History PrefersGoingBarefoot / Literature

* In The Frontiersman’s Daughter, Lael is teased for not wearing shoes. In response, she says that going barefoot is a sign of her free spirit.

* In the Israeli short story ''Images from Elementary''[[note]]‘Elementary’ here means ‘1st through 8th grades’[[/note]], which takes place in the early years of Israel, the protagonist, a Jewish immigrant from Syria, protests his teacher saying (with some racist undertones) that Egyptian farmers are [[BarefootPoverty so poor they can’t afford shoes]], explaining that while they are in fact poor, this trope is the real reason they don’t wear shoes. He continues and argues that (predominantly [[AllJewsAreAshkenazi Ashkenazi]]) ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kibbutz kibbutzniks]]'' don’t usually wear shoes either, and asks his teacher if it means they’re poor too. The teacher, faced with the intense fervour he argued with, backs down and tells the protagonist, ‘You win. You win!’

* Creator/OHenry's ''Cabbages and Kings'' has one chapter where a shoe merchant tries to do business in a BananaRepublic town where no one likes shoes. The solution was some prickly burrs he had to mail-order from back in the USA.
* In Zilpha Keatley Snyder's ''The Changeling'', Ivy is usually barefoot and (reasonably enough for a tree-climbing dancer) she always tucks her skirt into the legs of her underpants. Martha is used to seeing her this way when they are not in school. [[http://www.dreamshore.net/images/raible/newmagic.jpg One of Alton Raible's illustrations]] shows that Martha likewise takes off her shoes in the grove where they play.

* In ''The Soddit'' by "ARR Roberts", soddits never wear shoes. Instead of the tough feet of hobbits, however, soddit feet are a mess of corns, verrucas and blisters, such that ''anything'' touching their feet would be agony for them.

* Zara in ''A Sorceress Reconstructed'' is always barefoot. Her main reason is because she can use both her hands and feet to cast her spells. Her ability to channel destructive magic through her feet led to her accidentally destroying a number of shoes when she was young, causing her master (at the time) to half-heartedly suggest she stop wearing them. Zara did so and eventually got used to it, by the time she learned how to properly control her powers. Zara is also the kingdom's previous Queen and the people often express their support for her by [[IKissYourFoot kissing her feet]]; which is another reason why she wears no shoes. There are times when her feet get injured and/or dirty, but her healing magic handles both of those problems and is naturally triggered whenever she touches water -- her source of power. Although in the end, [[spoiler:when she visits Eric in New York, she admits that the terrain there is a bit rougher than she is used to.]]
** In the sequel, ''A Sorceress In New York'', Zara starts wearing sandals when the city streets prove a bit too much for her always-bare feet to handle. She transforms them into slide wedges, when working as a bartender at a local nightclub. [[spoiler:When the antagonist attempts to have Zara killed, ([[CementShoes via cement shoes, no less]]) she steals those wedges from her. Although Zara is able to escape with her life, she is forced to once again brave the rough unforgiving city terrain barefoot, until she eventually defeats the antagonist and takes her shoes back.]]

* Mia Winchell from ''Literature/AMangoShapedSpace'' doesn't like wearing shoes and would rather be barefoot at all times. In the first chapter, when her notices her shoes are untied, she doesn't bother tying them, and instead takes them off and throws them over her back.

* In ''Literature/{{Momo}}'', the HeartwarmingOrphan Momo never wears shoes if she can help it. There's an element of BarefootPoverty to it, but even when she has the opportunity to obtain shoes she doesn't want them.

* James, Victoria, and Laurent from ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'' prefer going barefoot so they can run at maximum SuperSpeed without destroying them.

* ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfNarnia'': Many characters prefer to go barefoot: Coriakin, Ramandu, possibly his daughter, Lucy, Edmun... Similarly, stars and nymphs are always barefoot.

** Hobbits don't need shoes most of the time because they have unusually tough and leathery soles and fur on top of their feet. However, there are exceptions. Tolkien originally intended to have Bilbo wear boots for most of ''The Hobbit'' (they're visible in his illustrations). He also says the Stoors, one of their ancestral tribes, sometimes wore boots, and hobbits who had a lot of Stoorish blood continued to do so in bad weather.

People who [[DoesNotLikeShoes prefer going barefoot]] in literature.
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* From the works of Creator/RudyardKipling:
** ''Literature/TheJungleBook'' has Mowgli, who is at one point taken into a civilized home. Messua (who thinks Mowgli is her long-lost son) asks him if he remembers the shoes she once gave him, but then concedes that his feet are too tough to have ever been shod. Whether he actually wears shoes in the village is open to interpretation, but the usual reading is that he doesn't.
** In ''Literature/{{Kim}}'', the title character goes barefoot whenever possible.

