The best book club novels with depth and all the feels

The book is set in the early eighties against the backdrop of the Handsworth riots and the royal wedding. 

Nine-year-old Leon narrates his own story which makes it more heart-wrenching as he doesn’t really know what’s going on. When it’s obvious his mum can’t parent her boys, Leon and Jake are taken into care. 

They go to a foster carer called Maureen who is desperate to keep the brothers together. But, baby Jake is a more attractive adoption prospect. He’s small but more importantly he’s white, whereas Leon’s father is black. So, Jake is taken by a ‘nice’ family to live a ‘nice’ life whilst Leon is abandoned within the care system. 

The story could be just another book following a child into the care system but My Name is Leon is so much more than that because of Leon. Leon is young, Leon is joyful, Leon has hope.

For many reasons, this book will stay in my mind and heart for a long time. 

Perhaps a good choice for Black History month.

Eleanor Oliphant is a socially awkward, spiky misfit, an interesting mixture of naïve and worldly wise. She tells us of her comforting but rather odd routines. We see how alcohol is her only friend. He numbs her pain and enables her to function at work.

When we meet Eleanor, she's infatuated with a singer she's never met. As the plot deepens, we come to understand Eleanor Oliphant is not completely fine.

There are some emotionally heavy themes but the author manages to keep the narrative light and witty. Eleanor is a rich and complex character positioned perfectly to tell her story. The book is uplifting and inspiring with an ending that was not unexpected but sufficiently powerful to shock. 

The Joy is in the depth of character. It’s a story of love and friendship against the odds. 

When I started this book, I wasn’t sure if I’d like it. It was a bit slower than I enjoy and I knew it had been translated which often puts me off.

We first meet a grumpy horror of a man who no one would enjoy being friends with. But gradually you come to understand this poor soul has lost the love of his life and the way he behaves is spilling out from his deep inner despair. No one can help him and he wants to join his beloved wife in death.

But gradually, with the help of his neighbours and the reconnection of old friends, he finds a purpose, and from the ashes, a hero emerges whilst we all stand back and applaud.

A beautifully written book that you won’t be able to put down once you get to know this man called Ove. 

Still Alice could be about me, or you which is why it is such an emotional read. Alice is not the frumpy old lady who comes to mind when people speak of dementia. She is fifty and at the height of her career as a lecturer.

Alice tells her own story. You don’t just read, you feel what she feels. The confusion when she first forgets, the hurt and despair when she’s diagnosed, to the sadness of losing her children’s names.

The narrative mirrors her diminishing cognitive capacity – at first, she has the precision of a Psychology Professor but gradually her sentences lose content and places become vague.

It is one of the most accurate but sensitive portrayals of the descending trajectory of dementia. A book that will make you laugh and cry but reconnect you with what and who is important.

Despite being a few years old, this continues to be my favourite novel of the decade. I even loved the film.

Will Trainer has everything. Wealthy, clever, successful, and handsome. The world is his oyster until it isn’t! In a heartbeat he goes from the bloke everyone admires to the one everyone pities. 

Paralysed from the neck down, Will’s life is over and he’s drowning in self-loathing. However, much money his parents throw at the problem, it’s not going away. He’s trapped in a wheelchair forever. Several nurses leave after days because their patient is so vile.

Then, comes glorious, joyful Lou. From a working-class family, she’s without expectation or privilege but so clever and perceptive. It’s easy to see where the story is going but you can’t help falling in love alongside Lou and Will. There’s no hope but you’ll long for a miracle. And that ending, I have not read anything that competes with the impact of the final pages since... expect to ugly cry!