100 BEST NOVELS? PT. 9

 Here's the next 10 titles on the list:

81.  The Adventures of Augie March, Saul Bellows, 1953.  Following the life of a relatively unexceptional individual, there's little real plot in this story as its protagonist drifts from one job to another without really finding a calling. Not bad, but at times the book feels as aimless as its main character.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  No, Bellows is already represented by the superior Henderson the Rain King.

82.  Angle of Repose, Wallace Stegner, 1971.  A excellent American tale; a 58 year old historian writes about the difficulties his grandfather had as a  miner a century earlier.  Stegner's use of authentic letters written by people of the time, along with his addition of real historical figures as characters adds to to the realism of this well written novel.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

83.  A Bend in the River, V. S. Naipaul, 1979.  Set in the mid 20th. century in an unnamed African country that has just become independent, Naipaul effectively looks at the changes that Africa went through at the time through the eyes of an Indian Muslim shopkeeper.  It's a dark look at the growing pains of a new country, told through the eyes of someone who sees himself as an outsider. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

84.  The Death of the Heart, Elizabeth Bowen, 1938.  A rambling story about an awkward and naive 16 year old girl and her inability to understand the adults around her.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  No, while I hate to take a female author off the list, I found this book mostly slow and unengaging.

85.  Lord Jim, Joseph Conrad, 1900.  Another nautical Conrad tale, as a young seaman makes a tragic mistake on a voyage and then tries to redeem himself on another. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  No, while this isn't a bad adventure yarn, Conrad already has 3 other titles on the list.

86.  Ragtime, E. L. Doctorow, 1975.  Set in the early years of the 20th century, Doctorow's novel is one of the most entertaining books on the list, as a wealthy New York family sees the changes that the new century brings.  It's laced with humor while not ignoring the difficulties of the time, and Doctorow weaves historical figures effectively into his story.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

87.  The Old Wives' Tale, Arnold Bennett, 1908.  A simple story about the lives of two very different sisters, one of whom runs off with a traveling salesman(!). DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  No, this mostly slow and unmemorable, and as a chronicle of the difficulties that women faced at that time, it doesn't work as well as Edith Wharton's novels do.

88.  The Call of the Wild, Jack London, 1903.  London's most famous novel tells a terrific story  from the point of view of a dog that's kidnapped from its pampered pet lifestyle in California and forced to pull a  dogsled in Alaska.  As our canine hero spends more time with other dogs, it starts to feel the desire to leave humans behind. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

89.  Loving, Henry Green, 1945.  An upstairs/downstairs WWII novel, this is set in an Irish country house in which the conflicts between the servants and the masters rage on as the war does. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  No, although this is a close call for me.  While I admire Green's wit and style, quite frankly there so many characters in this novel that keeping them all straight was a  bit dizzying for me.  

90.  Midnight's Children, Salmen Rushdie, 1981.  An unusual fantasy  (or magic realism) story about how a child born in India in 1947 at the stroke of midnight on the night that England turned the country over to India is endowed with magical powers, as are all the children of India born at that moment.  Rushdie's uses this fantastical story to paint a dark picture of India's transition. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes, although I'm not always a fan of stories that mix magic and history (like The Tin Drum), Rushdie does a good job of not going too far into the magical elements of the story, making this a very interesting tale.