EileenEileen
Score Modern
What it's about
Trapped between caring for her alcoholic father and her job as a secretary at a boys' prison, Eileen Dunlop dreams of escaping to the big city.
Why it's worth reading
It was a finalist for the Booker Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award.
You'll love it if you liked
My Year of Rest and Relaxation
We Need to Talk About Kevin
The Secret HistoryGood to know
It's a literary novel.
By the numbers
- Readers1 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics49 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Bestseller28 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Buzz4 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
- #542 of the 623 mysteries and thrillers we rank
- #1462 of the 1,647 modern books we rank
- #2750 of the 3,056 books we rank
Why it made the list
Reads as
Gripping, Moving
More by Ottessa Moshfegh
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Mysteries and thrillersTop 25 · 623 ranked
Modern booksTop 25 · 1,647 ranked
Books of the 2010sTop 25 · 751 ranked
Fantasy booksTop 25 · 504 ranked
Literary novelsTop 25 · 325 ranked
Pulitzer Prize-winning novelsTop 25 · 63 ranked
Memoirs and biographiesTop 25 · 290 ranked
Science fiction booksTop 25 · 333 rankedQuick answers
Is Eileen worth reading?
Yes. It was a finalist for the Booker Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award. It ranks #2,750 of the 3,056 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 57.5 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is Eileen about?
Trapped between caring for her alcoholic father and her job as a secretary at a boys' prison, Eileen Dunlop dreams of escaping to the big city.
How long does it take to read Eileen?
About 7 hours (284 pages), or about 2 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after Eileen?
If you liked it, try My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh, We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver or The Secret History by Donna Tartt.