Inspired by this post and Mrs. Wheeler. Here are some book recommendations based on ONTD's favorite characters from Stranger Things.
This post contains spoilers from season 2, so if you're not caught up you might want to skip it.
If your favorite character is: Jim Hopper
Then you should read:The Shiralee by D'Arcy Niland
Several ONTD members loved watching Hopper and Eleven's relationship unfold throughout season 2. Now that Hopper has officially adopted Eleven, we can all look forward to more interactions in season 3. D'Arcy Niland's novel depicts a similarly complicated father-daughter relationship.
Synopsis: Two mismatched figures traipse between the plains towns of New South Wales. Tough man Macauley is an itinerant worker used to a solitary life on the road, nights by the campfire and holding his own when the bar brawls break out. Struggling to keep up is four-year-old Buster – his shiralee, his burden, his daughter – plucked from her neglectful mother out of spite. Macauley sees Buster as a curb on his unshackled life but her buoyant spirit and unwavering trust in him threaten to soften his hard edges for the very first time. Emotional, exciting, funny and punctuated by scenes of incredible tension, The Shiralee is a novel of life and companionship on the road and of the power of the ties that bind.
If your favorite character is: Barb
Then you should read:Hangsaman by Shirley Jackson
This season, ONTD finally got #JusticeforBarb. Inspired by the disappearance of a Bennington College sophomore in 1946, "Hangsaman" is the perfect Halloween read.
Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Natalie Waite longs to escape home for college. Her father is a domineering and egotistical writer who keeps a tight rein on Natalie and her long-suffering mother. When Natalie finally does get away, however, college life doesn’t bring the happiness she expected. Little by little, Natalie is no longer certain of anything—even where reality ends and her dark imaginings begin. Chilling and suspenseful, Hangsaman is loosely based on the real-life disappearance of a Bennington College sophomore in 1946.
If your favorite character is: Steve Harrington
Then you should read:Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers
ONTD's new boyfriend had the most character development this season, and members were particularly charmed by Steve's interaction with the kids.
Synopsis: When Jane and Michael Banks draw up an advertisement for a nanny, Mary Poppins arrives on a gust of the East Wind and slides up the bannister, changing their lives forever.Their wonderful new nanny is strict but fair, and full of surprises. Soon the Banks children are whisked off on the most exciting and magical adventures they have ever had. But Mary Poppins has only promised to stay until the wind changes...
If your favorite character is: Dustin Henderson
Then you should read:Cujo by Stephen King
Dustin was busy dealing with family pets this season, so it only seems fitting to recommend this famous Stephen King novel.
Synopsis: Outside a peaceful town in central Maine, a monster is waiting. Cujo is a two-hundred-pound Saint Bernard, the best friend Brett Camber has ever had. One day Cujo chases a rabbit into a bolt-hole - a cave inhabited by sick bats. What happens to Cujo, how he becomes a horrifying vortex inexorably drawing in all the people around him makes for one of the most heart-stopping novels Stephen King has written.
If your favorite character is: Max Mayfield
Then you should read:Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren
Max is the new kid in the neighborhood, and hopefully she'll contribute more to the plot in the next season.
Synopsis: Tommy and his sister Annika have a new neighbor, and her name is Pippi Longstocking. She has crazy red pigtails, no parents to tell her what to do, a horse that lives on her porch, and a flair for the outrageous that seems to lead to one adventure after another!
If your favorite character is: Nancy Wheeler
Then you should read:The Hidden Staircase by Carolyn Keene
Nancy didn't have much to do this season, and many ONTD members were disappointed yet again by the teen storyline. However, she was involved in unmasking the laboratory responsible for Barb's death. #JusticeforNancy
Synopsis: Nancy resolves to help Helen Corning's relatives solve the mystery of the ghost haunting their old mansion. A mysterious man appears at the Drew home to warn Nancy that her father, Carson Drew is in danger. This warning prompts a search for the missing Willie Wharton, a land owner, who can prove he signed away his land to the railroad and save the railroad from a lawsuit. Meanwhile, the disappearance of Mr. Drew, thefts and mysterious goings on at Twin Elms, and the discovery of a hidden staircase lead Nancy to solve these baffling mysteries.
If your favorite character is: Karen Wheeler
Then you should read:Suddenly You by Lisa Kleypas
The character who inspired OP to make this post, Mrs. Wheeler was spotted reading a Johanna Lindsey Old Skool romance when Max's brother came knocking at her door. Lisa Kleypas'"Suddenly You" is a historical romance novel which depicts a relationship between an older woman and a young man. I'm sure Mrs. Wheeler would love reading it.
Synopsis: She was unmarried, untouched and almost thirty, but novelist Amanda Briars wasn't about to greet her next birthday without making love to a man. When he appeared at her door, she believed he was her gift to herself, hired for one night of passion. Unforgettably handsome, irresistibly virile, he tempted her in ways she never thought possible, but something stopped him from completely fulfilling her dream.
