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My Favorite Modern English Language Fiction
The Revenge for Love (Penguin Modern Classics)The Revenge for Love (Penguin Modern Classics) by Wyndham Lewis
Buy new: £17.85
Incisive, visual, satirical, intelligent. The most forgotten genius of the 20th century.
Ada or Ardor: A Family Chronicle (Penguin Modern Classics)Ada or Ardor: A Family Chronicle (Penguin Modern Classics) by Vladimir Nabokov
Buy new: £7.11 / Used from: £4.10
Perfection in every sentence. Erotic, surprizing, rewarding.
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (Penguin Modern Classics)The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (Penguin Modern Classics) by Muriel Spark
Buy new: £5.86 / Used from: £1.74
Any book of hers is a pure delight.
The Good Soldier: A Tale of Passion (Penguin Modern Classics)The Good Soldier: A Tale of Passion (Penguin Modern Classics) by Ford Madox Ford
Buy used from: £2.30
If there ever the word classic deserved to be used, it's for this one.
The UntouchableThe Untouchable by John Banville
Buy new: £5.56 / Used from: £0.01
Perhaps the greatest living English writing novelist.
Earthly Powers (Vintage Classics)Earthly Powers (Vintage Classics) by Anthony Burgess
Buy new: £7.14 / Used from: £4.18
A bizarre, rich and complex masterpiece.
Lanark: A Life in Four Books (Canongate Classics)Lanark: A Life in Four Books (Canongate Classics) by Alasdair Gray
Buy new: £6.44 / Used from: £4.00
Absolutely brilliant with many unexpected twists and turns.
Under the Volcano (Penguin Modern Classics)Under the Volcano (Penguin Modern Classics) by Malcolm Lowry
Buy new: £6.05 / Used from: £2.00
A haunting breathtaking journey into the depths of the mind.
The Blind AssassinThe Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood
Buy new: £5.39 / Used from: £0.01
Beautifully carved plot and well written.
Humboldt's Gift (Penguin Twentieth Century Classics)Humboldt's Gift (Penguin Twentieth Century Classics) by Saul Bellow
Buy used from: £1.65
A humane, funny and wise writer.
Theft: A Love StoryTheft: A Love Story by Peter Carey
Buy new: £4.88 / Used from: £0.01
Terrific story with much dry humor and stunning imagery.
The Sheltering Sky (Penguin Modern Classics)The Sheltering Sky (Penguin Modern Classics) by Paul Bowles
Buy new: £5.98 / Used from: £2.99
Electrifing story within a hostile landscape.
Cloud AtlasCloud Atlas by David Mitchell
Buy new: £5.46 / Used from: £0.01
Is it a trick or is it a book? I think the latter and a brilliant performance at that. This is a major virtuso.
The Great FireThe Great Fire by Shirley Hazzard
Buy new: £5.99 / Used from: £0.01
A book with understated impact. Very moving.
The Marriages Between Zones Three, Four and Five: As Narrated by the Chroniclers of Zone Three (Canopus in Argos: Archives)The Marriages Between Zones Three, Four and Five: As Narrated by the Chroniclers of Zone Three (Canopus in Argos: Archives) by Doris May Lessing
Buy new: £4.83 / Used from: £2.09
I enjoy her science fiction even more than the excellent other work.
George Mills (American Literature (Dalkey Archive))George Mills (American Literature (Dalkey Archive)) by Stanley Elkin
Buy new: £11.99 / Used from: £13.55
A humorous American epic.
Brick LaneBrick Lane by Monica Ali
Buy new: £4.34 / Used from: £0.01
An insightful and enjoyable read.
Christie Malry's Own Double-EntryChristie Malry's Own Double-Entry by B S Johnson
Buy new: £5.70 / Used from: £3.08
Off-beat, experimental, cynical and well done.
A Fine BalanceA Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
Buy new: £5.00 / Used from: £4.00
A great book written with a transparent style worthy of Tolstoy.
Wise BloodWise Blood by Flannery O'Connor
Buy new: £4.98 / Used from: £3.08
American Gothic wit at its best.
FingersmithFingersmith by Sarah Waters
Buy new: £4.49 / Used from: £0.01
An accomplished writer with a page turner of a book.
Wide Sargasso SeaWide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys
Buy new: £4.46 / Used from: £1.19
An engrossing rewiting of "Jane Eyre". Simple, elegant prose.
The English PatientThe English Patient by Michael Ondaatje
Buy new: £5.98 / Used from: £0.13
The book is even better than the film.
Morte D'Urban (NYRB Classics)Morte D'Urban (NYRB Classics) by J.F. Powers
Buy new: £7.99 / Used from: £7.59
A quiet comic and endearing masterpiece.
Omensetter's Luck (Penguin Twentieth Century Classics)Omensetter's Luck (Penguin Twentieth Century Classics) by William H. Gass
Buy used from: £5.25
Sometimes thorny prose but worth forging through.