Seven books about break-ups and heartbreaks

Frances Yackel studied philosophy and creative writing at New York University, where she learned how to pretend she was going somewhere important. The countryside of Vermont, or more recently the mountains of New Zealand, are as much her home as the Classics section of the nearest independent bookstore.

At Electric Lit she tagged seven books to help you get through heartbreak, including:

The Hour of the Star by Clarice Lispector

The Hour of the Star is a man’s intrusive narration of an uneducated, though ceaselessly curious, woman named Macabea whose boyfriend cheats on her with her coworker. The reader is only allowed to engage with Macabea through an unreliable narrator obsessed with himself and his writing, leaving us only a small glimpse of her experience and echoes the lack of autonomy that she is permitted in her abusive relationship. Lispector’s novella uncovers the consequences of ardent yearning without self-government.

Read about another entry on the list.

--Marshal Zeringue