No plot, just vibes books
novels that don't follow traditional literary frameworks
As a fantasy reader during my childhood, I was an all-plot girl. But then I slowly made my way through the no plot, just vibes books. These are books that have character driven narratives wrapped up in a light or no plot at all. These are books that have no big climatic events or any external struggles and yet, they draw you in page after page. Literary fiction, some may call it, but not all.
Even though these books may have no plot at all, there’s definitely conflict. It’s just that the conflict happens inside the characters themselves. We see it through the conversations between character or the narrator’s internal dialogue. With this genre, you are immersed in the character’s thoughts and that makes the book a wonderful reading experience to me.
If you’re looking for this type of book, I hope at least one of the suggestions below brings you to vibe you’re looking for!
Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami translated by Jay Rubin - melancholic vibes
37-year-old Toru Watanabe lands on Germany and hears the song Norwegian Wood by The Beatles as he gets off the plane. Instantly, he is transported back to his college days in Tokyo during the 60’s. He tells the story of his friendship with the beautiful but elusive Naoko with whom he shares his grief for their common friend, Kizuki. Toru also meets Midoro who embodies the typical “manic, pixie dream girl”, opposite to Naoko.
Much of the book is just all about Toru commuting, attending his classes, eating, working at the record store, or visiting Naoko or Midori. All these against a backdrop of various student uprising in the 60’s. I wouldn’t say I like the characters that much. I didn’t get much out of them. But I love how atmospheric this book is. There’s this scene where Toru is on a train and Murakami describes the whole commute and Toru’s fellow commuters. I feel like I was on the train myself. It’s a scene I always think about because of the way it made me feel.
There’s also just something about Murakami’s writing and Toru’s quiet and reflective personality that makes him a real person. This book is generally just about life, really. Part of the book is also set in urban Japan across all the seasons and it just made me want to go up in the mountains.
Although I have stopped reading Murakami (unless he stops writing about women’s breasts with no relation to the story and just because he can), I will always recommend Norwegian Wood.
More no plot just vibes books by Murakami: After Dark and The Wind-up Bird Chronicles
Happy Hour by Marlowe Granados - having fun in your 20s vibes
Two broke 20-year-olds move to New York with no plan other than to experience New York and have fun in the greatest city in the world. Throughout the book we follow Isa and Gala’s crazy adventures as they navigate the New York night life. We follow their hook-ups, their fights, their attempts of holding jobs and other things. While there’s no big climax in this book, a lot happens to Isa and Gala during their nightly adventures that changes them internally.
Isa’s voice, the book’s narrator, is fun, sassy, and unapologetic. She may seem like strictly a good-time party girl but really she’s just a girl trying to survive in this world. I wrote more about this book here.
The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway - Summer and endless partying vibes
On the surface level, this book is about a bunch of people drinking in Paris cafes, fishing in Basque, partying and bullfighting in Madrid, and swimming in San Sebastian. You can categorize this as a summer novel too. Like Happy Hour, the characters goes out to party every night, goes to sleep at dawn, wakes up again to party, then repeat. When I was reading this book, I was entirely bored. I kept waiting for something to happen. When will the endless partying end! When will the nothingness end! The characters are unlikeable and insufferable. But interestingly enough, I could not DNF it.
There is no point to this book. But that is Hemingway’s point. He writes about the aimlessness people felt after the war. The characters in the book are The Lost Generation, people who were disillusioned with life after World War I. They don’t see life’s meaning anymore and so they pursue hedonism through their endless partying. I felt bored because the character’s feel bored with their lives. To me, that’s a measure of a great writer.
It was only a few days after reading this book that I realized I loved it. That never happened to me. I thought it was brilliant and the title is really well-thought of.
More no plot just vibes books by Hemingway: The Old Man and the Sea
Writers & Lovers by Lily King - Relatable adulting character vibes
31-year-old Casey is a waitress buried deep in debt, just lost her mother, and is struggling to finish her 6-year old novel. All of her writer friends have moved on from creating “The Next Great American Novel” and pursued fancier, well-paying jobs but Casey sticks to her writing. Despite every change she’s been through, the novel was the only constant thing in her life.
