Staff Recommendations: Our ‘Favorite’ Unreliable Narrators
Love or hate them, these are our staff’s favorite unreliable narrators of fiction.
The “unreliable narrator” trope features just that: a book with an untrustworthy storyteller, usually told with a first-person point of view. Whether intentionally deceptive or not, these narrators made us question their credibility.
Unreliable Narrators in Fiction
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
“The reader cheers for Holden in his teen journey to find truth among the ‘phonies.’ We find later that his world view is skewed.”
– Anne Fertitta, patron services supervisor
Piranesi by Suzanna Clarke
“Piranesi is a man who is wandering around ‘the house,’ which is an endless maze of rooms filled with statues. Piranesi loves the house and its beauty and often shares his findings with the only other resident of the house, ‘The Other.’ Piranesi and The Other are working to find what kind of secrets the house holds. As the book goes on, you start to realize that someone isn’t telling the whole truth.”
– Tera Stadtmiller, information services assistant
Looker by Laura Sims
“The narrator of this debut novel isn’t intentionally unreliable. Far from it. More accurately, the reader has a front row seat to her mental descent. What starts as a slow burn of a plot begins to subtly spiral and becomes impossible to look away from. The narrator did things that make one more than cringe, and yet I compulsively kept turning the page.”
– Anonymous staff member
Simon Sort of Says by Erin Bow
“This middle grade story is about a young boy whose family moves to the National Quiet Zone, the only place in America where the internet is banned, in order to escape their traumatic past. Bow manages to tackle absolutely horrifying and devastating topics, such as gun violence and mental health, with both sensitivity and humor. This novel was nominated for both the Newbery Medal and Schneider Family Book Award in 2024.”
– Molly Walker, children’s services librarian
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
“There’s a reason that book was so popular when it came out, it is a gripping story that shifts perspectives between two characters. I won’t spoil which is unreliable!”
– Amy Carroll, programming and community engagement manager
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
“This classic was very controversial at the time of its publication because of the twist involved in the plot; some readers felt it didn’t play by the rules that were informally set for the detective genre.”
– Beth Jacob, information services librarian
The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells
“It is the story of a man who was rescued from a shipwreck, only to be taken to an island where some weird things are going on. It’s heavily implied that the narrator had lost his mind, so you don’t know for sure if he is telling the truth or not.”
– Chay Rust, patron services supervisor
We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson
“This is an eerie book that follows a girl and her older sister who have a family secret that may not be as it first appears. I love how the author leaves hints about the truth throughout the story, so the reveal is both shocking and justified. It is my favorite work by Shirley Jackson.”
– Katherine Sallee, adult/teen services librarian
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