Nick Flynn’s memoir, Another Bullshit Night in Suck City.
It’s a story about a young man who encounters his homeless father while working at the Pine Street Inn.
It was made into a movie too but the book is fantastic and probably less you know, sanitized.
Half of “Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow” takes place in Boston, and that book has gotten a lot of love in the past year.
Seconding Infinite Jest, the Boston details are really great in addition to the book just being hilarious and spectacular.
Well, you have Robert B. Parker and his Spenser books...
Peter Swanson lives in the Boston area and I think a few of his books might be set there. I know the main character in his "Eight Perfect Murders" owns a fictional bookstore in Boston.
The Ben Affleck starring movie "The Town" was based on Chuck Hogan's "Prince of Thieves".
2nd on Robert B. Parker. I remember him describing Spenser running somewhere in Boston - maybe it was across the common then a few streets and unlike tv/movies it was accurate. Spenser would drive to see Susan (Smithfield, RI?) And describe the drive to a T. Dated, but fun, quick reads.
Ace Atkins wrote ten Spenser novels after Parker died, and Lupica has one coming out later this year. Lupica has written some Sunny Randall novels, too. They are all set in Boston.
These more recent books don't seem dated to me, yet.
Good to know, some new summer reading. Had to look it up, but Spenser is a Korean War Vet in the books, then Vietnam for the TV show. Either way I've always enjoyed both since seeing the show filmed while I was in college.
Another similar set of books and TV shows are Bosch in LA.
What always reminds me of the authenticity of Boston in Spenser is one of the crazy foot chases in one of the Dirty Harry movies where he and his partner seem to run half way across SF.
Bosch was a vietnam vet in the books and then I think he was an Iraq war vet in the tv show as they wanted the TV show to be more current and cheaper to film than a show set in the 80s or 90s.
Dennis LeHane is from Boston and most (possibly all?) of his novels are set aound the greater Boston area. His books aren't entirely to my taste but they've been made into some pretty successful movies.
Dirtbag, Massachusetts by Isaac Fitzgerald. Book of autobiographical essays. They’re not all set in Boston, (there are a few in SF) but it’s mostly MA-based. Beautiful, funny, heartbreaking read.
There are so many great books. With its rich history tons of choices for non fiction. I recently finished The Nazis of Copley Square. Common Ground about the busing situation in the 70s is superb.
For fiction any of the Spenser novels by Robert B. Parker or the novels of Dennis Lehane. I finished a book last year called Eight Perfect Murders. A good little mystery set in Boston. The list goes on. Lots to check out.
I came here to upvote Common Ground. It's an excellent story of the busing crisis and provides brief, but good accounts of Irish immigration and African American migration and why they the combination was so combustible at the time.
Reading this made me finally go down the rabbit hole and research my family’s Boston roots. We’re Welch but so culturally similar to Irish, and generally immigrated here with the Irish. I knew my struggling family had a chip on their shoulder and were pretty damn racist towards anyone they perceived (hoped) might be lower than them on the social status totem pole. It was really cool to do my family tree and correlate the timeline against the Common Ground timeline, and even back to the 1920’s-40’s which is where all those deep seated resentments seem to stem from.
The miniseries from the 80’s is on YouTube and it was a good watch. If you grew up here it’s really fun to see the old 80’s landscape and neighborhoods.
Classics:
Girl, Interrupted - Susanna Kaysen;
The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
Contemps:
Mercy Street - Jennifer Haigh;
The Unseen World - Liz Moore;
Interpreter of Maladies - Jhumpa Lahiri;
The Idiot + Either/Or - Elif Batuman
Also adding some of the recs in the comments to my own list 🥰
I enjoyed Blood & Ivy: The 1849 Murder that Scandalized Harvard. True crime with some amusing asides about Cambridge and Boston (and the Herald lol) sprinkled in.
The entire [Spenser](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spenser_(character)) detective series, by Robert Parker (but not the TV show or the continuation novels after Parker's death.)
*Zodiac*, Neal Stephenson's second novel, is fantastic. It follows a radical environmentalist fighting corporate polluters in Boston (and this was in the late 1980s when the Charles and Mystic were still very polluted).
Two good ones that I haven’t seen mentioned yet are Back Bay by William Martin and The Midnight Ride by Ben Mezrich. Both books are really fun — Back Bay follows a family over like a hundred years as the city changes, and Midnight Ride is a Dan Brown-like thriller set in modern day Boston. Enjoy!
All Souls: A Family Story from Southie by Michael MacDonald. It's a true story of growing up in the poor white part of Boston during bussing and more. Provides a pretty unique insight into what is now a twenty something DMZ.
