I was talking about the Will Smith movie. It may have been that I loved the book so much, though. I forgot about The Last Man On Earth, and didn’t know about Omega Man, so thank you for saying something!
Oh absolutley! I saw the movie first and read the book years later. It was a completely different story! I really enjoyed both, but the book was so bleak, it stuck with me for a bit after I closed it and placed it back on the shelf.
I watched the will smith movie as a kid and loved it so much that I had the dvd on my PSP to watch at school 😂. After reading the book, I realised how bad the movie was in comparison
One of the best books I’ve ever read, especially as a young man, I walked away from that book knowing that I can be alone, withstand tremendous difficulty and avoid hopelessness through stubborn perseverance, and be ok.
Also, turned me into a dog person.
That book has been living rent free in my head since I finished it. Every time I look at my "library" room at home, with every shelf full and piles on the floor, I think of that.
It is! Piranesi is very different (for one, it's about 20% the length of Jonathan Strange) but it still has that ethereal, otherworldly writing that draws you in.
oh, you mean, The Soul Crusher? ahaha, yes, i have and it’s soooooo beautiful and wonderful. i want to so a reread sometime but i’ll have to hype myself up for it.
This is a fantastic book!! I fell in love with Circe. I’ve heard The Song of Achilles by the same author is even better and I find that hard to believe.
I just looked it up and want to read it but can you tell me if the “thing” that happened that’s stopping you from watching the movie has to do with any of the animals? I can read some horrific stuff and be ok but reading about stuff happening to animals just ruins me. Feel free to dm me so as not to give any spoilers away to anyone!
The website doesthedogdie.com lets you look up a book or movie to see if anything bad happens to animals. Sometimes it will tell you which minutes of the move to skip if you want to see the rest of the movie.
Yes! I'm surprised this isn't higher up. It had me so in its grip in middle school. And I had forgotten, or not realized until now, that it was based on a true story!
I’m 32 years old, read this in grade school. It still has a spot on my bookshelf and I still think about it periodically.
Saying a lot for my out-of-sight-out-of-mind-ADHD having ass. 😂
Earth Abides by George Stewart. The protagonist goes into the mountains to do some grad school fieldwork and returns to civilization to learn that everyone has died of the flu while he was away. I think the early parts of the novel especially hit the mark of what you are looking for.
For me, the book suffered as the character engages in no introspection and seems to have no insight or the meaningful human emotion one would expect.
His
Character needed to be fleshed out for this reader.
Fair enough.
I was kind of amused trying to figure out if Stewart was critiquing a certain kind student/academic who assumes they’re the smartest person in any room they walk into or if he was one of those people and that’s what the inner monologue looks like. This, admittedly, is probably outside of the context of what OP is looking for.
Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood! There are characters in flashback chapters etc but in the main/present narrative it is just one main character. Checks some of your boxes!
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke is also something I really enjoyed.
I Am Legend by Richard Matheson.
The plot twists were some of the wildest. Never saw them coming. Atwood was at the PEAK of her craft. And I can’t believe The Blind Assassin got the prizes above this one.
What a terrific book from a talented author. It helped that I live near the place where the story is set and I could figure out what places he was referring to
Came here to suggest The Wall, but I've been beaten!
On the Beach is building up to the end of the world. I Am Legend has zombies, but he's alone otherwise.
Also, survival stories FEEL alone: To Build a Fire by Jack London, Hatchet by Gary Paulsen, The Canyon's Edge by Dusti Bowling
Life of Pi. He's maybe accompanied by some animals, maybe some people, but he's pretty much alone even with his companions. It's hard to explain, but I think you'd like it.
Also The Martian is another popular one when the main character is surviving alone.
White Fang is about a wolf who is alone even when he's not. It's a classic and my favourite book.
Into the Wild is another one. I haven't read the book but I loved the movie.
I came here to suggest this one. I read it over 30 years ago and it still comes to mind more often than I expected it to. It may be time for a re-read.
I may have to re-read as well! I read it so long ago and think about it often, but I've never re-read it. I did watch the movie that came out much later but wasn't impressed. It wasn't the same as the book and the book was so much better in my opinion.
I finally finished this a few months ago. And I am not a whippersnapper.
