A Truce That Is Not PeaceA Truce That Is Not Peace
What it's about
'Why do you write?' an organizer of a literary event in Mexico City asks Miriam Toews. Each of her attempted answers uncovers new layers of grief, guilt and futility connected to her sister's suicide, and to a lifelong internal conversation, in a short memoir about whether to live life as a comedy or a tragedy.
Why it's worth reading
It was a National Book Critics Circle Award finalist. Toews writes about grief with rare humor and honesty.
You'll love it if you liked
The Year of Magical Thinking
Notes on Grief
A Grief ObservedGood to know
It's short and fragmentary. It deals with suicide.
By the numbers
- Readers64 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics21 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Bestseller0 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Buzz72 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
- #191 of the 290 memoirs and biographies we rank
- #235 of the 481 new books we rank
- #1341 of the 2,816 books we rank
Why it made the list
Reads as
True story
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Quick answers
Is A Truce That Is Not Peace worth reading?
Yes. It was a National Book Critics Circle Award finalist. It ranks #1,341 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 69.6 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is A Truce That Is Not Peace about?
'Why do you write?' an organizer of a literary event in Mexico City asks Miriam Toews. Each of her attempted answers uncovers new layers of grief, guilt and futility connected to her sister's suicide, and to a lifelong internal conversation, in a short memoir about whether to live life as a comedy or a tragedy.
How long does it take to read A Truce That Is Not Peace?
About 4 hours (178 pages), or about 8 days at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after A Truce That Is Not Peace?
If you liked it, try The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion, Notes on Grief by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie or A Grief Observed by CS Lewis.