# Recommend me some SHORT novels. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 24, 2016, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071 "2016-01-24T07:22:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Memnon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f1d935/32.png) [@Memnon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Memnon)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/1 "2016-01-24T07:22:48Z")
One of my new year’s resolutions is to read or listen to a book a week (so far so good, btw!). I’ve got a little list of some of the books I want to read but some of them are very long and, in all likelihood, will take me at least 2 weeks to read. In order to balance this out, I want to select some short books so that, on average, I can still say I read a book a week in 2016. That’s where you come in. I’m looking for books which meet the following criteria: 1. Must be SHORT - Absolutely no books longer than 200 pages, no matter how good they might be. 2. No biographies. 3. Ideally be sci-fi, fantasy, or drama. That’s about it. However, if you have a suggestion in mind by a _really_ famous author (like Animal Farm, or The Old Man and the Sea, or anything in that league), the chances are I’ve already read it or considered it. Thanks in advance! ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/2 "2016-01-24T07:27:14Z")
[The Friends of Eddie Coyle: A Novel](http://www.amazon.com/Friends-Eddie-Coyle-Novel/dp/031242969X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1453620582&sr=1-1&keywords=friends+of+eddie+coyle) supposed to be the best crime novel ever ---
**Author:** ![Memnon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f1d935/32.png) [@Memnon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Memnon)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 7:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/3 "2016-01-24T07:30:15Z")
Great suggestion, cheers! I’ve added it to my list. ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/4 "2016-01-24T07:38:01Z")
> [@Tithonus](#): > > Great suggestion, cheers! I’ve added it to my list. I think a lot of Kurt Vonnegut novels are pretty short. Philip K Dicks novels seem to clock in around 250 pages but they are very fast reads. This [thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=755246) has lots of Sci-Fi but not necessarily 200 pages or less You’ve probably read Catcher In The Rye but it the perfect “short” book and well worth a reread. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 8:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/5 "2016-01-24T08:26:08Z")
_The Buddha in the Attic_ by Julie Otsuka _Death My Own Way_ by Michael S. A. Graziano _The Ghost Writer_ by Philip Roth _Shopgirl_ by Steve Martin _How to Get Into the Twin Palms_ by Karolina Waclawiak ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 8:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/6 "2016-01-24T08:44:05Z")
[50 Best short novels under 200 pages](http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/73168.50_Best_short_novels_under_200_pages_Flavorwire_) ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/7 "2016-01-24T08:47:59Z")
Practically any suspense novel by Dick Francis is very good and about two hundred pages. I often read one in a single afternoon. Takes about 5 hours. He’s an easy and fast read. my top 7 favorites of his. I ReRead these seven about every three years. That keeps them fresh and I still get my Dick Francis fix. The Edge Rat Race (very short book) The Danger Decider Break In and Bolt — (these two books feature recurring character Kit Fielding. Break In introduces the character) In the Frame ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 9:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/8 "2016-01-24T09:04:58Z")
Don’t believe the page lengths claimed by Amazon. My copy of Rat Race is not even a half inch thick. Its short and a very quick read. A great introduction to Dick Francis. I’m not sure if the newer paperbacks feature bigger print or what. But their page count is way off for this one. ---
**Author:** ![bytheway](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/df705f/32.png) [@bytheway](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bytheway)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 9:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/9 "2016-01-24T09:53:18Z")
Flowers for Algernon ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/10 "2016-01-24T13:04:01Z")
[ul][li]_Times’ Arrow_ by Martin Amis. Quite short; very excellent.[/li][li]Any of the _Quiller_ novels by Adam Hall. (They may be slightly more than 200 pages, but are _very_ fast reads.)[/li][li]If you like crime/detective novels, there are many from the 1930’s and 40’s that are shorter (and better) than the ones written today.[/li][/ul] ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/11 "2016-01-24T13:15:07Z")
