Arkansas pulses through American fiction like a vein of literary gold. From the haunted hollows of the Ozarks to the cotton fields of the Delta, this state breeds stories as wild and varied as its terrain—frontier justice dispensed with a shotgun, secrets festering in humid small towns, and gothic horrors lurking beneath Spanish moss. These novels don't just use Arkansas as scenery; they capture its soul, transforming the Natural State's contradictions and complexities into unforgettable fiction.
This young adult novel takes place in a small Arkansas town during World War II. Patty, a 12-year-old girl, secretly befriends Anton, a German prisoner of war held nearby.
Prejudice, family conflicts, and local suspicion shape Patty’s daily struggles as she forms this dangerous friendship. Through Patty’s eyes, readers witness vivid issues of loyalty, family, and identity in a troubled time.
Fourteen-year-old Mattie Ross sets out across the lawless Arkansas frontier after the murder of her father. She hires Rooster Cogburn, a tough, irritable US Marshal, to guide her through dangerous territory. Along the way they face ruthless criminals and unexpected allies.
Mattie’s stubborn determination and Portis’s sharp dialogue makes this adventure unforgettable.
Donald Harington’s novel follows traveling entertainer Gildon Beul as he arrives in a small Arkansas community. Using painted illustrations, Gildon shares colorful stories with the local Ozark residents.
His interactions with the townsfolk bring humor and warmth to the narrative. The novel captures rural life, local charm, and the relationships Gildon forms along his journey.
In rural 1950s Arkansas, seven-year-old Luke Chandler witnesses life’s struggles on his family’s cotton farm. Harvest season brings migrant workers, simmering tension, and hidden secrets.
Luke quietly observes life’s drama unfold around him, including conflict, family hardship, and deep local traditions. Grisham captures the realities and subtle tensions of small-town life through Luke’s observant eyes.
Andy Davidson crafts a dark southern gothic tale centered around young Miranda. She lives deep in the wild Arkansas bayous, surrounded by danger, strange forces, and powerful supernatural threats.
Miranda protects an orphaned boy while encountering violent men who are as unsettling as the supernatural realm itself. Davidson blends Southern realism with atmospheric horror in Miranda’s tension-filled story.
In Stephen Hunter’s fast-paced crime novel, Earl Swagger returns from World War II ready to restore lawfulness to Hot Springs, Arkansas. The town teems with corruption, mobsters, and illegal gambling rings.
With help from fellow ex-soldiers, Earl undertakes a dangerous mission filled with explosive action and confrontations against ruthless criminals. Hunter vividly captures Earl’s grit and Hot Springs’ criminal underworld.
When an extinct woodpecker supposedly returns to the fictional town of Lily, Arkansas, media chaos follows. But seventeen-year-old Cullen Witter has bigger problems—his beloved younger brother has disappeared without a trace, leaving behind only questions and heartbreak.
Whaley's Printz Award-winning novel masterfully braids Cullen's desperate search with the story of a missionary on the other side of the world. What emerges is a luminous meditation on faith, loss, and the human need to believe in miracles, even when the world seems determined to crush hope.
Kyle and Swin never planned to become foot soldiers in the Dixie Mafia, but here they are—two hapless drug runners working the Arkansas Delta for a kingpin called Frog. Their job seems simple enough: keep your head down, follow orders, and don't ask questions.
Brandon's darkly comic crime novel strips away any romantic notions about outlaw life, revealing instead a world of tedious violence and casual brutality. As Kyle and Swin stumble through increasingly dangerous territory, their small mistakes threaten to become fatal ones in this unforgiving landscape of backwoods treachery.
Manhattan refugee Arly Hanks thought returning to her hometown of Maggody, Arkansas, would mean trading big-city stress for small-town serenity. Instead, she becomes the Ozark hamlet's first female police chief just as chaos erupts around her.
Between an escaped convict, a vanished federal agent, and a murder at the local brothel, Arly's quiet homecoming turns into a carnival of crime. Hess launches her beloved mystery series with razor-sharp wit, populating Maggody with a cast of eccentrics so vivid they practically leap off the page.