The Great Believers
A Novel
by Rebecca Makkai
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More Recommenders
“@DHeiligman @unlikelybkstore @rebeccamakkai I LOVED that book. Reading @britrbennett's The Vanishing Half and it's amazing. So was The Mothers. | A post #SNP19 book recommendation this by @rebeccamakkai is brilliant. Set in mid 1980s Chicago and modern day Paris, it’s a very moving story about the devastation of the AIDS crisis. | I don't but maybe I will make one! This year almost everything I've read so far has been fucking amazing: I rec Lot by Bryan Washington, The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai, Fleishman Is In Trouble by Taffy Akner, Exhalation by the GOAT Ted Chiang, Normal People by Sally Rooney”
Source →“@DHeiligman @unlikelybkstore @rebeccamakkai I LOVED that book. Reading @britrbennett's The Vanishing Half and it's amazing. So was The Mothers. | A post #SNP19 book recommendation this by @rebeccamakkai is brilliant. Set in mid 1980s Chicago and modern day Paris, it’s a very moving story about the devastation of the AIDS crisis. | I don't but maybe I will make one! This year almost everything I've read so far has been fucking amazing: I rec Lot by Bryan Washington, The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai, Fleishman Is In Trouble by Taffy Akner, Exhalation by the GOAT Ted Chiang, Normal People by Sally Rooney”
Source →Recommended by 4 notable people, including Nancy Pearl and Jia Tolentino
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Should I read this?
Recommended by 5 sources and appears in Most Recommended Books and Fiction.
A dazzling new novel of friendship and redemption in the face of tragedy and loss set in 1980s Chicago and contemporary ParisIn 1985, Yale Tishman, the development director for an art gallery in Chicago, is about to pull off an amazing coup, bringing in an extraordinary collection of 1920s paintings as a gift to the gallery. Yet as his career begin...
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Why recommended
Recommended by 5 sources and appears in Most Recommended Books and Fiction.
Recommended by notable people
People and public figures who have recommended this book.
Recommendation Signals
Recommendation proof is sourced from public posts, interviews, reading lists, and cited references.
Nancy Pearl
“@DHeiligman @unlikelybkstore @rebeccamakkai I LOVED that book. Reading @britrbennett's The Vanishing Half and it's amazing. So was The Mothers. | A post #SNP19 book recommendation this by @rebeccamakkai is brilliant. Set in mid 1980s Chicago and modern day Paris, it’s a very moving story about the devastation of the AIDS crisis. | I don't but maybe I will make one! This year almost everything I've read so far has been fucking amazing: I rec Lot by Bryan Washington, The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai, Fleishman Is In Trouble by Taffy Akner, Exhalation by the GOAT Ted Chiang, Normal People by Sally Rooney”
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Appears In
Not sure if this is the right fit?
Consider The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett. Recommended by 5 sources.
“This sprawling, detail-rich historical novel follows cathedral builders, nobles, and townspeople across decades, delivering immersive scene-setting and a steady accumulation of plotlines. Its useful part is the sustained attention to craft—architecture, politics, rivalry—that makes the medieval world tangible. The main limitation is repetitive melodrama and swings in pacing: long, satisfying set pieces sit beside stretches that feel slow or contrived. Better read slowly rather than skimmed; readers who stick it out will find payoff in the concluding convergences.”
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Each recommendation is collected from a public source — interviews, articles, or curated lists — and linked to its original URL. Books with many verifiable recommendations from respected people rank higher.
The Great Believers
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