Welcome to Novellas in November! The link-up is open (see my pinned post). At the start of the month, we’re inviting you to tell us about any novellas you’ve read since last November.
I have a designated shelf of short books that I keep adding to throughout the year. Whenever I’m at secondhand bookshops, charity shops, the Little Free Library, or the public library volunteering, I’m always eyeing up thin volumes and thinking about my piles for November.
But I read novellas other times of year, too. Forty-five of them between December 2024 and now, according to my Goodreads shelves (last year the figure was 44 and the year before it was 46, so that’s my natural average). I often choose to review books of novella length for BookBrowse, Foreword and Shelf Awareness, so that helps to account for the number. I’ve read a real mixture, but predominantly literature in translation and autobiographical works.
My four favourites are ones I’ve already covered on the blog (links to my reviews): The Most by Jessica Anthony, Pale Shadows by Dominique Fortier and Three Days in June by Anne Tyler; and, in nonfiction, Mornings without Mii by Mayumi Inaba. Two works of historical fiction, one contemporary story; and a memoir of life with a cat.
What are some of your recent favourite novellas?
Bookish Beck = Rebecca Foster. American transplant to England. Freelance proofreader and book reviewer.
Bookish Beck 
Dear Rebecca
That was “Orbital” by Samantha Harvey – a brilliant novella.
The Fab Four of Cley
🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
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Our buddy read from last year and a worthy Booker Prize winner!
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I most recently read Rebecca Campbell’s Le Guin Prize-winning novella Arboreality, and was totally entranced by it. I don’t think of myself as a novella fan per se, but a short length doesn’t put me off.
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Amazingly given that I hardly ever read SF, that one was on my radar from Marcie (Buried in Print) and I think someone else reviewing it. I will definitely try to get hold of it.
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It’s near-future cli fi, so would work well for someone not into hard SF. There’s nothing in it that stretches credulity, that’s for sure! (Ps: I have what I think is an unlocked PDF that I could send you…? Let me know!)
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If you don’t have any publisher restrictions on the file, then that would be great!
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I also read it as an ARC from BookSirens and agree that it was perfectly wonderful.
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So happy to see that Arboreality has catapulted RC across the pond! Here’s a link to her new book, out this month, also from the indie press Stelliform, for everyone here who’s enjoyed her first:.
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Ooh I hope you review as I read this a while back and keep thinking about it!
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I did write a bit about it here! https://ellethinks.wordpress.com/2025/10/31/october-2025-superlatives/
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Geting in the mood for novellas…it must be 01 November #NovNov25! Thanks for all the posts you have uploaded with reading novellas suggestions…and of course for hosting.
I’m informing some bloggers that periodically visit my blog:
Just a note: I’m putting ALL my past/present blogposts…on status “private”. Something is going on with my blog. No way I get 175 views in one day (01 Nov). I’m afraid my reviews have been caught up in some sort pf “AI” sweeper win USA searching for content to be used in AI engines! So, you have been warned…and you can follow my reading for the coming time on Goodreads…do check my books there.
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Uh oh, sorry to hear about the issues you’ve been having with your blog.
Thanks so much for your participation, as always!
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I’ve marked some ‘referres’ as spam and hope that the poroblem is solved. My blog remains available for the public viewer!
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My favourite of the year (so far) is your buddy read: Seascraper. Loved it!
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So glad to hear it!
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Update from NancyElin: I marked some dubious “referrers” as spam and will wait and see if that makes a difference. I was going to turn the blog on to “private” but will wait and see if the solution is with these referrers.. So the blog remains active… and I hope back to normal!
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Snap! I also put The Most on my list of excellent novellas read since last year.
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Great minds… 😉
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I added the kitty memoir even though I know it will wreck my heart.
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Awww. It can be a relief to have a good cry.
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So looking forward to The Most.
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I’ve actually not heard of any of these! I really should try an Anne Tyler book. I’m looking forward to getting started on my first novella for this month’s challenge! 🙂
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[…] to November! So many wonderful reading events. Novellas in November is one! Thanks to our hosts Bookish Beck and Cathy@746Books–please take a moment to click the linked text of their blog name and read […]
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I also enjoyed Three Days in June.
I had two favorites–both I gave a very high (for me) 4.5 rating. O Pioneers! by Willa Cather and The Anthropologists by Aysegül Savas.
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You and kate both recommending The Most – will definitely check it out too – thanks 🙂
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Probably Small Boat for me! If I get my act together, I’ll review it this month.
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Hooray for Three Days in June! I am enjoying my first few reads this month, more on those on the blog soon!
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wow, that’s a lot of novellas!
Here are my 4 favorites: https://wordsandpeace.com/2025/11/05/novellas-in-november-my-year-2025-in-novellas/
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It’s especially nice to have a novella or two in the stack, when you read a whole mass of books and don’t as often finish one as start one (a habit you and I share): it reminds you how tidy things CAN be (even if they aren’t). hehe
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Yes, you understand … but also, when they’re so short, I’m like, I’ll just start reading these dozen, and then wonder why I can’t seem to finish anything to review it. Sigh.
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[…] Thanks to our hosts Bookish Beck and Cathy@746Books. […]
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