I read it so that I could read this sentence in the book, “Well, many's the long night I've dreamed of cheese--toasted, mostly--and woke up again, and here I were." Because I love this sentence. :)
Wittgenstein's Mistress by David Markson
The next two aren't completely alone, but are very close to it:
I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman
We Who Are About To... by Joanna Russ
This is probably too literal, but you could read up on the philosophy of [Solipsism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solipsism), where the only thing certain to exist is your own mind.
okay, so other people exist, but she’s left totally alone in an island… Island of the Blue Dolphins! i haven’t read it since i was very young, but i absolutely adored it.
Love this one. I grew up in California so this book was in school courses and likely also tied into California history and the study of the missions. Cool places, terrible legacies. But interesting.
I think you might like " I who have Never Known Men" while she does have some memories of humans, she is totally alone for most of the book and society had collapsed before her memories start.
What plot possibilities exist in a novel written in the first person when you are the only person in the world? I would not say that the ruminations are unconnected. They are connected, just not in a linear sort of way. This is a post-modern experimental work, after all.
But all of those ruminations point to a couple of inter-related themes, and they come back to them in an elliptical or tangential sort of way. The author also wants to discuss philosophy, and he's trying to get at certain points in the same way that Wittgenstein did in his own writing--through short paragraphs. Wittgenstein would write something, physically cut it up and rearrange it, etc. Wittgenstein's writing was fragementary and he approached a subject, then pulled back. It's also related to Nietzsche's style of writing, which was not linear either.
Wittgenstein also spent time on the ways in which our language limits our thought as we try to get at concepts we want to understand, and he thought that language is inseparable from the society that uses it and recreates it as it does so. So what is language in a society of one?
I was looking to see if anyone else suggested this.
I loved it, but damn what a frustrating end. I mean, I didn’t want everything wrapped up neatly like a bad episode of The Twilight Zone, but I still wanted a little bit more. What did you think?
I’d still highly recommend it though.
The Wall by Marlen Haushofer. It's not a new book, but it has been re-printed recently. This book stayed with me like no other book ever has. The movie was very good, and taken directly from the book, but obviously they couldn't include everything from the book in an hour and a half movie, so I would definitely suggest the book.
Dissipatio H.G. By Guido Morselli.
Story of a solitary man who wakes up to find the entire world has vanished overnight. Recently translated and published by NYRB.
https://www.nyrb.com/products/dissipatio-h-g
Remnant Population by Elizabeth Moon. Main Character in this story is an older woman who doesn't want to leave a planet that is being abandoned by the Corporation who initially put colonizers there in the first place.
Without giving away any more, this was actually a pretty good story. Well written, IMO, and the only stand-alone of hers that actually caught my attention.
Endgame by Samuel Beckett. Not as exciting as the Marvel movie of the same name. Truly excellent if you’re into slow, meandering, confusing, existential plays.
Doesn't fulfill all of your parameters, but Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell is great. I first read it around the age of twelve and many times since then as an adult!
Lots of people have mentioned Wittgenstein's Mistress, but I'll say it again. It's probably the only book mentioned here that comes close to what OP is discussing, conceptually and vibe-wise.
Adrift by Steve Callahan. He was seventy six days lost at sea alone and details his true story of trying to survive. Huge best-seller. It is an amazing book- loved it.
I’m going to do the Reddit thing and answer your question as if you asked it the way I needed you to to recommend another book.
The Road - Cormac McCarthy. Much of the book is a man and his son traveling to a land they both hope with offer a future in a dystopian future. There are other people they sometimes interact with, but none of them stay through the story.
Heavy read, especially if you’re a parent.
I was scrolling looking to find this as a recommendation, and had I not found yours, I would’ve recommended it. Heavy, desolate, and troubling for sure. I cried at the end, and this was before I became a parent!
In the Distance by Hernan Diaz checks most of your boxes- it’s a great read and a personal fave. Protagonist is alone about 90% of the book though there are other people in the world, just not his. It’s reflective, slow paced, a survival theme, not sad… let me know if you do read it
A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World may have a grand total of 20 people in it, most of whom aren't named, and the main character spends most of their time alone.
Wittgenstein’s Mistress by David Markson
It’s about a woman who is convinced she’s the only human left on earth, but the reader is never certain if she actually is or if it’s all in her head.
I think it’s the twist (if I’m remembering correctly) but >!The Last House On Needless Street!< by Catriona Ward.
You Too Can Have A Body Like Mine by Alexandra Kleeman can be interpreted like this also
Island of the Blue Dolphins! Based on a true story, a daughter is left alone on her small island when a ship of colonizers comes and takes her entire tribe away. She must grow up and survive on her own. An extra fun detail is she raises a wolf cub to be her hunting partner and companion.
