Book description
In a beleaguered city where rats and roving gangs terrorize the streets, where government has broken down and meaningless violence holds sway, a woman -- middle-aged and middle-class -- is brought a twelve-year-old girl and told that it is her responsibility to raise the child. This book, which the author…
Why read it?
1 author picked The Memoirs of a Survivor as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
Doris Lessing is one of the genuinely great authors of the 20th century. A true visionary, she moved effortlessly between naturalistic writing and her own unique variety of science fiction/fantasy—the latter written with such conviction that it seems completely real (while her naturalistic writing is so vivid is to seem almost more than real). In this book, a middle-aged woman looks out of her window at a civilization that is rapidly falling apart. As the woman retreats into her own inner world, a strange girl comes to live with her, bringing an animal called Hugo that is somewhere in between…
From Chris' list on hard-to-categorize novels.
If you love The Memoirs of a Survivor...
December on 5C4
Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!
On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…
Want books like The Memoirs of a Survivor?
Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like The Memoirs of a Survivor.
Share your top 3 reads of 2025!
And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.
1,299
readers submitted
so far, will you?
📚 If you like The Memoirs of a Survivor, you might also like...
Courting the Sun
Can a free-spirited country girl navigate the world of intrigue, illicit affairs, and power-mongering that is the court of Louis XIV—the Sun King--and still keep her head?
France, 1670. Sixteen-year-old Sylvienne d’Aubert receives an invitation to attend the court of King Louis XIV. She eagerly accepts, unaware of her mother’s…
Whispers on the Wind
Wales between the wars, a place of poverty and a world full of anguish. Yet, there is hope. Within family, within community, and most of all in the brave heart of one young girl.
Set in the lush Dulais Valley; Carrie is fated to a life of hardship and sorrow,…