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* ''Literature/TheAdventuresOfFoxTayle'': Fox Tayle does not wear shoes because his feet are too large.
* ''Literature/AliceGirlFromTheFuture'': The wise professor Lu Fu from ''The Kindness Ray'' may be a mild case of this; he wears only open-toed sandals even in cold weather, probably implying a disdain for footwear in general.
* Subverted in ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}''. The protagonists constantly end up barefoot because shoes and loose clothing can't be morphed with their body, but find the result more painful and embarrassing than fun.
* A noted trait of Dante's in ''Literature/AristotleAndDanteDiscoverTheSecretsOfTheUniverse''.
* ''Literature/AutumnRain'', from the eponymous book series by Rachel Ann Nunes.
* Mr. Jenkins from the ''Literature/BaileySchoolKids'' series avoided wearing shoes until his cabin was filled with wolfsbane.

* In the ''Literature/CaptainUnderpants'' spin-off ''The Adventures of Ook and Gluk'', Caveland, Ohio is a town populated by cave-people, so none of them wear shoes. Even when Ook and Gluk are taken to the future and spend quite of bit of time there, they still spend that time barefoot. The only non-caveman character that doesn't wear shoes is Master Wong's daughter, Lan. Save for one moment with Ook, Lan is barefoot in every panel she appears in.

* In ''Literature/TheGrayHouse'', Blind often goes around barefoot (probably related to the fact that he's, well, blind, and it helps him to navigate).
* Sam Vimes in the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' books is a variation. He dislikes wearing ''good'' shoes, for much the same reason Lissar in the example above does -- he can navigate around Ankh-Morpork in any weather by the feel of the cobblestones, but naturally he can only do that wearing boots with the soles mostly worn through (or very thin to begin with).
* The titular character of ''Literature/DisgustingMcGrossface'' is drawn without shoes.

* In ''Literature/DrNo'', Honeychile Rider is depicted as a perpetual barefooter and special attention is paid to her toes gripping carpet for the first time.

* Jenny Tan in ''The Eleventh Plague'' is a barefoot rebel from the beginning till the end of the whole book: in the classroom, in wastelands, on snow (yes, even temperatures well, well below sub-zero) -- you name it. She never ''ever'' wears shoes, under ''any'' circumstances. Despite being the ''only'' one who does so, no one mentions or even notices it.
* In Creator/JaneLindskold's ''Literature/FirekeeperSaga'', WildChild Firekeeper grows up barefoot, and prefers to stay that way.

* Many female characters from the ''Literature/{{Grinlandia}}'' series have a penchant for going barefoot, including Assol from ''Literature/TheScarletSails'', Molly from "The Golden Chain", and Daisy from "She Who Runs on the Waves".

* Lauren Kline from Marc Levy's ''If Only It Were True'' (it may be due to her ghost/angel nature). In one scene, she playfully strokes Artur's leg with her bare foot (since nobody else is able to see and sense her).

* ''Literature/InCryptid'': Sam Taylor hardly ever wears shoes, even in his human form. In his fūri (a simian humanoid cryptid) form he has HandyFeet.

* ''Literature/ToKillAMockingbird:'' For some reason, Scout takes off her shoes at the school Halloween pageant. Oddly, it's not mentioned until she realizes that she accidentally left them behind.
* Molly Grue from ''Literature/TheLastUnicorn'' goes barefoot, apparently by choice; on the other hand, it is mentioned that her feet were "covered in blisters".
** She goes barefoot in the AnimatedAdaptation [[WesternAnimation/TheLastUnicorn as well]].

* Natalie the Christmas Stocking Fairy from ''Literature/RainbowMagic'' doesn't wear shoes, since her magic is centered around a sock-like item. She instead covers her feet with long white stockings.
* Archie Monday, from the ''Mac Faraday'' series by Lauren Carr. When she '''has''' to wear shoes, they will probably be sandals.
* In Creator/AnneRice's ''Merrick'', there are (quite) a few mentions of the title character's aversion to shoes both as a child and grown up.
* Susanne from ''Miss Temptation'' by Creator/KurtVonnegut.