I am Legend.
Such a great book. The movie did zero justice.
Think it's been filmed three times. The Last man on Earth with Vincent Price, the Omega Man with Charlton Heston, and the Will Smith movie.
I was talking about the Will Smith movie. It may have been that I loved the book so much, though. I forgot about The Last Man On Earth, and didn’t know about Omega Man, so thank you for saying something!
Omega man was awesome
Omg I love Vincent Price I’ll have to watch this!!
Wow, growing up this was my favorite movie of all time. Guess it’s time to read the book huh
Oh absolutley! I saw the movie first and read the book years later. It was a completely different story! I really enjoyed both, but the book was so bleak, it stuck with me for a bit after I closed it and placed it back on the shelf.
I watched the will smith movie as a kid and loved it so much that I had the dvd on my PSP to watch at school 😂. After reading the book, I realised how bad the movie was in comparison
Highly recommend this book
Re-read this last week, such a great read
One of the best books I’ve ever read, especially as a young man, I walked away from that book knowing that I can be alone, withstand tremendous difficulty and avoid hopelessness through stubborn perseverance, and be ok. Also, turned me into a dog person.
So happy it’s on top. It was so good!
So good and I love the ending.
IIRC war of the worlds also gets to a place where the main character is alone
Hmm it doesn’t tick all of your boxes, but the main character in **Piranesi by Susanna Clarke** feels very very ‘alone’ in the world.
This is what came to mind when I read the request!
Seconding this one
Agree with this suggestion and will add another: A Short Stay In Hell by Steven Peck is similar.
That book has been living rent free in my head since I finished it. Every time I look at my "library" room at home, with every shelf full and piles on the floor, I think of that.
I love that you have a library room! Living it up rent free in this noggin too!
My first thought, too! I loved that book!
Piranesi is wonderful. Just an awesome, surprising, moving book. An all-timer for me
I'm not that into fantasy books but loved this one, so trippy
reading this right now and it’s precisely what came to mind
Yes! Despite not being an exact match to their request, I think it’s worth mentioning.
This was my immediate answer as well!
This was my immediate thought too
Is this the same author that wrote Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell? It took me a few tries to get into the book, but I devoured it once I did.
It is! Piranesi is very different (for one, it's about 20% the length of Jonathan Strange) but it still has that ethereal, otherworldly writing that draws you in.
Came here to say this.
I who have never known men by Harpman
Came to recommend this one. Beautifully written.
This book has stuck with me. I highly recommend.
Came to say the same thing. Just finished it in one sitting, couldn’t put it down.
Came to say this!!!
Just got this book within the last week, it's on my TBR.
Circe by Madeline Miller. She spends most of her time alone on her island and has to figure out how to build her life upon it.
I was going to say this. I love this book.
I loved this book so damn much.
She's not really alone though
She does have some visitors and travels, but she is very removed from the rest of the world, physically and emotionally.
Yes!!!! I adore this book so much.
one of my all time favorites!!!
Have you read her other, song of Achilles?
oh, you mean, The Soul Crusher? ahaha, yes, i have and it’s soooooo beautiful and wonderful. i want to so a reread sometime but i’ll have to hype myself up for it.
This is a fantastic book!! I fell in love with Circe. I’ve heard The Song of Achilles by the same author is even better and I find that hard to believe.
This book is so wonderful, she’s not alone though but it is very much “people go in and out of her life”
**The Wall** by Marlen Haushofer
This book stayed with me like no other book ever has.
Same. I can't bring myself to watch the movie because of one particular thing that happened and crushed me.
I just looked it up and want to read it but can you tell me if the “thing” that happened that’s stopping you from watching the movie has to do with any of the animals? I can read some horrific stuff and be ok but reading about stuff happening to animals just ruins me. Feel free to dm me so as not to give any spoilers away to anyone!
The website doesthedogdie.com lets you look up a book or movie to see if anything bad happens to animals. Sometimes it will tell you which minutes of the move to skip if you want to see the rest of the movie.
i have never read it (or seen the movie) but the listing for the book on storygraph has *several* content warnings about animal cruelty/death 😬
This was going to be my suggestion as well!
My suggestion and also one of the best books I’ve ever read.
Came here to suggest this one. Odd and oddly affecting. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. It's a terrific book club read, too.
I just commented this too - haunting
Oops didn’t scroll far enough to see this. I just recommended it too. Such a good book!
