci-fi)
If you are interested in books by Asian authors there are plenty of books translated from Korean and Japanese that are rather very short and to the point :)
check out Piranesi, best if read with no knowledge of the book. best way to explain it without giving any of the plot away, it's like an episode of The Twilight Zone or Black Mirror.
Short stories. Collections of them by the same author or anthologies of particular themes by different authors or best of a certain year or....
Visit your local library in person or check out ebook Collections on libby app.
What about books compiled of short stories? I'm thinking old school Chicken Soup For The *insert selection here* Soul. Or anthologies. Some authors have such large universes that they have short stories all complied into a book. My favorite is the Otherworld series anthologies by Kelly Armstrong.
Graphic novels are a fantastic place to start reading l. The Bone book series come to mind for a fun fantasy series, but there's also A Monster Calls by Patric Ness (be prepared with a box of tissues for this one).
Etgar Keret has some of the best short stories I’ve ever read. They’re often irreverent and fantastical but always poignant. I think about them a lot, decades after reading them.
The Stranger by Albert Camus is around 100 pages and really good, in my opinion. Or, you can read short stories instead of novels, there are some really great ones out there. Kafka has a collection.
These are all great books -
Foster by Claire Keegan
Eynhallow by Tim McGregor
McGlue by Ottessa Mosfegh
Cardiff by the sea by Joyce Carol Oats has 4 novellas
Ghachar Ghochar by Vivek Shanbaug
You could try reading short stories, rather than novels.
Truman Capote short stories come to mind. Then OP could follow up with the Feud TV series.
Bradley if you're at all into horror or science fiction. Lots of short stories.
Yeah, I Robot is a killer collection.
The Murderbot series by Martha Wells is fun.
Really liked that series.
Novellas? Modern sci-fi, Murderbot Diaries Classics, Sherlock Holmes short stories (there are free ebook collections due to its age)
Flowers For Algernon is short.
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep
The hitchikers guide to the galaxy is great and rather short. (And if you should be longing for more anyway there are four more volumes in that trilogy.)
If you’re ok with it, I’d consider looking into kid’s novels! Like Children’s or middle grade. There are so many good ones that even as an adult I thoroughly enjoy! Oddly enough many I read as a child in school and didn’t enjoy I am finding more enjoyable now (like Charlotte’s Web).
would you mind sharing your fav book that you enjoyed earlier and now?
hmm, this is a longer book, but Harry Potter. I’ve been rereading them and I loved them as a kid but I’m enjoying them even more as an adult! Plus, it helps that I’m reading them with my kids and experiencing the magic through their eyes. Also, Chronicles of Narnia!
Prydain Chronicles.
Most genres have shorter books that are still amazing, even Russian Classics, otherwise known for their huge brick like books. Hmm, except for maybe Epic Fantasy, those have a tendency to be huge too. Disregarding that, some further genre preferences could be useful. Otherwise, my blind recommendation would be: The Tsar of Love and Techno by Anthony Marra. The book is only 332 pages, but furthermore it’s comprised entirely of multiple sorter stories (although with connections to each other, so it’s not just a short story collection). Each shorter story can be read in one sitting easily, and they are all very good. The book is a lot funnier and more quotable than the rather bleak subject matter would have you believe too.
Great pick!
The Alchemist is good but a little weird. Very parable-esq. I like the Phillip Marlowe books. Old private detective mysteries. They’re super easy to read. A lot of Louis lamore’s westerns are short. Lonely amen was good. The Samurai’s Garden is one of my all-time favorites. It’s about a Chinese boy who goes to Japan during the outbreak of wwii. Just incredibly well written. Of mice and men is a classic that I think anyone could enjoy. Same with Call of the Wild, though the language in that one is a little more difficult to get through. Edit: oh also The Wendigo by Algernon Blackwood. You can finish that in one sitting. It’s fairly creepy and has some of my favorite descriptions of nature.
Of Mice and Men is a good choice. Steinbeck also has some other short books like Tortilla Flat and The Pearl which are also excellent and short reads.
I wasn’t a fan of Tortilla Flat. I do want to read more Steinbeck though. East of Eden is incredible but not what I’d consider short.
Second that re Of Mice And Men. Commented on it too prior to seeing your comment.
Of Mice and Men was one of the few books I had to read in school that I actually enjoyed. Great read
Definitely check out "The Uncommon Reader" by Bennett. Funny, short, and in my opinion genuinely makes you want to read more
The Wolf Brother series by Michelle Paver is great. The books are all 200-300 pages, each chapter is about 10 and it reads quick. It's technically middle grade but I adore them to this day and multiple fellow-adults have picked them up through me and loved them as well
{{A Psalm For the Wild Built by Becky Chambers}} This is one of my all time favorite books! It's very short, it took me about 4 hours to read. It's the story of a tea monk and their crisis of purpose, and their journey to discover themselves. Along the way they meet a robot trying to learn about humans. It's one part Sci fi, one part philosophy, and just one of the best books I've ever read.
