What is the difference between a literary work and an ordinary book? Is this purely academic?

When I was young and in college genre fiction was looked down on. Now Mysteries are very popular and whether they are recognized as literature many of the Authors are highly considered by critics. Mark Twain, who might now be considered a major literary writer, was considered a mere humorist in his day.

Charles Dickens wrote popular serialized novels. I no longer care. What is a mere popular book now might be a considered a great piece of literature later.

On the other hand writers that critics rave over now may become unknown in the future.

An ordinary book, you know, the type you like to read, has a plot, a story line, it is going somewhere, it has a beginning, a middle and an end, and you want to get there, and you stay with it. Writers of Literature (the capital is deliberate) are so afraid of any element of plot or story creeping in to ruin their wonderful use of erudite language and prose, they often tell the end at the beginning.

I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.