Novellas are works of prose fiction longer than a short story but shorter than a novel. [1] Several novellas have been recognized as among the best examples of the literary form. Publishers and literary award societies typically consider a novella's word count to be between 17,000 and 40,000 words. [2] [3]
Certain novellas have been recognized as the best examples of the literary form, through their appearance on multiple best-of lists. [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]
Author | Title | Published | References |
---|---|---|---|
Albert Camus | The Stranger | 1942 | [4] [5] [6] [9] [10] |
Truman Capote | Breakfast at Tiffany's | 1958 | [4] [5] [9] [10] |
Joseph Conrad | Heart of Darkness | 1899 | [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [11] |
Charles Dickens | A Christmas Carol | 1843 | [4] [5] [7] [9] [11] |
Ernest Hemingway | The Old Man and the Sea | 1952 | [4] [6] [7] [8] [9] [11] [10] |
Franz Kafka | The Metamorphosis | 1915 | [4] [5] [7] [8] [9] [11] [10] |
Richard Matheson | I Am Legend | 1954 | [6] [7] [9] [11] |
Herman Melville | Billy Budd | 1924 | [5] [8] |
George Orwell | Animal Farm | 1945 | [4] [5] [7] [8] [9] [11] [10] |
Philip Roth | Goodbye, Columbus | 1959 | [6] [8] |
John Steinbeck | Of Mice and Men | 1937 | [4] [7] [9] [11] [10] |
Robert Louis Stevenson | Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde | 1886 | [4] [5] [9] [10] |
Edith Wharton | Ethan Frome | 1911 | [5] [6] [9] [10] |
Additionally, several novellas have been included on at least one best-of list.
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George Raymond Richard Martin also known by the initials G.R.R.M. is an American author, television writer, and television producer. He is best known as the author of the series of epic fantasy novels A Song of Ice and Fire, which were adapted into the Primetime Emmy Award–winning television series Game of Thrones (2011–2019) and its prequel series House of the Dragon (2022–present). He also helped create the Wild Cards anthology series and contributed worldbuilding for the video game Elden Ring (2022).
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Of Mice and Men is a 1937 novella written by American author John Steinbeck. It describes the experiences of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant ranch workers, as they move from place to place in California, searching for jobs during the Great Depression.
A novella is a narrative prose fiction whose length is shorter than most novels, but longer than most novelettes and short stories. The English word novella derives from the Italian novella meaning a short story related to true facts.
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a short novel: a story that is longer than a short story but shorter than a novel