I had the best of intentions to challenge myself this week, but when I started thinking about my favorite books that feature friendships (as hosted by The Broke and the Bookish), the first books that came to mind were all by Stephen King. Who am I to go against instinct? I did manage to limit it to four.
10. The Secret History by Donna Tartt. Because nothing brings people together like a dead person.
09. Dreamcatcher by Stephen King. Or an alien invasion. That can do it to.
08. A Man Came Out of the Door in the Mountain by Adrienne Harun. Or when the devil seemingly walks among us.
07. The Body by Stephen King*. See reasoning for #10.
06. Shotgun Lovesongs by Nikolas Butler. Friendship, one of the perks of small town living. That, and you can’t pull any shit.
05. IT by Stephen King. Clowns can do it too, they’re terrifying. And everyone knows that terror is better shared, right? Oh, and a dead body.
04. The Good Lord Bird by James McBride. A war binds people in a way they can’t escape. Little Onion and John Brown are quite the pair.
03. Fridays at Enrico’s by Don Carpenter. Writers being friends with other writers while talking about writing. Shocking, I know.
02. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. Books, friendship, and growing up.
01. The Green Mile by Stephen King. Death row is intense. Though seriously, this is a lovely story.
What are your favorite books about friendship? I’ll be honest, strong friendships are not a hallmark of the literature I typically read.
*I feel like The Body/Stand by Me has been on every other list as of late, but I can’t help it, I love it so. Fabulous ’80s movie + excellent novella = excessive promotion. My apologies.
flannel and folklore 
When I saw this week’s TT subject, I immediately thought of IT and THE BODY.
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Yes, well great minds and all that. Plus, obviously great choices.
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I can tell you are a King fan. I haven’t read much by him, but you are right, he does friendship really well. That’s not something that usually pops into my mind when i think of King.
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Just a little. 🙂
He gets pinned as horror a lot, which can be true, but even within that he has some really great characters.
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I love that you have so many books I didn’t see on other lists, especially The Secret History, which I wouldn’t have though of (maybe because the friendships are so “special”). I just started The Good Lord Bird last night and Onion is already cracking me up.
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I think friendship is a serious theme, I just didn’t want to take it seriously for this post.
I LOVE the humor in that book!
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How did I miss Perks of Being a Wallflower in my post?! Aghh, dying. Great list!
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Thank you 🙂
But you got Harry Potter, that was a fail on my part.
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I’d never really thought much about it until I saw your list, but Stephen King can definitely craft a friendship story. Right on!
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He really can, the very first book I thought of was IT.
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Your comment about The Secret History cracked me up.
All the King stuff. Someday I’ll be able to read an article of yours and be able to understand all your literary references. Lol Someday.
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Yes you will, I know it!
I just can’t take the lovey-dovey-sentimental friendship stuff too seriously. It reminds me of women’s fiction.
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PERKS! Yesssssssssssss!
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Good list. I think The Art of Racing in the Rain is one of my favorite books on friendship, about a dog’s friendship with his owner.
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Emma Bull’s Finder. It nails friendship (for me) in a way no other book has.
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I wouldn’t have immediately thought of Stephen King books when it came to those topics, but those you have picked are so perfect!
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Perks of Being a Wallflower is a great story about friendship. I think for teenage misfits, good friendships can be the only thing that gets them through high school relatively intact.
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I knew there would be a few Stephen King titles 🙂 From your list, I’ll probably read Shotgun Lovesongs next
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