Novellas are works of prose fiction longer than a short story but shorter than a novel.[1] Several novellas have been recognized as among the best examples of the literary form. Publishers and literary award societies typically consider a novella's word count to be between 17,000 and 40,000 words.[2][3]
Certain novellas have been recognized as the best examples of the literary form, through their appearance on multiple best-of lists.[4][5][6][7][8]
Author | Title | Published | References |
---|---|---|---|
Albert Camus | The Stranger | 1942 | [4][5][6][9][10] |
Truman Capote | Breakfast at Tiffany's | 1958 | [4][5][9][10] |
Joseph Conrad | Heart of Darkness | 1899 | [5][6][7][8][9][11] |
Charles Dickens | A Christmas Carol | 1843 | [4][5][7][9][11] |
Ernest Hemingway | The Old Man and the Sea | 1952 | [4][6][7][8][9][11][10] |
Franz Kafka | The Metamorphosis | 1915 | [4][5][7][8][9][11][10] |
Richard Matheson | I Am Legend | 1954 | [6][7][9][11] |
Herman Melville | Billy Budd | 1924 | [5][8] |
George Orwell | Animal Farm | 1945 | [4][5][7][8][9][11][10] |
Philip Roth | Goodbye, Columbus | 1959 | [6][8] |
John Steinbeck | Of Mice and Men | 1937 | [4][7][9][11][10] |
Robert Louis Stevenson | Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde | 1886 | [4][5][9][10] |
Edith Wharton | Ethan Frome | 1911 | [5][6][9][10] |
Additionally, several novellas have been included on at least one best-of list.
a short novel: a story that is longer than a short story but shorter than a novel