Weird Girl Fiction is a loose genre that has become more popular in the last few years. Calling it a genre at all is a kind of misnomer, instead, weird girl fiction is more of a catch-all phrase for a book that refuses to be neatly categorized. These books blend multiple genres but typically feature a female-identified main character who acts…unexpectedly. While these books often lean into messy, strange narratives, what unifies this kind of fiction is the way the main character meets their world. The “Weird Girls” of weird girl fiction are unabashedly, wholly, and sometimes unhinged(ly) themselves. So why not add a little “weird girl fiction” to your TBR (to-be-read) pile this Women’s History Month? Read on for some atypical leading ladies from our collection.
- Beautyland by Marie-Helene Bertino - A young woman uses a fax machine to report the events of her life to her faraway alien family.
- Big Swiss by Jen Beagin (also available on Hoopla) - A woman whose job is to transcribe sex therapy sessions becomes obsessed with a patient.
- Bunny by Mona Awad - A graduate student becomes entangled in a clique of women who all refer to each other as “Bunny.”
- Maeve Fly by CJ Leede - By day, Maeve portrays a popular princess at an unnamed theme park, but by night, she haunts the sunset strip searching for victims à la American Psycho.
- My Husband by Maud Ventura (also available on Hoopla) - A wife is obsessed with her perfect husband.
- My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite - Two sisters navigate life and love but one has a habit of murdering her boyfriends.
- My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh - In the year 2000, a New York City woman decides to sleep through an entire year of her life.
- Natural Beauty by Ling Ling Huang - A pianist gives up her career as a musician to take a job at a high-end beauty store.
- Nightbitch by Rachel Yoder - A stay-at-home mom becomes convinced she is turning into a dog.
- Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield - A woman welcomes home her wife who’s seemingly changed after a disastrous deep-sea dive.
- Patricia Wants to Cuddle by Samantha Allen (also available on Hoopla) - Women competing on a dating show in the woods of the Pacific Northwest meet Patricia, a misunderstood recluse looking for connection.
- The Pisces by Melissa Broder - A woman becomes obsessed with a merman.
- Rouge by Mona Awad - After the death of her mother, a woman becomes involved in a beauty cult.
- We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson (also available on Hoopla) - Two sisters live in isolation after their entire family was poisoned.