The story has no major arc. Instead, it tells us about a woman just trying to find her way in the world while dealing with her writing, her day job, getting old, relationships, and grief over her mother. Just typical things people go through day-to-day. This book has one of the best fictional mother-daughter relationships I have ever read. The mother-daughter scenes left me sobbing for hours. I write more about it here.
Tokyo Ueno Station by Yu Miri translated by Morgan Giles - mourning, painful past feels
The book follows a ghost, Kazu, stuck in Ueno Park. Kazu hovers over Ueno Park and observes the place where he used to live along with hundreds of other homeless people. He takes us all over Ueno, a district in Tokyo, but he also takes us to his earlier years growing up on poverty and how he ended as a homeless person in Tokyo. He transports us to what living in Tokyo’s margins feels like - the homeless and the poor. Of how Kazu can’t escape the cycle of poverty no matter how hard he worked. Think of the movie Parasite but without the shockingly dark plot twist.
The plot is really simple, like somebody telling you a story in one sitting. There are no chapters and the book feels like one long narration. The writing is beautiful and I had to pause several times just to take in the honesty of the writing.
While this book has an interesting premise, I wanted to get more out of it. I feel like it could talk more about societal problems.
The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro - Reminiscing down memory lane vibes
Stevens, our narrator, goes on a road trip, describing all the beautiful scenes he encounter while looking back at his personal and professional life. Stevens is an English butler who has dedicated his life to the service of Lord Darlington. Through a series of flashbacks we see Stevens reflect on his blind loyalty to Lord Darlington who we find out later is a Nazi sympathizer; what constitutes a great butler; his missed romantic opportunity with a colleague; and on his relationship with his late father. By the end of his journey, after accomplishing the purpose of his road trip, Stevens reflects on his present situation and what is left of his own life. Or should I say “the remains of his day”.
The novel’s prose is so simple yet very powerful. The tone of voice that Ishiguro uses for Stevens is controlled and suppressed, a voice apt for a loyal butler. As a former copywriter, I used to be obsessed with capturing the right tone of voice for a specific brand. In this book’s case Ishiguro writing perfectly captures Stevens’ character. He paints a perfect picture of Stevens outward looks and inner life. I think about this aspect of the book all the time because it’s so brilliantly written.
It’s a devastating book that will make you think how you want to spend your life. A page turner despite lacking action. And oh, this book is really funny too. I previously wrote about this book here.
Do you love reading no plot, just vibes books? If yes, let me know what you are favorites are!
What I’m reading this week
I started this book in March but decided I wasn’t feeling it at that time and stopped at 50 pages. I picked it up again this week because I feel like reading it now and so far so good! The book starts with Leila, a sex worker in Istanbul, getting murdered and is dumped in a trash bin. The next chapters are flashbacks of Leila’s life and her friends set in the contradicting city of Istanbul.
In case you missed this..
Everything in this newsletter is free for now. And so, every open, like, comment, or restack means a lot to me and I thank you all for your support. If you’d like to further support me, buy me a coffee so that I can continue this work.
I'm a huge fan of Never Let Me Go and been looking to read more Kazuo Ishiguro. Might pick up The Remains of the Day next!
Jam, really enjoyed this post as it opened a new line of thinking, especially with regard to A Sun Also Rises. Like you, I generally need some action to stay interested in a story. Doesn’t have to be explosions or people dying, just the characters doing something besides getting up and eating, working. I think too much contemplation leads to bed sores. We gotta get up and move, enjoy life. Emma Cline’s The Guest didn’t just lack action, the character lacked soul as she grifted around the tony enclaves of Long Island. Didn’t hold my interest. Reading Orbital by Samantha Harvey about a day in the life of a group of astronauts in the space station. It’s a quiet story, focusing on how they orbit at 17,000 mph without going anywhere. I’m having to try hard get much out of it, especially since I’m reading it as a comp to my own WIP novel. You’ve inspired me to look a little deeper. Thanks.