Top Ten Favorite Backlist Literary Fiction Titles

This week’s theme for Top Ten Tuesday is “Forgotten Backlist Titles (Spread love for books that people don’t talk about much anymore!)” so here’s my list of ten favorite literary fiction books and audiobooks from over five years ago that deserve more attention.

Hedwig & Berti by Frieda Arkin

Hedwig and Berti, married first cousins, flee to Britain just before their blue-blooded Berlin family is decimated by the Nazi genocide. The two descend on their cousin Harry in his small London flat. After a 35-year hiatus from fiction (she authored a popular cookbook series, Kitchen Wisdom, etc.), Arkin (The Dorp, 1969) has crafted a small gem of a second novel. — Kirkus

The Orphans of Race Point by Patry Francis

“A Dickensian story….Its themes of passionate treachery and abiding love play out in sometimes heartbreaking ways. Recommend to readers wondering what to read after The Goldfinch.” — Library Journal (starred review)

Goodbye for Now by Laurie Frankel

“Frankel’s clever and well-considered second novel extends the reach of technology just beyond our fingertips, where it feels possible.”
—The New York Times

The Chalk Artist by Allegra Goodman

“Goodman’s latest combines fantastical flourishes (an imagined video game called ‘Underworld’) and realistic Cambridge details . . . in a narrative about art and ambition.” — The Boston Globe

Standard Deviation by Katherine Heiny

“Katherine Heiny’s debut novel is not only one of the funniest books you will ever read, but true and poignant, too. And Audra is one of the most memorable characters ever to leap from the pages of a book.” — John Harding, The Daily Mail

Driving the King by Ravi Howard

“Alternating between the cities and Weary’s past and present, Howard explores race relations in the pre-civil rights era and the strong ties forged between two extraordinary men.” – Booklist

Off Course by Michelle Huneven

“A complex portrait of a woman under the influence: of love, then obsession.” — The New York Times Book Review (Editors’ Choice)

The Last Summer of the Camperdowns by Elizabeth Kelly

“Kelly’s novel is a coming-of-age meets a whodunit… A laugh-out-loud funny page turner.” — New York Times Book Review

Bradstreet Gate by Robin Kirman

“Though correlations to Donna Tartt’s classic The Secret History seem inevitable, Kirman’s complex, serpentine yarn has teeth of its own, and it will find a welcome home in many beach bags this summer.” — Publishers Weekly

Breakfast with Buddha by Roland Merullo

“Enlightenment meets On the Road in this witty, insightful novel.” —Boston Sunday Globe

These all were on favorites lists of mine in the past and/or received five stars from me on LibraryThing. Are any of these among your past favorites? I’d recommend any of these authors’ other books, as well!

I’m sharing this with Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, so you’ll find many other Top Ten book lists and other interpretations of this week’s theme there.