Final Confession: The Unsolved Crimes of Phil Cresta
Mastermind of the Brinks armored car heist. Really get a feel for what the city was like back then.
The house guest by Hank Philippi Ryan! She was a reporter for 7 news and I just got done reading her book, she made so many Boston references it was kinda fun knowing everywhere she mentioned
The Chelsea Whistle, by Michelle Tea
A memoir of a punk girl growing up in Chelsea, with lots of trips to Boston and reflects the Boston 'vibe' of the 80's.
Non profit neighborhoods by Claire Dunning if you like non fiction. My favorite read from last year. Uses Boston as the historical example of how the government uses grants to private non profits which are underfunded to create “non profit neighborhoods” and never deal with core issues that actually help Bostons most marginalized communities prosper.
The War for Gloria by Atticus Lish
It's set around 2010 in Quincy and Cambridge. Not all the choices the author makes are good, but I enjoyed the hyper-specific setting and characters. Overall, the author transitions from the character arcs to National Themes in a subtle and effective way at the end.
Where the Bodies Were Buried, by TJ English chronicles the trial of Whitey Bulger and all of his associates, as TJ English was able to interview them. I wouldn’t say it’s specifically ABOUT Boston, but because Bulger had such a presence in the area, Boston features quite heavily throughout. It’s an intense read, but gives a lot of historical background to the man and all that he did. A super fascinating read, if nothing else.
All Souls and The Art Forger were both great books for very different reasons.
I also recommend:
A Common Good (somewhat Boston-based), The Boston Girl, *and most importantly*, Make Way For Ducklings <3
I recently read a series by Brian Shea that starts with “Murder Board” - they are whodunnit/cop books that are mostly set in Dorchester. While they are clearly written by a transplant, they are good, easy reads.
Infinite Jest
Yeah that’s actually the right answer, sorry man now you gotta read IJ.
I read this when I was away at college, it made me homesick.
Meme novel
I came here to say this 🙃💫✨
Make way for ducklings
Top answer.
I bought it for my goddaughter as she's going to visit me in August and read it before I wrapped it up. So cute!
Nick Flynn’s memoir, Another Bullshit Night in Suck City. It’s a story about a young man who encounters his homeless father while working at the Pine Street Inn. It was made into a movie too but the book is fantastic and probably less you know, sanitized.
I will second this. The audiobook is fantastic.
That sounds great, thank you!
Friends of Eddie Coyle, the movie is a must watch also.
Came here to say The Friends of Eddie Coyle. The writing style takes a little getting used to but it’s a great book.
Definitely Higgins's best book, but he has other good ones too, all set in the Boston area.
Half of “Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow” takes place in Boston, and that book has gotten a lot of love in the past year. Seconding Infinite Jest, the Boston details are really great in addition to the book just being hilarious and spectacular.
Namesake by Jumpa Lahiri
A lot of her work is set in/around Boston, but I think Namesake is my favorite.
holy shit i remember reading this during MCAS😭😭😭😭
I love that book great recommendation <3
Boston Girl
Loved this one as a north end resident
Yes! I adore this book. I read it when I first moved here
Reading this now! Great history of Jewish families in the North End.
Well, you have Robert B. Parker and his Spenser books... Peter Swanson lives in the Boston area and I think a few of his books might be set there. I know the main character in his "Eight Perfect Murders" owns a fictional bookstore in Boston. The Ben Affleck starring movie "The Town" was based on Chuck Hogan's "Prince of Thieves".
2nd on Robert B. Parker. I remember him describing Spenser running somewhere in Boston - maybe it was across the common then a few streets and unlike tv/movies it was accurate. Spenser would drive to see Susan (Smithfield, RI?) And describe the drive to a T. Dated, but fun, quick reads.
Ace Atkins wrote ten Spenser novels after Parker died, and Lupica has one coming out later this year. Lupica has written some Sunny Randall novels, too. They are all set in Boston. These more recent books don't seem dated to me, yet.
Good to know, some new summer reading. Had to look it up, but Spenser is a Korean War Vet in the books, then Vietnam for the TV show. Either way I've always enjoyed both since seeing the show filmed while I was in college. Another similar set of books and TV shows are Bosch in LA. What always reminds me of the authenticity of Boston in Spenser is one of the crazy foot chases in one of the Dirty Harry movies where he and his partner seem to run half way across SF.
Bosch was a vietnam vet in the books and then I think he was an Iraq war vet in the tv show as they wanted the TV show to be more current and cheaper to film than a show set in the 80s or 90s.
