Top 10 Most Unique Books I’ve Read

This is an interesting topic because uniqueness is relative. I ended up choosing books that have stood out to me in one way or another – whether it’s a book told from an interesting viewpoint or a book with an inventive format, etc, etc. So without further ado (and in no particular order)….

1) An Accident of Stars (Manifold Worlds #1) by Foz Meadows

I’ve never read anything like this book – it features a matriarchal society, polyamorous marriages and oh yeah, a majority of the main characters are women. One of the best books I’ve read so far in 2017.

2) Under the Skin by Michel Faber

This is a complete mindfuck of a novel – it’s the type of story that digs into your brain and changes the way you think about everything.

3) The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami

Any Haruki novel could be on this list but I decided to pick my favorite. There is no good way to describe the experience of reading this book – words like ‘surreal’ and ‘dreamlike’ come close but there is no substitute for reading this novel.

4) And In This Way I Was Saved by Brian DeLeeuw

I read this book years ago but it’s stayed with me for so long because of the unique perspective it’s told from – this story is told from the POV of a boy’s imaginary friend.

5) The Yiddish Policeman’s Union by Michael Chabon

I had a revelation while reading this book – the way Chabon puts sentences together is so unique and different, I had no idea people could write like that until I read this book.

6) The Eyre Affair (Thursday Next #1) by Jasper Fforde

Any bookworm will appreciate the Thursday Next series – it takes place in an alternate version of England where literature is taken very seriously – case in point, Thursday Next is a literary detective and her job is to solve bookish related crimes. Not only that, but people have the ability to actually jump into a book and affect the story.

7) Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

Considered a controversial classic by some people and grotesque smut by others, you don’t get more unique than a book told from the POV of a pedophile.

8) Throne of the Crescent Moon by Saladin Ahmed

Eschewing the typical fantasy settings that are inspired by medieval England, Saladin Ahmed sets his action-packed fantasy in a Middle Eastern inspired setting.

9) Illuminae by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

It’s not Illuminae’s plot that is unique but the way it is told – through a collection of documents including emails, interviews, military reports, and more.

10) The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

Sure other authors have combined comedy and science fiction but I’m willing to bet Douglas Adams was the first to put his own unique, humourous spin on the SF genre.

Top 10 Tuesday is an original bookish meme created by The Broke and the Bookish.