What Was Literary Fiction? | The Nation

The strangely short history of a publishing niche.

Books & the Arts / October 10, 2023 What Was Literary Fiction? The strangely short history of a publishing niche. Dan Sinykin Share Copy Link Facebook X (Twitter) Bluesky Pocket Email Ad Policy The smallest book in the world is on display at the Frankfurt Book Fair, 1961. (Photo by Keystone / Getty Images) As an English professor, I’m often asked, “What do you like to read?” Sometimes I answer, “Literary fiction.” By that phrase, I mean fiction that privileges art over entertainment. I did not know until recently that literary fiction—the phrase, not what it stands for—grew up with me. We’re a

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