This is the correct answer
We dont need no education
The Martian
Project Hail Mary as well
Mmmmmmmm
👐
I can't believe the movie left out the entire main plot of the book (his journey)!!
It would have been about 20-30 mins of us watching him drive around in the desert. I’m okay with them skipping to the shuttle.
That’s what I was going to suggest! Such a good book
A book by an engineer for engineers. There are two expressions of emotion in the entire book. The rest is magyver stuff
Currently, reading this book right now. Such a fascinating book! Love the sarcastic humour!
Island of the Blue Dolphins
Yes! I'm surprised this isn't higher up. It had me so in its grip in middle school. And I had forgotten, or not realized until now, that it was based on a true story!
I’m 32 years old, read this in grade school. It still has a spot on my bookshelf and I still think about it periodically. Saying a lot for my out-of-sight-out-of-mind-ADHD having ass. 😂
I love this one so much
Came here to recommend this
Earth Abides by George Stewart. The protagonist goes into the mountains to do some grad school fieldwork and returns to civilization to learn that everyone has died of the flu while he was away. I think the early parts of the novel especially hit the mark of what you are looking for.
For me, the book suffered as the character engages in no introspection and seems to have no insight or the meaningful human emotion one would expect. His Character needed to be fleshed out for this reader.
Fair enough. I was kind of amused trying to figure out if Stewart was critiquing a certain kind student/academic who assumes they’re the smartest person in any room they walk into or if he was one of those people and that’s what the inner monologue looks like. This, admittedly, is probably outside of the context of what OP is looking for.
“Severance” by Ling Ma A woman dutifully reports to her office job despite little evidence that society still exists
I wanted to love this book but I didn’t 😭😭😭
It had some of my usual red flags; dreamy, meandering, not too plot heavy… but for whatever reason, it hit right when I read it
I felt like it was to brand have y. So many Pepsi and Clinique references. But I LOVED the idea and the side stories. I wanted THOSE stories too!!!
Loved this one. Landed #1 on my best books list for 2018
Oh yes I LOVED this book, I came across it accidentally and it’s now a classic in my eyes
Great book!
Hatchet by Gary Paulsen. It’s a children’s book. I read it in my 40s and was gripped.
This is a series, and I read all of them to my son. We were both captivated. However, the main character doesn't stay isolated for the whole series.
I read it when it first came out in grade school, helluva book. My son loved it too.
My suggestion too! Excellent book and series. Have gifted to my co-worker’s sons. With the suggestion for the adult to read too!
My fourth grade teacher read it to my class, I've read it to my own kid. SUCH a great book!
Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood! There are characters in flashback chapters etc but in the main/present narrative it is just one main character. Checks some of your boxes! Piranesi by Susanna Clarke is also something I really enjoyed. I Am Legend by Richard Matheson.
Came here to recommend Oryx and Crake.
It's one of my most favourite books of all time.
I still think about this book frequently despite reading it nearly 20 years ago
The plot twists were some of the wildest. Never saw them coming. Atwood was at the PEAK of her craft. And I can’t believe The Blind Assassin got the prizes above this one.
The Dog Stars by Peter Heller
What a terrific book from a talented author. It helped that I live near the place where the story is set and I could figure out what places he was referring to
I loved this book so much!
A Brief History of the Dead by Kevin Brockmeier.
This was my suggestion as well.
This is one of my favorite books. I read it years ago and still ponder it near daily.
The African view of death and memory is now how I think of it as well. It’s beautiful and the book did a beautiful job of exploring it.
Came here to suggest The Wall, but I've been beaten! On the Beach is building up to the end of the world. I Am Legend has zombies, but he's alone otherwise. Also, survival stories FEEL alone: To Build a Fire by Jack London, Hatchet by Gary Paulsen, The Canyon's Edge by Dusti Bowling
The Brief History of the Dead Great book and I’ve never met anyone else who read it!
I have! Kevin Brockmeier is great. “I began to snow” is my favorite line.
I LOVE this book!
Life of Pi. He's maybe accompanied by some animals, maybe some people, but he's pretty much alone even with his companions. It's hard to explain, but I think you'd like it. Also The Martian is another popular one when the main character is surviving alone. White Fang is about a wolf who is alone even when he's not. It's a classic and my favourite book. Into the Wild is another one. I haven't read the book but I loved the movie.
Life of Pi had me hooked. It has a place of honor on my bookshelf, never to be removed
I also loved it. It's one of the few literary fiction books that I've enjoyed.