* In ''Literature/TheMortalInstruments'', Clary Fray, Isabelle Lightwood and Jace Wayland usually go barefoot indoors.
* In ''Literature/TheNeverendingStory'' the Childlike Empress is described as being barefooted, even as she is walking over ice-encrusted snow.
* In ''Nara and the Island'' by Dan Ungureanu, everyone is barefoot (or at least implied to be), as the story takes place on two neighbouring tiny islands in the middle of the ocean.
* ''Literature/NimsIsland'': Nim is almost always barefoot, unless she's climbing a mountain or going on top of a roof.
* In Ángela Becerra's ''O que falta ao tempo'' (''What Time is Missing''), the young Parisian artist Mazarine goes barefoot all the year round, even in winter.

* Rain Teslar from ''Literature/APathOfPetals'', who is a ManicPixieDreamGirl for the main character, is [[BarefootLoon quirky and almost always barefoot]].
* Maura Sargent, the main character's mother from ''Literature/TheRavenCycle'', is noted for going barefoot very often; {{Lampshaded}} by the Gray Man.
* ''Literature/TheRiseOfKyoshi'' continues with [[WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender the show]] by stating that earthbenders generally don't wear shoes unless they have to; [[TheUnchosenOne Yun]] wears some during his firebending training, but wearing during his free time (to hide his injured feet) is odd enough for [[TheChosenOne Kyoshi]] to notice.
* In ''Literature/{{Room}}'', wearing shoes is one more thing that five-year-old Jack has to get used to after living his entire life captive in Old Nick's home.

* ''Literature/SisterhoodSeries'' by Creator/FernMichaels: Harry Wong is revealed to be this as early as ''Hide and Seek''. He can dig trenches in the ground with those feet. He will wear sandals and will only put on shoes if he really has to.
* Honora Menapace, from ''Literature/SkinDeep'' by E. M. Crane.
* In ''Literature/TheSlowRegardOfSilentThings'' Auri spends the entire novel barefoot.

** Septon Meribald, who walks from town to town ministering to the smallfolk, goes barefoot [[TheAtoner in penance]] for his past as a DirtyOldMonk.

* Hannah Schneider from ''Literature/SpecialTopicsInCalamityPhysics'' is a [[EccentricMentor quirky and charismatic teacher]] who [[BarefootLoon has a penchant for going barefoot]].

** Senator Gaeriel Captison was also fond of removing her shoes and going on barefoot walks in the park in her free time.

* Princess Diahan from Lloyd Alexander's ''Literature/TimeCat'', who was an obvious precursor to Eilonwy (evident in both her appearance and personality), is also described as wearing sandals.

* ''Literature/TunnelInTheSky'' has Caroline, who departs for the off-world survival test barefoot and with a duffel bag of gear. She ditches the bag and [[{{Hammerspace}} somehow keeps all her gear for a month]].

* Jenny Tan in ''The Eleventh Plague'' is a barefoot rebel from the beginning till the end of the whole book: in the classroom, in wastelands, on snow (yes, even temperatures well, well below sub zero) - you name it. She never ''ever'' wears shoes, under ''any'' circumstances. Despite being the ''only'' one who does so, no one mentions or even notices it.

* In ''Literature/{{The Guardians|MeljeanBrook}}'' by Meljean Brook, Michael's signature style is to go barefoot, no matter what the rest of his outfit may be. It's later explained that his senses have grown so acute he can feel the vibrations in the ground and know where everyone is. His aversion to shoes is so strong that, [[spoiler: when he possesses Taylor, he vanishes her shoes for the same reason. She gets to the point where she doesn't even notice after he leaves.]]

* Zara in ''A Sorceress Reconstructed'' is always barefoot. Her main reason is because she can use both her hands and feet to cast her spells. Her ability to channel destructive magic through her feet led to her accidentally destroying a number of shoes when she was young, causing her master (at the time) to half-heartedly suggest she stop wearing them. Zara did so and eventually got used to it, by the time she learned how to properly control her powers. Zara is also the kingdom's previous Queen and the people often express their support for her by [[IKissYourFoot kissing her feet]]; which is another reason why she wears no shoes. There are times when her feet get injured and/or dirty, but her healing magic handles both of those problems and is naturally triggered whenever she touches water - her source of power. Although in the end, [[spoiler:when she visits Eric in New York, she admits that the terrain there is a bit rougher than she is used to.]]

** Hobbits don't need shoes because they have unusually tough and leathery soles and fur on top of their feet.

* Jenny Tan in ''The Eleventh Plague'' is a barefoot rebel from the beginning till the end of the whole book: in the classroom, in wastelands, on snow - you name it. She never EVER wears shoes, under ANY circumstances. Despite being the ONLY one who does so, no one even notices.

* Jenny Tan in ''The Eleventh Plague'' is a barefoot rebel from the beginning till the end of the whole book: in the classroom, in wastelands, on snow - you name it. She will never wear even a pair of shoes no matter what.