The fall book recommendations were chosen on the principal theme of downfall as the genre of books one chooses to read from season to season changes in accordance to the cool chill of early autumn as it cuts through the stagnant air of the summer.
Showcasing the metamorphoses of the season as leaves once born a new shrivel in accordance with the flow of time; transforming themselves from something gushing with life into something drained by the decay of summer before giving in to the next cycle.
Demons, ghouls, and ghosts aren’t what’s scary in the month of October, but what is harrowing is the tumultuous change that separates us from the stagnant nature of day-by-day life.
And much like a dying leaf, humans are subject to change, knocked down from their safe haven, sans the poise of a leaf, and landing in the woe of sorrow.
Literary characters are no excuse for this constant and are often the main victims. While it can be disputed that there are other books that emulate the decadence of the crestfallen, these books should be at the top of your list due to their significance and cult classicality.
A grand portion of these literary titles can be found at the Oswego Public Library District (both campuses) and the classics are a part of the Oswego High Schools library collection.
The Secret History by Donna Tartt
Donna Tartt’s The Secret History fully encapsulates the tragic boy hero’s fall from grace trope, making it a quintessential read this season. Without spoilers, the book revolves around Richard Papenbrook, your classic Californian blinded by a romantic devotion to elegance and antiquity, both of which he has no relation to.
His pursuit of these traits led to him arriving at Hampden College in Vermont where he encounters five eccentric students who are wholly committed to the study of ancient Greek when darker intentions are gradually unearthed as things “go beyond the boundaries of normal morality and gradually slip from obsession to corruption and betrayal, and at last-inexorably- into evil,” According to Goodreads.
Vermont easily provides some of the best fall weather making it an excellent fall read but it just doesn’t stop at that; the aesthetic connotations of the book have quickly garnered it a significant following as a result of its dark academia ambiance.
At the end of fall, there is a chill; that something more sinister lurks underneath the perfect surface; that beauty is terror, a theme explored in the book.
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
The 1818 gothic horror novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley perfectly expands on this theme of downfall. Frankenstein’s life can be described as no less than perfect before being blighted by his longing to create life in a way that transcends human nature.
The story is known by now; a man tries his hand at creating life, “however is not the perfect specimen he imagines that it will be, but rather a hideous creature who is rejected by Victor and mankind in general,” according to the British Broadcasting Corporation. His own creation reaps havoc upon each aspect of his life, dismantling everything as he once knew it, sabotaged by something that came from his knowledge.
Capsized by the sublime and a general gothic vibe, the literary classic Frankenstein is a downright devious fall read that reminds one of the true principles of fall: horror.
Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu
On the topic of horror, Bram Stoker’s Dracula is regarded as a staple in vampire literature and the most widely recognized in vampire literature. Not to discredit Stoker’s Dracula, it is a great piece of literature – but let’s move on from the Johnathan Harkers and Counts to the Lauras and Carmillas: the main characters from Sheridan Le Fanu’s 1872 text Carmilla which predates Stoker’s Dracula by 26 years.
Carmilla is acknowledged as the mother of vampire literature of the era In a reverse of the Dracula fashion, instead of the undead in a castle lies sweet innocent Laura, residing deep in the Austrian woodlands, with the company of her sickly father. It is the intoxicating Carmilla who comes crashing into the castle in lieu of a naive Harker, Stocker’s protagonist in Dracula.
Laura and Carmilla form a queer relationship as the bond that blurs the line of friendship and romantic interest between the two women deepens. Laura is immediately drawn to her exhilarating guest. Carmilla returns the same sentiment with a cavernous need, although there’s far more than meets the eye in this tale of horror.
Carmilla’s nocturnal activity comes off as unusual to Laura, not to mention she finds herself growing weaker due to her constant nightmares.
Laura’s life seemed to stray from normalcy the moment Carmilla’s carriage broke down in front of the shrouded castle. She feels her energy begin to drain as time goes on, much like the lifespan of a leaf.
Sink your teeth into some gritty vampire fiction this fall by reading Carmilla and immerse yourself in a bottomless sensation pivoted by carnal desire.
While this list barely grazes the profound abyss that is fall literature, I hope that the goal to intrigue one with the wonder that fall literature can be has been accomplished.
Some other fall-read recommendations are The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, Robert W. Chamber’s The King in Yellow, and The Cat that Saved Books by Sôsuke Natsukawa for further reading.
42Fiftys very own post-niche internet micro-ecelebrity (mid geoguesser player) that lived through a chronic gas leak that was going on in their house for a little over a year without their knowledge. Their only qualification is that they bring a silly goose vibe to the geese party.
Great work! Adding all of these to my extensive TBR