Novels Where the Narrator's Voice Is the Main Attraction

Some novels earn another page because of the person apparently speaking it. These choices favour distinctive rhythms, obsessions, evasions and ways of addressing a listener, from intimate confidence to a voice you have good reason to distrust. Read a paragraph aloud before choosing: the attraction may be a pause, a repeated phrase or a sudden change of register. True Grit and My Name Is Lucy Barton offer comparatively direct entrances; Riddley Walker and Ducks, Newburyport demand far more time and linguistic attention. Trainspotting offers several voices rather than one. Translation and performance also make choices, so named English versions and audiobook details are included where useful. Enjoying the sound never obliges you to endorse the speaker, and some of the most compelling company here is deeply disturbing.