Books like This Boy's Life

This Boy's Life by Tobias Wolff reads as stark, melancholic. These 12 books share its genome — matched by how they actually read, not just their shelf label.

Coming of Age in Mississippi

Anne Moody · 1968

Shares the escape + comingofage thread

69% genome match

Bad blood

Lorna Sage · 2000

Shares the escape + vspare thread

69% genome match

Small Fry

Lisa Brennan-Jobs · 2018

Shares the comingofage + vspare thread

69% genome match

Persepolis 1 & 2

Marjane Satrapi · 2003

Shares the escape + comingofage thread

69% genome match

Prozac nation

Elizabeth Wurtzel · 1994

Shares the comingofage + vspare thread

69% genome match

A boy's own story

Edmund White · 1982

Shares the escape + comingofage thread

69% genome match

Riding in Cars with Boys

Beverly Donofrio · 1990

Shares the escape + comingofage thread

69% genome match

House Rules

Rachel Sontag · 2008

Shares the vspare thread

73% genome match

Dancing on my grave

Gelsey Kirkland · 1986

Shares the vspare thread

69% genome match

Jarhead

Anthony Swofford · 2003

Shares the vspare thread

73% genome match

Baby driver

Jan Kerouac · 1981

Shares the escape + comingofage thread

69% genome match

Angelhead

Greg Bottoms · 2000

Shares the vspare thread

72% genome match