If your favorite character is: Jonathan Byers
Then you should read:The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
Nobody's favorite character outside Tumblr, Jonathan's purpose this season was to get laid and remind us that Steve will always be the superior ONTD boyfriend.
Synopsis: Since his debut in 1951 as The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield has been synonymous with "cynical adolescent." Holden narrates the story of a couple of days in his sixteen-year-old life, just after he's been expelled from prep school, in a slang that sounds edgy even today and keeps this novel on banned book lists.
If your favorite character is: Will Byers
Then you should read:The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty
Will's actor impressed many ONTD members this season. Considering part of the research for the role involved watching videos of demonic possessions, "The Exorcist" seems to be a solid recommendation for avid readers.
Synopsis: Inspired by a true story of a child's demonic possession in the 1940s, William Peter Blatty created an iconic novel that focuses on Regan, the eleven-year-old daughter of a movie actress residing in Washington, D.C. A small group of overwhelmed yet determined individuals must rescue Regan from her unspeakable fate, and the drama that ensues is gripping and unfailingly terrifying.
If your favorite character is: Lucas Sinclair
Then you should read:Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
OP hopes Lucas is given more to do in season 3. Lucas' season 2 storyline involved baby demagorgons, video game scores, and a budding romance with Max.
Synopsis: In the year 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is when he's jacked into the virtual utopia known as the OASIS. Wade's devoted his life to studying the puzzles hidden within this world's digital confines, puzzles that are based on their creator's obsession with the pop culture of decades past and that promise massive power and fortune to whoever can unlock them. When Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by players willing to kill to take this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade's going to survive, he'll have to win—and confront the real world he's always been so desperate to escape.
If your favorite character is: Joyce Byers
Then you should read:Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin
Joyce just can't catch a break, can she?
Synopsis: Rosemary Woodhouse and her struggling actor-husband Guy move into the Bramford, an old New York City apartment building with an onimous reputation and only elderly residents. Neighbours Roman and Minnie Castavet soon come nosing around to welcome them and, despite Rosemary's reservations about their eccentricity and the weird noises she keeps hearing, her husband starts spending time with them. Shortly after Guy lands a plum Broadway role, Rosemary becomes pregnant and the Castavets start taking a special interest in her welfare. As the sickened Rosemary becomes increasingly isolated, she begins to suspect that the Castavet's circle is not what it seems.
If your favorite character is: Mike Wheeler
Then you should read:Let the Right One In by John Ajvide Lindqvist
I struggled to find a suitable book for Mike, since he didn't have much of a storyline this season. This might seem like a lazy suggestion, but hopefully season 3 gives us more material to work with.
Synopsis: It is autumn 1981 when the inconceivable comes to Blackeberg, a suburb in Sweden. The body of a teenage boy is found, emptied of blood, the murder rumored to be part of a ritual killing. Twelve-year-old Oskar is personally hoping that revenge has come at long last—revenge for the bullying he endures at school, day after day.
But the murder is not the most important thing on his mind. A new girl has moved in next door—a girl who has never seen a Rubik’s Cube before, but who can solve it at once. There is something wrong with her, though, something odd. And she only comes out at night....
If your favorite character is: Eleven / Jane Hopper
Then you should read:Vicious by V.E. Schwab
Eleven was a pretty busy bee this season. Her relationships with Hopper, Mike, and Kali (Eight) were heavily focused on, as was her emotional reunion with her mother and the use of her powers. Many viewers enjoyed her relationship with Hopper and Mike, but thought her storyline with Kali in episode 7 was mostly filler.
Synopsis: A masterful tale of ambition, jealousy, desire, and superpowers: Victor and Eli started out as college roommates—brilliant, arrogant, lonely boys who recognized the same sharpness and ambition in each other. In their senior year, a shared research interest in adrenaline, near-death experiences, and seemingly supernatural events reveals an intriguing possibility: that under the right conditions, someone could develop extraordinary abilities. But when their thesis moves from the academic to the experimental, things go horribly wrong.
If your favorite character is: Erica Sinclair
Then you should read:The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley
NETFLIX, YOU BETTER MAKE HER A SERIES REGULAR NEXT YEAR ISTG!
Synopsis: In his wickedly brilliant first novel, Debut Dagger Award winner Alan Bradley introduces one of the most singular and engaging heroines in recent fiction: eleven-year-old Flavia de Luce, an aspiring chemist with a passion for poison. It is the summer of 1950—and a series of inexplicable events has struck Buckshaw, the decaying English mansion that Flavia’s family calls home. A dead bird is found on the doorstep, a postage stamp bizarrely pinned to its beak. Hours later, Flavia finds a man lying in the cucumber patch and watches him as he takes his dying breath. For Flavia, who is both appalled and delighted, life begins in earnest when murder comes to Buckshaw.
Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14.