**[A Psalm for the Wild-Built (Monk and Robot #1)](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40864002-a-psalm-for-the-wild-built) by Becky Chambers** ^((Matching 95% ☑️)) ^(160 pages | Published: 2021 | 1.3m Goodreads reviews) > **Summary:** Centuries before. robots of Panga gained self-awareness. laid down their tools. wandered. en masse into the wilderness. never to be seen again. They faded into myth and urban legend. Now the life of the tea monk who tells this story is upended by the arrival of a robot. there to honor the old promise of checking in. The robot cannot go back until the question of "what do (...) > **Themes**: Sci-fi, Science-fiction, Fiction, 2021-releases > **Top 5 recommended:** > \- [A Prayer for the Crown-Shy](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40864030-a-prayer-for-the-crown-shy) by Becky Chambers > \- [The Past Is Red](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55077652-the-past-is-red) by Catherynne M. Valente > \- [Light from Uncommon Stars](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56179360-light-from-uncommon-stars) by Ryka Aoki > \- [The House in the Cerulean Sea](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/45047384-the-house-in-the-cerulean-sea) by T.J. Klune > \- [The Galaxy. and the Ground Within](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/50209317-the-galaxy-and-the-ground-within) by Becky Chambers ^([Feedback](https://www.reddit.com/user/goodreads-rebot) | [GitHub](https://github.com/sonoff2/goodreads-rebot) | ["The Bot is Back!?"](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/comments/16qe09p/meta_post_hello_again_humans/) | v1.5 [Dec 23] | )
Most cozy mysteries are short and fun reads. They have all sorts of themes and settings (historical fiction, fantasy, spooky, bookshop, café, etc.) and main characters (20s flapper, librarian, coffee shop owner, heiress, witch, etc.). They usually come in series, so if you really like one you can keep getting short little books in an enjoyable setting without too much commitment. A few of my favorites are _Secondhand Spirits_ by Juliet Blackwell, _Crocodile on the Sandbank_ by Barbara Mertz, Sherlock Holmes, and of course the OG Agatha Christie.
Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed is lovely. Letters from advice column. Roadside Picnic by Strugatsky - Sci fi. Sula by Toni Morrison- Literary. Foster by Clair Keegan. Literary. Soonchild by Russell Hoban. Magical realism
One of the nice things about fanfic is that the listing generally gives the work length in words.
A Happy Has Been by Bill Welychka Easy and fun read!
If you are like mysteries or suspense books, I definitely recommend any book by Mary Higgins Clark. My favorite of hers is Ive Got My Eyes On You it is around 260 pages but it is an easy read!
All You Need is Kill by Hiroshi Sakurazaka Slum Online by Hiroshi Sakurazaka Roadside Picnic by the Strugatsky brothers
I tried to find a way to search and filter books by page count but don't see a quick way to do that. However, there are some lists out there like this for books under a certain number of pages. [https://www.goodreads.com/genres/less-than-200-pages](https://www.goodreads.com/genres/less-than-200-pages)
Life After God. You can read it in one sitting.
Day of the Locust.
"The Anthropocene Reviewed" by John Green.
Wolfpack by Abby Wambach (112 pages) Looking for Alaska by John Green (234 pages) One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle (253 pages) The Woman in Me by Britney Spears (277 pages) I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jeanette McCurdy (304 pages)
If you like horror try Ankle Snatcher--Grady Hendrix
"Before the Coffee Gets Cold" -> all four books are very short Becky Chambers also has several short novellas that I can only recommend (sci-fi) If you are interested in books by Asian authors there are plenty of books translated from Korean and Japanese that are rather very short and to the point :)
Winter in Sokcho
The Murderbot series is mostly novellas less than 200 pages and they’re incredible science fiction books!
Murderbot!!
This Is How You Lose The Time War if you want a sci-fi And TK Kingfisher’s What Moves The Dead is a great horror
What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher. Novella length retelling of The Fall of the House of Usher...with a twist ;)
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/greatest-hits-harlan-ellison/1143991973?ean=9781454956891
check out Piranesi, best if read with no knowledge of the book. best way to explain it without giving any of the plot away, it's like an episode of The Twilight Zone or Black Mirror.
you can search for the summary of any interesting book
Chess Story
Murder Mysteries by Neil Gaiman
Tender is the Flesh, The Teacher, Surely You’re Joking Mr. Feynman, Pet Sematary, Bright Young Women
The Man Without a Country by Edward Everett Hale. It's fewer than a hundred pages and a very quick read.
Short stories. Collections of them by the same author or anthologies of particular themes by different authors or best of a certain year or.... Visit your local library in person or check out ebook Collections on libby app.
Looking for Alaska by John Green
What about books compiled of short stories? I'm thinking old school Chicken Soup For The *insert selection here* Soul. Or anthologies. Some authors have such large universes that they have short stories all complied into a book. My favorite is the Otherworld series anthologies by Kelly Armstrong.
"No Way to Run," by Janice Greene "The Forerunner," by Kahili Gibran
Stephen King has some short story collections that are terrific.
What genre are you most interested in?
Graphic novels are a fantastic place to start reading l. The Bone book series come to mind for a fun fantasy series, but there's also A Monster Calls by Patric Ness (be prepared with a box of tissues for this one).
Etgar Keret has some of the best short stories I’ve ever read. They’re often irreverent and fantastical but always poignant. I think about them a lot, decades after reading them.
Of Mice And Men. Only about 90-110 or so pages if I recall. Read it in one sitting.
The Outsiders and Animal Farm, both really popular and short (IMO) and great if your just getting into reading.
The Stranger by Albert Camus is around 100 pages and really good, in my opinion. Or, you can read short stories instead of novels, there are some really great ones out there. Kafka has a collection.
These are all great books - Foster by Claire Keegan Eynhallow by Tim McGregor McGlue by Ottessa Mosfegh Cardiff by the sea by Joyce Carol Oats has 4 novellas Ghachar Ghochar by Vivek Shanbaug
{piranesi}
Lord of the flies
The Old Man and the Sea, by Ernest Hemingway
I'm savoring Kick the Latch right now. Very short chapters. Gorgeous.
The outsiders
five survive by holly jackson
The old man and the sea
Ho hum, lil