{"id":8097,"date":"2026-04-25T11:27:05","date_gmt":"2026-04-25T11:27:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/josephrauch.com\/therauchreview\/?p=8097"},"modified":"2026-04-25T11:27:05","modified_gmt":"2026-04-25T11:27:05","slug":"best-novellas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/josephrauch.com\/therauchreview\/articles\/best-novellas\/","title":{"rendered":"The 9 Best Novellas: From 1899 to Present Day"},"content":{"rendered":"

The novella is a somewhat debated prose form, with literary bodies, authors and readers all subscribing to different definitions. Novellas use just a small number of pages to provide considerable character development, plot insight and thematic depth.<\/p>\n

There are some very notable examples of good novellas. From Steinbeck\u2019s \u201cOf Mice and Men\u201d\u00a0\u2014 studied by generations of school children\u00a0\u2014 to Rachel Ingalls\u2019 \u201cMrs. Caliban,\u201d novellas crop up again and again in discussions of great literature.<\/p>\n

What is a Novella?<\/h2>\n

A novella is a short prose narrative that doesn\u2019t fit within the confines of a novel or a short story. It is typically deemed too short to be a novel, but too long to be a short story.<\/p>\n

A great deal of debate exists around the term \u201cnovella,\u201d particularly concerning when a short story becomes a novella or when a novella becomes a novel. Typically, novellas range from 20,000 to 50,000 words. This word range equates to roughly 70 to 200 pages. But, as with any literary category, there are exceptions.<\/p>\n

Novellas have a few common characteristics. They often focus on a single story, character or theme. They tend to concentrate on one narrator, rather than switching between perspectives, and they don\u2019t consider multiple subplots in detail.<\/p>\n

Nonetheless, novellas are by no means less complex, thoughtful or reflective than regular novels. In fact, the best novellas often examine their main plot in greater detail, cleverly using limited space to connect with readers.<\/p>\n

The 9 Best Novellas: Top Must-Read Short Narratives<\/h2>\n

When listing the \u201cbest\u201d of any kind of literature, it\u2019s impossible to create an exhaustive list. \u201cBest\u201d is a subjective term. There are thousands of incredible stories that all deserve a space on our list.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve chosen a selection of good novellas, trying our best to pick a diverse range of stories that will appeal to all interests, backgrounds and ages. We\u2019ve covered classic literature \u2014 titles you\u2019ll likely recognize \u2014 as well as modern tales that may be a little less well-known.<\/p>\n

Our list spans a wide range of years, authors and themes. There are novellas about communism, feminist classics and strange tales of murder.<\/p>\n

So, let\u2019s dive into 9 of the best novellas in classic and modern literature. If you\u2019re looking for a short, evocative story you can finish in a weekend, this list is a good place to start.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

\"The<\/a><\/span><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>

1. \u2018The Awakening<\/a>\u2019<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
by Kate Chopin<\/div><\/div>

Published in 1899, Kate Chopin\u2019s \u201cThe Awakening\u201d is a fascinating story about a young married woman, Edna Pontellier, who feels trapped in her marriage. She seeks passionate affairs, shunning her domestic life in search of independence.<\/p>\n

The novella was revolutionary for its time. Edna openly describes her infidelity. She moves away from the family home and goes out in search of something more for herself.<\/p>\n

This compares to popular Victorian representations of marriage and motherhood. Edna isn\u2019t afraid to express how she really feels. For that reason, the novella feels modern in tone.<\/p>\n

Online reviewers praise \u201cThe Awakening\u201d for its honest portrayal of Edna. She is unwilling to live within the confines of her society. Readers also enjoy Chopin\u2019s beautiful writing style and her ability to pack so much thoughtful prose into such a short narrative.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

\"Of<\/a><\/span><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>

2. \u2018Of Mice and Men<\/a>\u2019<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
by John Steinbeck<\/a><\/div><\/div>

\u201cOf Mice and Men\u201d by John Steinbeck is a short novella about George and Lennie, two poor migrant workers who come to work on a ranch in California. There, they meet a range of characters, including Curley, the boss\u2019s son, and his wife (known only as Curley\u2019s Wife). They also meet Crooks, the Black stable hand, and Slim, a kind man who befriends the new workers.<\/p>\n

As with many of Steinbeck\u2019s works, \u201cOf Mice and Men\u201d gives a voice to working-class and marginalized characters. Lennie is a mentally disabled man, struggling with what we may now recognize as learning difficulties. Crooks is a Black man living in a time of intense discrimination. Curley\u2019s wife represents the effects of misogyny in early 20th-century America.<\/p>\n

Steinbeck\u2019s novella comments on the great injustices in American society at the time. In just 29,160 words, \u201cOf Mice and Men\u201d explores universal themes like friendship, race and the American Dream.<\/p>\n

