5 Short Books to Binge Before the Year Ends

Quick yet brilliant reads under 200 pages to catch up on your reading goals or beat the slump

It’s that time of year again: your Goodreads reading challenge is giving you the side-eye, the towering to-be-read pile looks impossible, and somehow it’s already mid-November. The good news? You don’t need a 600-page novel or a five-book series to finish strong.

Short books are the perfect way to end the year on a reading high. They fit into busy weeks, travel days, or cozy evenings when you crave a story that’s both brief and beautiful. These quick reads—spanning cozy fiction, science fiction, and fantasy—prove that great storytelling doesn’t depend on page count, and that sometimes less is, in fact, perfect—if not more. You can binge them all before the year ends and still carry them with you well into the next.

1. A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers

Genre: Sci-fi novella | Length: 160 pages

Set in a post-industrial, eco-conscious utopia, this futuristic novella follows Dex, a tea monk who ventures into the wilderness to try to find what’s missing in their life. They encounter a robot who accompanies them on their journey and serves as a philosophical guide as they both ponder the question: What do humans need?
This cozy, optimistic story is filled with kindness, reflection, whimsy, and ecological grace, making it perfect for readers who want a short, comforting sci-fi read.

2. Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan

Genre: Historical fiction | Length: 118 pages

Set in 1985 in a small community in Ireland, this historical fiction follows Bill Furlong, a 40-year-old working-class man who is delivering timber to local people in the run-up to Christmas when he makes a disturbing discovery. The question that arises is whether he will do something about it—or stay silent, like everyone else in the town.

In under 120 pages, Keegan captures how small individual choices can challenge entrenched social injustices, setting the story against the backdrop of a dark chapter in Ireland’s history: the Magdalene Laundries. Operated by Roman Catholic orders, these institutions imprisoned at least 30,000 “fallen” women—those deemed promiscuous or who had children out of wedlock—and subjected them to physical and psychological abuse. A poignant and emotional tale about a middle-class man’s moral dilemma and the quiet courage of ordinary people, this is a devastating story that lingers long after the final page.

3. Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa

Genre: Contemporary Japanese fiction, slice-of-life | Length: 160 pages

When Takako’s life collapses unexpectedly, she moves into her uncle’s tiny second-hand bookshop in Tokyo’s Jimbocho district. Surrounded by dust, books, and eccentric readers, she learns to start over and slowly rebuild her sense of self. This cozy Japanese bestseller is a warm story about healing, community, and the comfort of everyday routines and literature, making it a perfect read for anyone feeling burnt out by daily life and drawn to gentle slice-of-life fiction.

4. Orbital by Samantha Harvey

Genre: Philosophical science fiction | Length: 144 pages

Orbital follows six astronauts from different backgrounds aboard the International Space Station over the course of a single day. Their bonding, routines, scientific tasks, shared meals, and ordinary movements become reflective prose examining humanity, the nature of God, the meaning of life, the strange tenderness of being far from home, the Earth’s beauty, and existential threats such as climate change. Despite its cosmic setting, the novel feels deeply intimate and rewards readers who enjoy contemplative fiction.

5. Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata

Genre: Literary fiction | Length: 163 pages

Keiko has worked at the same convenience store for years and finds stability in its routines, even as the people around her pressure her to pursue a more “acceptable” life. Through her matter-of-fact narration, Sayaka Murata offers a sharp look at how rigid social expectations can shape—and suffocate—individual identity, and what it means to live on one’s own terms. Filled with subtle dark humour, the protagonist’s perspective feels unusual yet deeply sympathetic to anyone who has ever felt out of step with the world. It’s a short, memorable book that challenges readers to question who gets to define what is “normal.”

What makes these shorter books so exciting is how unpredictable they are. Each one brings a different voice, a different world, and a different way of telling a story—often in less than 200 pages. They’re easy to pick up but hard to shake off, and that’s what makes them such rewarding reads. If you’ve been wanting to try new authors or genres without committing to a massive novel, these slim stories are the perfect doorway to finding your next favourite read.