Either way, that most private of things, divorce, is now being picked up and held to the light. And I, for one, can’t stop looking at it.
Below, seven more messy divorce novels and memoirs to read (or revisit) now:
Heartburn by Nora Ephron (1983)
This novel is over four decades old, yet it remains an absolute font of wisdom (not to mention wit) for any and all women scorned. In Heartburn, Ephron gives a thinly veiled account of the end of her own second marriage that’s alternately hilarious and heartbreaking. But don’t worry; her real life had a happy ending.
The Fixed Stars by Molly Wizenberg (2020)
Wizenberg’s emerging queerness and ensuing divorce from her husband are the central themes of this riveting memoir. Reading about how she and her family made space for her identity is a welcome reminder that the end of a marriage can sometimes usher in a more honest and well-rounded life.
With Teeth by Kristen Arnett (2021)
In With Teeth, as Sammie and her wife Monika struggle to raise their uniquely mystifying son, Samson, Sammie reaches her limit. There’s nothing remotely idealized about Sammie and Monika’s relationship or eventual split, but Arnett’s portrait of their family dynamic is captivating.
Sankofa by Chibundu Onuzo (2021)
This novel gives its female protagonist, Anna, a rich storyline beyond the bounds of her recent separation from her husband: Anna, a young biracial woman living in England, returns to her Nigerian hometown to seek out the truth about her father’s death, richly complicating the divorce narrative.
You Could Make This Place Beautiful by Maggie Smith (2023)
You Could Make This Place Beautiful
“We carry the past inside us. We take ourselves–all of our selves–wherever we go,” poet Smith writes in this lyrical and innovatively crafted memoir about committing to herself first and foremost in the aftermath of her divorce from the father of her children.
Clam Down by Anelise Chen (2025)
The title of this book, as well as its central conceit, is taken from a typo in a text that the narrator’s mother sends to her. Shortly after her divorce, Chen’s narrator is transformed into a clam in a clever and fantastical update to Kafka’s The Metamorphosis.
Maggie; or, A Man and a Woman Walk Into a Bar
A Chinese-American woman names her newly discovered tumor after her husband’s mistress in this quirky, thoughtful, and genuinely funny exploration of what it means to be left behind by your partner and discover a whole new life in the wake of your relationship’s destruction.
#Books #Divorce