Editor\u2019s note: Read Joseph\u2019s reflection on why John Steinbeck is his favorite author<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

\"Animal<\/a><\/span><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>

3. \u2018Animal Farm<\/a>\u2019<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
by George Orwell<\/a><\/div><\/div>

\u201cAnimal Farm\u201d is one of the most widely read novellas in history. Published in 1945, it tells the story of a farm taken over by its mistreated animals \u2014 a not-so-subtle allegory for the 1917 Russian Revolution<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The animals include the old, wise pig, Old Major, who is thought to represent Karl Marx or Lenin, and Farmer Jones, who represents the deposed Tsar Nicholas II. Pigs Napoleon and Snowball are thought to represent Stalin and Trotsky, respectively.<\/p>\n

These newly appointed leaders strive to create an idealistic paradise for the animals on the farm. However, they end up living in a brutal totalitarian society, arguably just as bad as the one they overthrew in the first place.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnimal Farm\u201d is dystopian fiction at its finest, using satire and comedy to comment on the negative effects of totalitarianism. Orwell uses a small number of pages to create a clever political commentary with considerable plot and nuance.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

\"Foster,<\/a><\/span><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>

4. \u2018Foster<\/a>\u2019<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
by Claire Keegan<\/a><\/div><\/div>

\u201cFoster\u201d is a modern novella about a young girl who is sent to live with foster parents on a farm in rural Ireland. There, she begins to thrive, but a hidden secret threatens to tear apart her new family life.<\/p>\n

The novella, by Claire Keegan, won the Davy Byrnes Memorial Prize in 2009<\/a>. The story is beautifully written, with Keegan tackling important themes like parenting, grief and family ties.<\/p>\n

In just over 101 pages, Keegan\u2019s novella examines in detail the young narrator\u2019s thoughts as she grows and develops in her new home. It is a subtle and touching story that shows the importance of nurture and care in a young child\u2019s life.<\/p>\n

\u201cFoster\u201d was adapted into an Irish-language film called “The Quiet Girl” in 2022. The following year, the film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best International Feature Film<\/a>. It was the first Irish-language film to ever be nominated in this category.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

\"We<\/a><\/span><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>

5. \u2018We the Animals<\/a>\u2019<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
by Justin Torres<\/a><\/div><\/div>

Justin Torres\u2019 debut novella, \u201cWe the Animals,\u201d is one of the best novellas in contemporary fiction. It tells the story of three brothers of white and Puerto Rican heritage, growing up in a chaotic and toxic household in upstate New York.<\/p>\n

Thought to be based on the author\u2019s own childhood, the novella is a poignant and heartbreaking exploration of the brothers\u2019 relationship, covering hard-hitting themes like identity, abuse and poverty.<\/p>\n

Readers online praise \u201cWe the Animals\u201d for its evocative prose and its ability to transport the reader into the narrator\u2019s impoverished family home. It is a short novella, but it is as complex and nuanced as any novel.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe the Animals\u201d may particularly appeal to young adult readers<\/a> or those looking to expand their LGBTQIA+ reading selection.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

\"I<\/a><\/span><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>

6. \u2018I Who Have Never Known Men<\/a>\u2019<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
by Jacqueline Harpman<\/a><\/div><\/div>

First published in 1995, \u201cI Who Have Never Known Men\u201d is a science fiction novella. It tells the story of 39 women and a young girl held prisoner in a cage underground. They have no notion of time and no memory of how they got there.<\/p>\n

One day, they manage to escape. They find themselves in a desolate and barren plain that seems far removed from their memories of the world. There, they must struggle to build a new community on Earth.<\/p>\n

The novella is a strange, touching and heartbreaking story, inspired by Harpman\u2019s own experiences of exile during the Second World War. It considers the strong ties of female friendship and just how far people will go to find some semblance of humanity.<\/p>\n

At roughly 48,000 words, \u201cI Who Have Never Known Men\u201d is considered a relatively long novella, using elements of dystopia, science fiction, feminist literature and literary fiction.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

\"The<\/a><\/span><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>

7. \u2018The Metamorphosis<\/a>\u2019<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
by Franz Kafka<\/a><\/div><\/div>

Kafka\u2019s \u201cThe Metamorphosis\u201d is a classic novella, first published in 1915. The story follows Gregor Samsa, a salesman who wakes up to find himself transformed into a big insect.<\/p>\n

The novella portrays his struggles to accept his new condition. It also considers his family’s reaction, who are disgusted by Gregor\u2019s new form and find it hard to make ends meet with their main breadwinner now unable to go to work.<\/p>\n

