Books
11 Page-Turning Novels Whose Characters You'll Fall In Love With
Even though I'm a fiction writer, and I spend hours thinking about how literary elements like plots are built (creative writing nerds unite), I still find myself falling in love with characters. I'm so thankful for this: How awful would it be to read a novel and not be also meeting a potential new bestie?
I've loved characters since I was a girl, when books provided me with more stable friendships than the merry-go-round of cliques in my elementary and middle school. Characters are awesome friends: they have stable opinions (even if those opinions change over the course of 300 or 400 pages); they're always there for you; they can hang out whenever; and it's not weird when you bring them to bed.
I'm kidding, but only a little. From the time I met young Tommy, the protagonist of Tomie dePaolo's classic picture book, The Art Lesson , I've loved how sheer assemblages of words (OK, and in dePaolo's case, drawings) can so closely approximate real-life buds.
Maybe the fictional people I've met over the years have led me to become a writer; they've definitely kept me company and taught me about human nature. Here are 11 page-turning novels whose characters you'll never forget.
Image: Incase/Flickr
'Florence Gordon' by Brian Morton
The title character of Brian Morton’s novel is a 75-year-old feminist legend —and as feisty as they come (seriously: the book opens with Florence ditching her own surprise party to … write). Yet, in the great tradition of unlikable female protagonists, there’s something about Florence that’s completely relatable. It doesn’t hurt that she’s frequently sparring with her millennial granddaughter (who, though a tad more conventionally pleasant, is equally salty). Structured in super short chapters, you won’t be able to put down this book about the secrets families keep.
'2 A.M. At The Cat's Pajamas' by Marie-Helene Bertino
Madeline Altimari is a budding chanteuse–at age nine (I’m beginning to think the mark of an unforgettable character is my ability to remember his or her age). 2 A.M. At The Cat’s Pajamas chronicles the minutes leading up to Christmas Eve in Philadelphia, and even though the book features an ensemble cast, the story is ultimately stolen by the tough-but-darling Madeline.
'The Love Song of Jonny Valentine' by Teddy Wayne
Did you ever wonder what back-in-the-day Justin Bieber was thinking? OK, so Jonny Valentine isn’t exactly J. Biebs, but he is an equally swoon-worthy preteen pop superstar who’s prematurely forced to grow up. Told from Jonny’s point-of-view, this book will supply you with a totally cute (and talented and vulnerable) guy friend your middle-school self would’ve killed for.
'The Last Days of California' by Mary Miller
Jess, the 14-year-old narrator of this coming-of-age story, is on the road trip to end all road trips — literally. Her parents are fleeing their home, in fear of the impending rapture. This novel completely captures the childhood feeling of being in the backseat, where you wonder if your parents are actually losing their minds. It’s also a great sister story.
'Matilda' by Roald Dahl, illustrated by Quentin Blake
I’ve heard more than a few people admit that they were chronic Matilda readers as children, just like I was. Dahl’s brilliant — and supernaturally skilled — wunderkind is trapped in such a crummy household, you can’t turn the pages fast enough to see what charms and magic she’ll use to persevere.
'Franny and Zooey' by J.D. Salinger
Yes, I love Holden Caulfield as much as the next bookworm (maybe more), but I have a soft spot for Franny and Zooey (and I’d be hard-pressed to say which of the characters I like more). Salinger’s sibs are just so erudite and philosophical, so beside themselves and thinky: reading this novel is like crawling into the script of a Wes Anderson flick.
'Mrs. Bridge' by Evan S. Connell
I love novels in crots — aka really short chapters (like, a paragraph short) —because I can always find time to read one more section (and then one more, and then one more, etc). This portrait of a wife in quiet suburban Missouri is a classic, one that will make you rethink the most mundane details of life.
'A Clockwork Orange' by Anthony Burgess
Alex, the narrator and protagonist of Anthony Burgess’s dystopian classic, the leader of a gang of street toughs who dress spiffily and speak in Nadsat, their own slang. Some might find Alex’s bloodlust and blasé ‘tude off-putting (I kinda dig it), but there’s little doubt that he’s a singular sort in literature.
'The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao' by Junot Díaz
There’s not an unmemorable character in this book — and there’s nary an unmemorable sentence either. Díaz’s story has political tyranny, sci-fi fanboys, chiseled players, and tough-as-nails feminists, plus footnotes to give your reading some academic cred.
'Housekeeping' by Marilynne Robinson
Ruth, the novel’s narrator, and her sister, Lucille, grow up in precarious circumstances, shifted from one relative to the next. Robinson’s prose is startlingly luminous, clear and beautiful, rich with metaphors, but her characters’ situation always keeps the narrative surging forward.
'American Psycho' by Bret Easton Ellis
I have a theory that there are two types of people: those who love Bret Easton Ellis and those who can’t stand him. I’m in the love-camp. In a darker-than-dark way, American Psycho’s protagonist, Patrick Bateman, is suave and funny. Of course, he’s also a sadistic and sometimes soulless murderer — but his escapades and the audaciousness with which Ellis pens his narration make Bateman one of the most memorable characters in decades.
