The most commercially successful books can be summed up in one sentence: a coming-of-age story about a shy and awkward teenager who goes on to save the world. Case in point, Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, Spider-Man, Matrix, Star Wars, and Lord of the Rings, just to name a few.
Taking into consideration slight cosmetic variations, it's more or less the same predictable formula rehashed over and over. And with good reason. There isn't a lot of thinking required. It's simple and straightforward entertainment for the general audience.
But for sophisticated readers who've grown bored and tired of the cliche narrative of the mega industry's money-making formula, here's a short list of books that break the mold in new and inventive ways that make them hard to explain.
