Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

#FLODown: Between the World and Me is a poignant and profound piece of work, detailing the most gruesome and raw details of black American history and the everyday black experience in America. The book is relatively short – approximately 152 pages depending on the edition – but due to the emotional weight and the depth of content it is best consumed in small doses. It follows the structure of a letter, from Coates to his son, explaining how life has been for him as a black man in America and giving advice on how to manage the emotions that he has had to deal with.

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Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo

#FLODown: Girl, Woman, Other is an enthralling portrait of female experience. The novel follows 12 characters and most are black British women. Their stories overlap through their familial connections, friendships or through workplace networks, but each chapter focuses on a character and their individual story. Immense diversity is portrayed through these women, and it is through the difference in their experiences that Evaristo weaves such a rich tapestry of what modern Britain looks like. For many readers the world that Evaristo creates will be unfamiliar, but it is not fictional one; it is based on such astute truth that it will be hard to look at the world in the same way again after finishing.

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The Overstory by Richard Powers

#FLODown: It won the Pulitzer Prize and was shortlisted for the Man Booker, it is a New York Times bestseller and was named as Amazon’s Book of the Year; there is almost no doubt that you have heard of this book, or have seen a multitude of people flicking through its pages on the tube. Coming in at a hefty 640 pages this book is not for the faint-hearted, but it is well worth the effort.

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Circe by Madeline Miller

#FLODown: Don’t put off reading this novel if you know nothing of the Greek gods and goddesses, it is easy to follow and there are no expectations on previous understanding. But equally, even if you are well versed in the mythology you will still be captivated by Miller’s vivid and engaging portrayal of this nymph (she is not a goddess, but is immortal).

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A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

#FLODown: ‘A Man Called Ove’ is about a grumpy old man – so grumpy it’s funny – who at the beginning of the novel keeps trying and failing to kill himself. A young family move in next door and won’t stop bothering him, but this leads to an unlikely and unexpected friendship between them and it actually ends up turning Ove’s life around. There is a cat and a few other strange characters that you will end up falling head over heels for.

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Words by Mollie Cohen