Like many novellas, \u201cThe Metamorphosis\u201d focuses on just one story, but it effectively explores Gregor\u2019s inner thoughts, as well as his family\u2019s growing frustrations. It is complex, considering themes like the human condition and the very nature of existence \u2013 all in roughly 21,810 words.<\/p>\n

Although it is a short novella, \u201cThe Metamorphosis\u201d is actually considered the longest of Kafka\u2019s stories completed and published during his lifetime.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

\"The<\/a><\/span><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>

8.\u00a0\u2018The Stranger<\/a>\u2019<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
by Albert Camus<\/a><\/div><\/div>

Often compared to Kafka\u2019s \u201cThe Metamorphosis,\u201d \u201cThe Stranger\u201d was first published in French in 1942 as \u201cL\u2019\u00c9tranger.\u201d It follows the story of Meursault, a white Frenchman living in French Algeria.<\/p>\n

After his mother\u2019s funeral, Meursault kills an unnamed Arab man in Algiers and finds himself feeling completely detached from the situation. The story is told entirely from Meursault\u2019s perspective, split into two sections to recount his life before and after the killing.<\/p>\n

Albert Camus\u2019 novella is a philosophical exploration of absurdism. He considers the purposelessness of life, using Meursault\u2019s emotional detachment from his actions to reflect his refusal to engage with societal norms, even when it comes to murder.<\/p>\n

The novella uses just 36,750 words to tell a complex story about important themes like colonialism, absurdism and free will.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

\"Mrs.<\/a><\/span><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div>
BUY NOW<\/span><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>

9. \u2018Mrs. Caliban<\/a>\u2019<\/a><\/h3><\/div>
by Rachel Ingalls<\/a><\/div><\/div>

\u201cMrs. Caliban\u201d is an intriguing novella about Dorothy, a lonely housewife who one day hears a radio announcement about an escaped monster. She begins an illicit affair with the monster, with Ingalls cleverly blurring the line between real and imagined.<\/p>\n

First published in 1982, \u201cMrs. Caliban\u201d uses elements of fantasy, magical realism, romance and science fiction to create a compelling comment on women\u2019s repression in mid-20th-century America. It is a short but profound read.<\/p>\n

Despite receiving much critical acclaim, Mrs. Caliban has never won any major literary awards. However, the British Book Marketing Council named the book as one of the 20 best American novels published since World War Two<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There are novellas about communism, feminist classics and strange tales of murder.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":41,"featured_media":8117,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[66],"class_list":["post-8097","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","tag-book-lists"],"yoast_head":"\nThe 9 Best Novellas: From 1899 to Present Day - The Rauch Review<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Most novellas live in the space between short stories and novels, but there\u2019s room for debate. These are some of the best novellas.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/josephrauch.com\/therauchreview\/articles\/best-novellas\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The 9 Best Novellas: From 1899 to Present Day\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"There are novellas about communism, feminist classics and strange tales of murder.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/josephrauch.com\/therauchreview\/articles\/best-novellas\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Rauch Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-04-25T11:27:05+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/josephrauch.com\/therauchreview\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2026\/04\/joseph-rauch-web-three-paperback-novellas-on-a-table.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Eleanor Jones\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Eleanor Jones\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"10 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/josephrauch.com\\\/therauchreview\\\/articles\\\/best-novellas\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/josephrauch.com\\\/therauchreview\\\/articles\\\/best-novellas\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Eleanor Jones\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/josephrauch.com\\\/therauchreview\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f62f66fbaae6e1b0b60f05e28bb7ad59\"},\"headline\":\"The 9 Best Novellas: From 1899 to Present Day\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-25T11:27:05+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/josephrauch.com\\\/therauchreview\\\/articles\\\/best-novellas\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":25542,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/josephrauch.com\\\/therauchreview\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/josephrauch.com\\\/therauchreview\\\/articles\\\/best-novellas\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/josephrauch.com\\\/therauchreview\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/7\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/joseph-rauch-web-three-paperback-novellas-on-a-table.webp\",\"keywords\":[\"book lists\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Articles\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/josephrauch.com\\\/therauchreview\\\/articles\\\/best-novellas\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/josephrauch.com\\\/therauchreview\\\/articles\\\/best-novellas\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/josephrauch.com\\\/therauchreview\\\/articles\\\/best-novellas\\\/\",\"name\":\"The 9 Best Novellas: From 1899 to Present Day - The Rauch Review\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/josephrauch.com\\\/therauchreview\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/josephrauch.com\\\/therauchreview\\\/articles\\\/best-novellas\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/josephrauch.com\\\/therauchreview\\\/articles\\\/best-novellas\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/josephrauch.com\\\/therauchreview\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/7\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/joseph-rauch-web-three-paperback-novellas-on-a-table.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-25T11:27:05+00:00\",\"description\":\"Most novellas live in the space between short stories and novels, but there\u2019s room for debate. 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