{Book Masterlist} Non-Fiction Fiction

In a way, it's the ultimate writing challenge, isn't it? To craft a piece so perfectly that if you didn't know it was fiction, it would totally pass as non-fiction.

But on the other hand... what's the point?

"This read SO much like non-fiction, that at certain point before the 200 page mark I wondered whether I wouldn't be making a better use of my time by reading a non-fiction travel journal instead" I wrote on my review of The People in the Trees by Hanya Yanagihara. Before such a text (a memoir of a fictional scientist edited by his research assistant), I never knew such a thing had been attempted—and achieved! The closest I'd ever been was Zambra's Multiple Choice, which takes the form of a Chilean college entrance exam to tell little stories and raise political issues. The texts itself, however, is still fiction, so not quite the same as this subgenre I've unoriginally termed "non-fiction fiction".

I still don't think I have a profound philosophical response as to why you should read this type of fiction instead of a non-fiction book, except that the question itself is irrelevant. You would read these books for the same reason you would read any other type of fiction. After all, in many ways fiction's main objective is to investigate human experience in a diversity of scenarios (the best scifi and fantasy does not disprove but actually reaffirms this), and using an established non-fiction form is just another (highly enjoyable and interesting) way to do just that. 

Now, where exactly do you draw the line with non-fiction fiction? After all, tall-tales and frame devices where the narrator proclaims their story to be an absolute true one have a long tradition that you could trace back to good ol' classics and beyond. Also, is autofiction non-fiction fiction? Not by my standards. 

If I may suggest a definition, it would be fiction that adopts the formal conventions of a non-fiction sub-genre (e.g. memoir, investigative journalism, a collection of documents), and never attempts to break this barrier (i.e. there is no metafictional commentary beyond theme and no elements that would be considered implausible/fantastical are introduced). This would rule out, for example, Saunder's Lincoln in the Bardo, which is structured as an "oral history" book but has spirits conversing alongside the faux historical accounts. 

The question that follows is: Are epistolary novels and diary narratives non-fiction fiction? In many ways they would be, except how did we gain access to this diary or correspondence? Who put it together and why? Unless these questions are addressed as they would be when you read Woolf's diaries or Plath's correspondence, for example, they do not count.

So now that that's settled, let us move on to the actual (modest for now) list. As with my campus novels masterlist, I have divided the books into four categories, and each book gets a one-line review and a link to their GR page. Especially because I've only recently began seriously collecting books of this genre, please do tweet me if you have any suggestions! (I am unable to buy books in English at the moment, but believe your rec will be seriously appreciated and I'll add it to my to-buy list.)

((Adored))

1. Little Blue Encyclopedia, Hazel Jane Plante - Full review here, but basically an extremely relevant concept, perfectly executed.
2. The People in the Trees, Hanya Yanagihara - SEVERELY underrated and overlooked, this gem  is slow to start but of enduring effect and utterly worthwhile. 

((Alright))

((NOs))

((TBR))

1. His Bloody Project, Graeme Macrae Burnet
2. Fictional Film Club, Mark Savage