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Rumaan Alam

Goodreads Author

Website

http://rumaanalam.com/

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Rumaan

Genre

Fiction

Member Since

August 2015

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I'm the author of the novels Rich and Pretty, That Kind of Mother, Leave the World Behind, and Entitlement.

My short fiction has appeared in StoryQuarterly, Crazyhorse, Meridian, and elsewhere. I've also written for the New York Times, the New Yorker, the Wall Street Journal, and the New Republic. I studied writing at Oberlin College. Now I live in New York with my husband and two kids.
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Rumaan Alam’s books

Average rating: 3.1 · 207,086 ratings · 29,591 reviews · 16 distinct works • Similar authors

	Leave the World Behind 3.14 avg rating — 172,112 ratings — published 2020 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Rich and Pretty 2.77 avg rating — 11,198 ratings — published 2016 — 15 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Entitlement 2.96 avg rating — 8,974 ratings — published 2024 — 11 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	That Kind of Mother 3.07 avg rating — 7,798 ratings — published 2018 — 13 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Children's Bach by Helen Garner, Rumaan Alam (Goodreads Author) (Foreword) 3.51 avg rating — 4,521 ratings — published 1984 — 38 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Shell Game (Getaway, #6) 2.27 avg rating — 3,857 ratings — published 2022 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Undecorate: The No-Rules Approach to Interior Design by Christiane Lemieux, Rumaan Alam (Goodreads Author), Deborah Needleman (Foreword) 3.53 avg rating — 536 ratings — published 2011 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	There Are Flowers in Ohio by Rumaan Alam (Goodreads Author), Michael Crouch (Narrator), Allison Hiroto (Narrator) 2.97 avg rating — 350 ratings — published 2022 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Domestic Animal by Francis King, Rumaan Alam (Goodreads Author) (Foreword) 3.88 avg rating — 199 ratings — published 1970 — 11 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Leave the World Behind by Alam, Rumaan by Rumaan Alam (Goodreads Author), Unknown Author 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Rumaan Alam…

If it seems like a lot of your favorite books are turning into movies and TV series lately, you’re right. Extremely right. In fact, it’s...

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Rumaan Alam is currently reading

Night Night Fawn

by Jordy Rosenberg (Goodreads Author)

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Jun 12, 2026 08:15PM

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Golk (Phoenix Fiction)

by Richard Stern

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Jun 12, 2026 08:15PM

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The Witch

by Marie NDiaye

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Jun 10, 2026 07:29PM

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Rumaan Alam is currently reading Night Night Fawn by Jordy Rosenberg (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 12, 2026 08:15PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Night Night Fawn by Jordy Rosenberg. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Night Night Fawn by Jordy Rosenberg <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Rumaan Alam rated a book it was amazing Culpability by Bruce Holsinger (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 12, 2026 08:15PM · 6 likes · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Culpability by Bruce Holsinger. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Culpability by Bruce Holsinger <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Rumaan Alam is currently reading Golk (Phoenix Fiction) by Richard Stern	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 12, 2026 08:15PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Golk by Richard Stern. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Golk by Richard Stern <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Rumaan Alam finished reading Culpability by Bruce Holsinger (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 12, 2026 08:15PM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Culpability by Bruce Holsinger. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Culpability by Bruce Holsinger <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Rumaan Alam is currently reading The Witch by Marie NDiaye	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 10, 2026 07:29PM · 2 likes · like
Rumaan Alam is currently reading Culpability by Bruce Holsinger (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 09, 2026 03:52PM · 3 likes · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Culpability by Bruce Holsinger. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Culpability by Bruce Holsinger <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Rumaan Alam rated a book it was amazing London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family's Search for Truth by Patrick Radden Keefe	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 07, 2026 06:42PM · 10 likes · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of London Falling by Patrick Radden Keefe. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — London Falling by Patrick Radden Keefe <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Rumaan Alam rated a book it was amazing Banal Nightmare by Halle Butler (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 05, 2026 12:52PM · 5 likes · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Banal Nightmare by Halle Butler. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Banal Nightmare by Halle Butler <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Rumaan Alam rated a book it was amazing Whistler by Ann Patchett	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 02, 2026 07:37PM · 10 likes · like
Rumaan Alam is currently reading London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family's Search for Truth by Patrick Radden Keefe	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 02, 2026 07:37PM · 2 likes · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of London Falling by Patrick Radden Keefe. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — London Falling by Patrick Radden Keefe <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">

More of Rumaan's books…

Quotes by Rumaan Alam (?)

“Parenthood was never knowing what was going to hurt your kids, but knowing only that something, inevitably, would.”
― Rumaan Alam, Leave the World Behind

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“Ruth had learned only one thing from the current reality, and it was that everything held together by tacit agreement that it would. All it took to unravel something was one party deciding to do just that. There was no real structure to prevent chaos. There was only a collective faith in order.”
― Rumaan Alam, Leave the World Behind

19 likes

“You never know when a time is the last time, because if you did you could never go on with life.”
― Rumaan Alam, Leave the World Behind

18 likes

See all Rumaan Alam's quotes »

Polls

January BoTM Nominations ~ Book Published in 2020 ~ 1st Poll
Top 5 Move onto Final Poll!

The Vanishing Half

by Brit Bennett

9 votes, 21.4%

The Midnight Library

by Matt Haig

9 votes, 21.4%

The Henna Artist

by Alka Joshi

8 votes, 19.0%

This Is How I Lied

by Heather Gudenkauf

6 votes, 14.3%

The Last Flight

by Julie Clark

5 votes, 11.9%

The House in the Cerulean Sea

by T.J. Klune

3 votes, 7.1%

These Ghosts Are Family

by Maisy Card

1 vote, 2.4%

Leave the World Behind

by Rumaan Alam

1 vote, 2.4%

Pride of Eden

by Taylor Brown

0 votes, 0.0%

The Lost Orphan

by Stacey Halls

0 votes, 0.0%

Luster

by Raven Leilani

0 votes, 0.0%

The Cold Millions

by Jess Walter

0 votes, 0.0%

42 total votes

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See a Problem?

Preview — Night Night Fawn by Jordy Rosenberg

See a Problem?

Preview — Culpability by Bruce Holsinger

See a Problem?

Preview — Golk by Richard Stern

See a Problem?

Preview — Culpability by Bruce Holsinger

See a Problem?

Preview — Culpability by Bruce Holsinger

See a Problem?

Preview — London Falling by Patrick Radden Keefe

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