I recommend _The Warden_ by Anthony Trollope. It’s an amusing classic. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/12 "2016-01-24T13:29:33Z")
Clive Barker’s Books Of Blood are excellent short stories [http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb\_sb\_noss\_2/185-2795336-5022920?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=clive+barker+books+of+blood](http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2/185-2795336-5022920?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=clive+barker+books+of+blood) Stephen King’s Different Seasons contains 2 short stories you may already be familiar with: Rita Hayworth And Shawshank Redemtion (The movie Shawshank Redemption) and The Body (The movie Stand By Me). [Amazon.com : stephen king different seasons](http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=stephen+king+different+seasons&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Astephen+king+different+seasons) ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/13 "2016-01-24T13:39:53Z")
I’ll second the _Quiller_ novels. Great fun. The _Parker_ novels by Richard Stark (aka Donald Westlake) The _Tanner_ novels by Lawrence Block Also by Block, the _Burglar_ novels. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/14 "2016-01-24T14:08:28Z")
**The Hustler** by the brilliant **Walter Tevis** , basis for the infamous Paul Newman movie, but it’s own flavor of Distilled Essence of Man 101. Clocks in at 204 pages on the edition listed on Amazon. Oh well 😉 A thread I started on it: [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=524025&highlight=Tevis](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=524025&highlight=Tevis) ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/15 "2016-01-24T14:17:09Z")
_The Big Time_ by Fritz Leiber _The Einstein Intersection_ and _Babel-17_ by Samuel R. Delany (The first is pretty dense, but _Babel-17_ is very good) _Being There_ by Jerzy Kosinsky _The Man Who Folded Himself_ by David Gerrold. The ultimate time travel novel. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/16 "2016-01-24T14:30:51Z")
_Of Mice and Men._ ---
**Author:** ![Henga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Henga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Henga)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/17 "2016-01-24T15:34:17Z")
Try Herman Wouk’s Aurora Dawn City Boy Don’t Stop the Carnival The Lomokome Papers (sci-fi) ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/18 "2016-01-24T15:47:00Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > **The Hustler** by the brilliant **Walter Tevis** , basis for the infamous Paul Newman movie, but it’s own flavor of Distilled Essence of Man 101. Clocks in at 204 pages on the edition listed on Amazon. Oh well 😉 > > A thread I started on it: [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=524025&highlight=Tevis](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=524025&highlight=Tevis) Should include [_The Man Who Fell to Earth_](http://www.amazon.com/The-Man-Who-Fell-Earth/dp/0345431618/) and [_Mockingbird_](http://www.amazon.com/Mockingbird-S-F-Masterworks-S-Walter-Tevis/dp/0575079150) by Tevis to cover the SF angle. Both slightly over 200 but as you rightly point out the work of a brilliant writer. I am constantly amazed by the number of SF fans who have never heard of Tevis. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/19 "2016-01-24T16:11:32Z")
> [@don\_t\_ask](#): > > Should include [_The Man Who Fell to Earth_](http://www.amazon.com/The-Man-Who-Fell-Earth/dp/0345431618/) and [_Mockingbird_](http://www.amazon.com/Mockingbird-S-F-Masterworks-S-Walter-Tevis/dp/0575079150) by Tevis to cover the SF angle. Both slightly over 200 but as you rightly point out the work of a brilliant writer. I am constantly amazed by the number of SF fans who have never heard of Tevis. Yes, why his reputation is not like that of Jim Thompson or Philip K. Dick, or Alfred Bester, let alone Hammett, Carver or Heinlein is beyond me. He writes with craft and wisdom. Really Elmore Leonard like in his efficiency. ---
**Author:** ![CheshireKat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheshirekat/32/1207_2.png) [@CheshireKat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CheshireKat)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2016, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071/20 "2016-01-24T17:23:46Z")
\*Friends Come In Boxes \*by Michael G. Coney - an interesting 160 page sci-fi gem. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-short-novels/744071.md?page=2)