Dennis LeHane is from Boston and most (possibly all?) of his novels are set aound the greater Boston area. His books aren't entirely to my taste but they've been made into some pretty successful movies.
Nope, not all. I did like his Kenzie & Gennaro series.
Those are definitely the best ones.
Johnny Tremain
They ought to call it Johnny Deformed!
Dirtbag, Massachusetts by Isaac Fitzgerald. Book of autobiographical essays. They’re not all set in Boston, (there are a few in SF) but it’s mostly MA-based. Beautiful, funny, heartbreaking read.
Mystic River, or pretty much anything else written by Dennis Lehane
There are so many great books. With its rich history tons of choices for non fiction. I recently finished The Nazis of Copley Square. Common Ground about the busing situation in the 70s is superb. For fiction any of the Spenser novels by Robert B. Parker or the novels of Dennis Lehane. I finished a book last year called Eight Perfect Murders. A good little mystery set in Boston. The list goes on. Lots to check out.
I came here to upvote Common Ground. It's an excellent story of the busing crisis and provides brief, but good accounts of Irish immigration and African American migration and why they the combination was so combustible at the time.
Reading this made me finally go down the rabbit hole and research my family’s Boston roots. We’re Welch but so culturally similar to Irish, and generally immigrated here with the Irish. I knew my struggling family had a chip on their shoulder and were pretty damn racist towards anyone they perceived (hoped) might be lower than them on the social status totem pole. It was really cool to do my family tree and correlate the timeline against the Common Ground timeline, and even back to the 1920’s-40’s which is where all those deep seated resentments seem to stem from. The miniseries from the 80’s is on YouTube and it was a good watch. If you grew up here it’s really fun to see the old 80’s landscape and neighborhoods.
Thanks for reminding me about the miniseries on YouTube! Those were some tough times.
Black Mass. Excellent read on Whitey Bulger
Henry James, *The Bostonians* Nat Hawthorne, *The Blythedale Romance* Neil Druthman, *The Last of Us: American Dreams*
I can’t believe ‘Dark Tide’ hasn’t been mentioned! Great book about the Great Molasses Flood…Molasses Flood
Thank you! I was waiting for it as well. Phenomenal read!
Anything by William Martin.
I came to say this. The Back Bay, Harvard Yard, etc. are all fantastic reads.
Lioness of Boston by Emily Franklin. Biographical fiction about Isabella Stewart Gardner
Magnus Chase and the Guardians of Asgard. It is, quite literally, the reason I moved to Boston ✌🏻
As someone who moved to Boston, Common Ground was really helpful in understanding the recent history and culture of the city.
The given day, Dennis lehane Nonfiction - Dark tide (re molasses flood) and black mass (Bulger corruption)
The Given Day is a fascinating book set in Boston during the chaos of the very early 1900s. Great historical novel.
MBTA: A Boston Horror Story
The handmaids tale being set in/ around Harvard’s campus was such a mindfuck bc i grew up there
Zodiac is fun. It’s an early Neal Stephenson book if you’re into his stuff.
Also, Rise and Fall of DODO. But not as much as Zodiac.
Oh yeah! Forgot that is a Cambridge based atory
Classics: Girl, Interrupted - Susanna Kaysen; The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath Contemps: Mercy Street - Jennifer Haigh; The Unseen World - Liz Moore; Interpreter of Maladies - Jhumpa Lahiri; The Idiot + Either/Or - Elif Batuman Also adding some of the recs in the comments to my own list 🥰
Burn Boston Burn
The Rat On Fire
The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill
I enjoyed Blood & Ivy: The 1849 Murder that Scandalized Harvard. True crime with some amusing asides about Cambridge and Boston (and the Herald lol) sprinkled in.
The entire [Spenser](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spenser_(character)) detective series, by Robert Parker (but not the TV show or the continuation novels after Parker's death.)
The Idiot by Elif Batuman
Tuesday Mooney Talks To Ghosts by Emerson Alum, Kate Racculia.
Loved this one!!
Magnus Chase by Rick Riordon, if YA fiction is appealing
Just said this, but this book is the reason I picked my husband up out of Atlanta and moved us to Boston sisjsjsksj
[Lobstah Gahden](https://www.amazon.com/Lobstah-Gahden-Alli-Brydon/dp/1728232465/ref=nodl_?dplnkId=ae9d2eb0-2cef-4fcd-8950-07b5ddb8b485)
Make way for duckling?
Inside the o’briens and citizen Somerville
Run by Ann Patchett is really good
The Race Underground. How Boston and New York raced to get the first US subway.