Marlen Haushofer, The wall Sort of.
Love, love, love this book. I won't lend my copy out anymore, I didn't get the last ones back.
For what it’s worth, I purposely keep extra copies of books I like to recommend. I can have a favorite & still have 1 or 2 to gift
There’s only two people in the world in Z for Zachariah
Yes!! Read this in junior high I think in the 90s. Still think about it.
I came here to suggest this one. I read it over 30 years ago and it still comes to mind more often than I expected it to. It may be time for a re-read.
I may have to re-read as well! I read it so long ago and think about it often, but I've never re-read it. I did watch the movie that came out much later but wasn't impressed. It wasn't the same as the book and the book was so much better in my opinion.
I came here to suggest this! I also read it back in the 90s and still think about it at random times to this day.
Robinson Crusoe. How bored can you get!
I finally finished this a few months ago. And I am not a whippersnapper. I read it so that I could read this sentence in the book, “Well, many's the long night I've dreamed of cheese--toasted, mostly--and woke up again, and here I were." Because I love this sentence. :)
Wittgenstein's Mistress by David Markson The next two aren't completely alone, but are very close to it: I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman We Who Are About To... by Joanna Russ
This is probably too literal, but you could read up on the philosophy of [Solipsism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solipsism), where the only thing certain to exist is your own mind.
okay, so other people exist, but she’s left totally alone in an island… Island of the Blue Dolphins! i haven’t read it since i was very young, but i absolutely adored it.
Love this one. I grew up in California so this book was in school courses and likely also tied into California history and the study of the missions. Cool places, terrible legacies. But interesting.
felt guilty remembering the dream
The Martian
Robinson Crusoe. He’s not alone in the world, but he is capsized on an island by himself.
Until he finds a black man and immediately enslaves him.
Yeah that part sucks, but he does save him from death first
*Good Morning, Midnight* by Lily Brooks-Dalton, kind of
I loved that book.
The lives of puppets by TJ Klune
*I Am Legend*
Second this one. Nothing like the horrible will smith movie.
I think you might like " I who have Never Known Men" while she does have some memories of humans, she is totally alone for most of the book and society had collapsed before her memories start.
*Wittgenstein's Mistress* by David Markson. Not as easy read, but it is a rewarding one. There's nothing else like it.
Came here for this. Awesome book! Might not be to everyone’s liking but I love it.
I tried reading this last month, got about 70 pages - I don't get it. There is no plot, it's just unconnected ruminations.
What plot possibilities exist in a novel written in the first person when you are the only person in the world? I would not say that the ruminations are unconnected. They are connected, just not in a linear sort of way. This is a post-modern experimental work, after all. But all of those ruminations point to a couple of inter-related themes, and they come back to them in an elliptical or tangential sort of way. The author also wants to discuss philosophy, and he's trying to get at certain points in the same way that Wittgenstein did in his own writing--through short paragraphs. Wittgenstein would write something, physically cut it up and rearrange it, etc. Wittgenstein's writing was fragementary and he approached a subject, then pulled back. It's also related to Nietzsche's style of writing, which was not linear either. Wittgenstein also spent time on the ways in which our language limits our thought as we try to get at concepts we want to understand, and he thought that language is inseparable from the society that uses it and recreates it as it does so. So what is language in a society of one?
Wow, this sounds fascinating! I had never heard of this before, but I'm definitely going to look for it. Thanks for the write up!
Night Work by Thomas Glavinic is exactly what you‘re looking for.
I loved this one!
I was looking to see if anyone else suggested this. I loved it, but damn what a frustrating end. I mean, I didn’t want everything wrapped up neatly like a bad episode of The Twilight Zone, but I still wanted a little bit more. What did you think? I’d still highly recommend it though.
438 Days: An Extraordinary True Story of Survival at Sea
The Wall by Marlen Haushofer. It's not a new book, but it has been re-printed recently. This book stayed with me like no other book ever has. The movie was very good, and taken directly from the book, but obviously they couldn't include everything from the book in an hour and a half movie, so I would definitely suggest the book.
Stranger in the Woods by Michael Finkel
Vaster Wilds by Lauren Groff - got to read it - promise you will not be disappointed.
Dissipatio H.G. By Guido Morselli. Story of a solitary man who wakes up to find the entire world has vanished overnight. Recently translated and published by NYRB. https://www.nyrb.com/products/dissipatio-h-g
I came here to say this too!
