Short fiction - Novellas - Christchurch City LibrariesLike this list

20 items

• The Factory

  Oyamada, Hiroko, 1983-

  Add The Factory to your for later shelf

  ‘The Factory’ is a quirky 116-page novella which tells the surreal story of three Japanese factory workers who, while navigating their mind-numbingly boring work tasks, start to realise that the factory is slowly taking over their lives…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Daylight Gate

  Winterson, Jeanette, 1959-

  Add The Daylight Gate to your for later shelf

  A spooky 165-page tale inspired by the 1612 Pendle witch trials, this is a beautiful mix of supernatural, historical realism, and horrifying brutality. If you enjoy stories about power, fear and the harsh reality of the darkness of human…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• McGlue

  Moshfegh, Ottessa

  Add McGlue to your for later shelf

  A sailor wakes with a huge hangover and tries to reassemble the happenings of the previous night - he's locked up onboard ship facing a murder charge, so things must've gotten pretty out of hand. Amazingly dark and vivid descriptive…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer

  a Novella

  Backman, Fredrik, 1981-

  Add And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer to your for later shelf

  A dreamlike discussion between an elderly man and his grandson outlines the confusing and heartrending circumstances of dementia. Enjoy these 76 pages of introspection and warmth.

• A Beautiful Young Wife

  Wieringa, Tommy, 1967-

  Add A Beautiful Young Wife to your for later shelf

  The central character, Edward, is a successful science researcher with an eye for the young and beautiful. High in IQ and ego, and a tad low in emotional intelligence and humility, Edward's lusty encounters falter as middle-aged reality…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Old Man and the Sea

  Hemingway, Ernest, 1899-1961

  Add The Old Man and the Sea to your for later shelf

  Hemingway's classic tale of an old man and his determination to catch a giant marlin may not sound terribly promising at first, but the depth and scope of this story makes for incredible reading. A beautifully written exploration of…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The End We Start From

  Hunter, Megan, 1984-

  Add The End We Start From to your for later shelf

  A trim dystopian novel at 126 pages, written in sparse prose and quickly digested. England is flooded and chaos has descended. An older mother with her first and desperately desired child flees to "safety" with her partner. Staying alive…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• West

  Davies, Carys

  Add West to your for later shelf

  An imaginative western about a recently widowed man who embarks upon a trek across America in search of a creature that may or may not be real. He leaves his young daughter behind in the care of his sister, and as the journey continues she…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Time Machine

  Wells, H. G. (Herbert George), 1866-1946

  Add The Time Machine to your for later shelf

  H.G. Wells is a giant in the world of fantastical sci-fi, and 'The Time Machine' is arguably his greatest work. An eccentric Victorian inventor loses his beloved and travels through time to save her, but what he finds throughout the depth…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Dept. of Speculation

  Offill, Jenny, 1968-

  Add Dept. of Speculation to your for later shelf

  A 179-page portrait of a marriage, from the first perfect revelatory weeks and months to the bitter, bitter end. Offill delivers undeniable insights into the cost and value of motherhood in this provocative, heart-breaking, and offbeat…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich

  Solzhenit͡syn, Aleksandr Isaevich, 1918-2008

  Add One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich to your for later shelf

  A harrowing yet beautiful look at 24 hours of life in a Stalinist Russian prison and labour camp. Our central character strives hard to maintain dignity in the face of inhumanity, where seemingly ordinary objects take on great significance…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Call of the Wild

  London, Jack, 1876-1916

  Add The Call of the Wild to your for later shelf

  Set in the 1890s, and covering themes of survival and determination, this classic adventure novella features a dog named Buck as its main character. Used to his cozy life in suburban California, Buck suddenly finds himself working as the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Heartburn

  Ephron, Nora, 1941-2012

  Add Heartburn to your for later shelf

  Thinly veiled as fiction, this often-hilarious account of infidelity and divorce is based on Nora Ephron's break-up with Watergate journalist Carl Bernstein. While best known for her screenwriting, Nora Ephron's slender tome (179 pages) is…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and Other Stories

  Stevenson, Robert Louis, 1850-1894

  Add The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and Other Stories to your for later shelf

  This classic explores the effects of duality and hidden desires. The mild-mannered Dr. Jekyll crafts a potion, unleashing his secret evil persona upon the world. Since its release the phrase 'Jekyll and Hyde' has entered our vernacular to…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Outsider

  Camus, Albert, 1913-1960

  Add The Outsider to your for later shelf

  ‘The Outsider’, sometimes known as 'The Stranger', is a thought-provoking classic which covers themes of justice, society, and individualism. With a matter-of-fact style that enhances the depth of its mere 126 pages, this novella tells…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Deep

  Solomon, Rivers

  Add The Deep to your for later shelf

  Inspired by an award-winning rap song of the same name, 'The Deep' tells the story of a society of aquatic humanoids descended from African slave women who were thrown overboard while pregnant. One person in this underwater paradise is…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Home

  Morrison, Toni, 1931-2019

  Add Home to your for later shelf

  With lush prose and themes of racism, reflection and hope, highly acclaimed author Toni Morrison skilfully and eloquently compresses a profound journey of discovery into just 160 pages. Mentally scarred from serving in the Korean war,…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Grownup

  Flynn, Gillian, 1971-

  Add The Grownup to your for later shelf

  This bite-sized gothic thriller follows an unnamed narrator who scams people for a living by offering ‘psychic’ readings. Sensing some easy cash, the narrator gets more than she bargained for when she’s invited to investigate some…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Breakfast at Tiffany's

  Capote, Truman, 1924-1984

  Add Breakfast at Tiffany's to your for later shelf

  In 1940s New York, narrator Fred describes his growing friendship with the iconic Holly Golightly. Throwing lavish parties for gangsters and Hollywood millionaires alike, while yearning for a sense of belonging, heartbreaker Holly is less…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Angels and Insects

  Byatt, A. S. (Antonia Susan), 1936-2023

  Add Angels and Insects to your for later shelf

  If you like vivid settings and lyrical prose, you’ll enjoy this intricate, mesmerising duo of linked novellas. Set in Victorian England, ‘Angels and Insects’ is both a love story about insect-lover turned expeditioner William Adamson and…Read moreRead more of this annotation