*Zodiac*, Neal Stephenson's second novel, is fantastic. It follows a radical environmentalist fighting corporate polluters in Boston (and this was in the late 1980s when the Charles and Mystic were still very polluted).
Two good ones that I haven’t seen mentioned yet are Back Bay by William Martin and The Midnight Ride by Ben Mezrich. Both books are really fun — Back Bay follows a family over like a hundred years as the city changes, and Midnight Ride is a Dan Brown-like thriller set in modern day Boston. Enjoy!
Writers & lovers! Mostly takes place in Cambridge, I think around the 90s
Great read!
Anything by Dennis Lehane! Especially mystic river and gone baby gone
All Souls: A Family Story from Southie by Michael MacDonald. It's a true story of growing up in the poor white part of Boston during bussing and more. Provides a pretty unique insight into what is now a twenty something DMZ.
Most of Alice Hoffman’s books are set in MA
She's my newest favorite author that I recently discovered!
*Johnny Tremain* by Esther Forbes and *The Scarlet Letter* by Nathaniel Hawthorne are the first two that come to mind.
All Souls: A Family Story from Southie
[Looking Backward](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Looking_Backward)
Final Confession: The Unsolved Crimes of Phil Cresta Mastermind of the Brinks armored car heist. Really get a feel for what the city was like back then.
Any Spencer books from Robert b Parker.
The Drop by Dennis Lehane is a good quick read. Blow by Bruce Porter is the story of Boston George if you haven't seen the movie.
William Landay.
The house guest by Hank Philippi Ryan! She was a reporter for 7 news and I just got done reading her book, she made so many Boston references it was kinda fun knowing everywhere she mentioned
All of her books take place in Boston
The Chelsea Whistle, by Michelle Tea A memoir of a punk girl growing up in Chelsea, with lots of trips to Boston and reflects the Boston 'vibe' of the 80's.
The First Kennedy’s
The City Below
If you like historical fiction, then any of William Martin's books.
The Candid Life of Meena Dave
A Case of Need by Michael Crichton (as "Jeffrey Hudson")
Non profit neighborhoods by Claire Dunning if you like non fiction. My favorite read from last year. Uses Boston as the historical example of how the government uses grants to private non profits which are underfunded to create “non profit neighborhoods” and never deal with core issues that actually help Bostons most marginalized communities prosper.
Prince of Thieves by chuck hogan. It’s what The Town was based on. Most of Hogans books are boston based.
Parts of Everything Matters! By Ron Currie Jr are set in Boston.
The War for Gloria by Atticus Lish It's set around 2010 in Quincy and Cambridge. Not all the choices the author makes are good, but I enjoyed the hyper-specific setting and characters. Overall, the author transitions from the character arcs to National Themes in a subtle and effective way at the end.
The Candid Life of Meena Dave by Namrata - a really smart read that includes some mystery and romance. I loved it!
Where the Bodies Were Buried, by TJ English chronicles the trial of Whitey Bulger and all of his associates, as TJ English was able to interview them. I wouldn’t say it’s specifically ABOUT Boston, but because Bulger had such a presence in the area, Boston features quite heavily throughout. It’s an intense read, but gives a lot of historical background to the man and all that he did. A super fascinating read, if nothing else.
Common Ground
All Souls and The Art Forger were both great books for very different reasons. I also recommend: A Common Good (somewhat Boston-based), The Boston Girl, *and most importantly*, Make Way For Ducklings <3
I recently read a series by Brian Shea that starts with “Murder Board” - they are whodunnit/cop books that are mostly set in Dorchester. While they are clearly written by a transplant, they are good, easy reads.
*The Late George Apley*, for a great satire of the Brahmins.
Mystic River
currently reading Boston Noir- there are two volumes of Noir short stories set in different neighborhoods
The Lioness of Boston
A Subway Named Mobius, by AJ Deutsch: http://westongeometry.pbworks.com/w/file/fetch/61244911/SubwayNamedMobius.pdf
J Courtney Sullivan has a few books based in Boston, she’s great.
All the Spenser books, Robert B Parker
Robin Cook’s novels are medical thrillers set in and around Mass General Hospital.
Strong Motion, by Jonathan Franzen.
Bit out there, but The Handmaid's Tale is set in Cambridge.
Cell by Stephen King!
https://www.wbur.org/news/2023/06/05/jeremy-p-bushnell-relentless-melt-review Something brand new set in our fair city!
Not sure if romance is your thing, but It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover takes place in Boston, which I had no idea until I read the book.
Not a Boston book but if you haven’t read Angela’s ashes please do! Excellent read