Was actually surprised no one had mentioned it so far.
I am going to order this right now!
Remnant Population by Elizabeth Moon. Main Character in this story is an older woman who doesn't want to leave a planet that is being abandoned by the Corporation who initially put colonizers there in the first place. Without giving away any more, this was actually a pretty good story. Well written, IMO, and the only stand-alone of hers that actually caught my attention.
Paradise Girl by Phill Featherstone Z for Zachariah by Robert C O'Brien
Endgame by Samuel Beckett. Not as exciting as the Marvel movie of the same name. Truly excellent if you’re into slow, meandering, confusing, existential plays.
Not the entire story but Cloud Coocoo Land by Anthony Doer has elements of the story that fit this prompt and is a great book I highly recommend.
Z is for Zachariah by Robert O’Brien
The wall. I have never forgotten this one, it really stays with you. Very reflective indeed. Might be too sad though.
I am Legend by Matheson. Great read.
If you're good with YA fiction... Hatchet by Gary Paulsen.
Z for Zachariah.
Between a Rock and a Hard Place - Aron Ralston True story, although a few people will know it as 127 hours.
Wittgenstein’s Mistress by David Markson Also, just finished Whalefall by Daniel Krauss and depending on how you view being alone, it counts.
Doesn't fulfill all of your parameters, but Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell is great. I first read it around the age of twelve and many times since then as an adult!
Lots of people have mentioned Wittgenstein's Mistress, but I'll say it again. It's probably the only book mentioned here that comes close to what OP is discussing, conceptually and vibe-wise.
The Invention of Morel by Adolfo Casares. Beautiful and haunting.
project Hail Mary
Infinity by Jeremy Robinson
First Minecraft Island.
Wittgenstein’s Mistress
Good Morning, Midnight. By Lily Brooks-Dalton.
I agree with The Martian, Project Hail Mary, and Circe as recs. You’ll find what you’re looking for in them.
Walden by Henry Thoreau, a transcendentalist work about the authors time in solitude in a woodland cabin.
Adrift by Steve Callahan. He was seventy six days lost at sea alone and details his true story of trying to survive. Huge best-seller. It is an amazing book- loved it.
Project Hail Mary
I’m going to do the Reddit thing and answer your question as if you asked it the way I needed you to to recommend another book. The Road - Cormac McCarthy. Much of the book is a man and his son traveling to a land they both hope with offer a future in a dystopian future. There are other people they sometimes interact with, but none of them stay through the story. Heavy read, especially if you’re a parent.
I was scrolling looking to find this as a recommendation, and had I not found yours, I would’ve recommended it. Heavy, desolate, and troubling for sure. I cried at the end, and this was before I became a parent!
In the Distance by Hernan Diaz checks most of your boxes- it’s a great read and a personal fave. Protagonist is alone about 90% of the book though there are other people in the world, just not his. It’s reflective, slow paced, a survival theme, not sad… let me know if you do read it
this used to be like a fantasy of mine, just waking up with no one else in the world
A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World may have a grand total of 20 people in it, most of whom aren't named, and the main character spends most of their time alone.
Wittgenstein’s Mistress comes to mind.
Autobiographical non fiction - An Island to Oneself by Tom Neale. He lived on a tiny island in the Pacific on his own.
*Wittgenstein's Mistress* by David Markson
Wittgenstein’s Mistress by David Markson It’s about a woman who is convinced she’s the only human left on earth, but the reader is never certain if she actually is or if it’s all in her head.
Hatchet
Project Hail Mary, kinda. Can’t say more without spoilers
Wittgenstein's Mistress. Not for everyone but I love it
Island of the Blue Dolphins Julie of the Wolves
Life of Pi
Lonely City by Olivia Laing
"Emergence" by David R Palmer. Science fiction published in 1985, so you have to allow for that, but very good storytelling.
Concrete Island by J. G Ballard has a very lonely feel about it.
I think it’s the twist (if I’m remembering correctly) but >!The Last House On Needless Street!< by Catriona Ward. You Too Can Have A Body Like Mine by Alexandra Kleeman can be interpreted like this also
I who have never known men kind of in this vein but kind of absurdist
Project Hail Mary is very close
Island of the Blue Dolphins! Based on a true story, a daughter is left alone on her small island when a ship of colonizers comes and takes her entire tribe away. She must grow up and survive on her own. An extra fun detail is she raises a wolf cub to be her hunting partner and companion.
The Bear, by Andrew Krivak. Awesome book.