/lit/ - Literature

>>18939967
Asking for modern recs here is usually a fools errand, much safer to stick to the classics
Colm Toibin fits what you are looking for

>>18871975
Books only work as character armour if you stick to established classics with overwhelming endorsement from authority.
If you rely on your own taste, you might like the wrong thing, which would make it hard to maintain your sense of superiority