Haunted Homes, Dystopias and Unforgettable Lives: 8 Books to Read Before Kicking the Bucket

Private lives, larger forces

The books range across very different subjects, from dystopian societies and ghosts to difficult relationships and organized crime. Their common thread is an interest in how marriage, family, sex, friendship, motherhood and love become entangled with forces individuals cannot control.

The stories can be serious, but they are also described as funny, propulsive, sexy, strange and infuriating. They suggest that personal life and politics are rarely separate.

A country transformed

In Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, environmental crisis, falling birthrates, political instability and religious extremism create conditions for Gilead. Women are valued chiefly for their ability to bear children. Offred loses her job, money, husband, daughter and name, and is assigned as a Handmaid to a Commander and his wife, Serena Joy.

Published in 1985 amid renewed disputes over women’s rights, the novel builds its horror from ordinary losses. Offred remembers familiar parts of life, including grocery shopping and time with her daughter, as restrictions become routine and freedom recedes.

The past at the door

A mysterious young woman who calls herself Beloved arrives, making the past impossible to keep at a distance. The story links haunting and family life to slavery’s continuing effects, while leaving Sethe’s desperate decision difficult to judge.