THE GOP AND THE SOUL OF MITT ROMNEY

 

There is no image that personifies the position of Utah Senator Mitt Romney in the Republican party more than his standing up in congress to cheer for the confirmation of Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court as members of his own party bitterly slunk out of the room.  (While two other senators in the Republican party joined Romney in voting for her, he was the only one to celebrate her victory).  By refusing to engage in the disgusting political theatrics that Ted Cruz and Lindsay Graham had displayed during Jackson's senate hearing, and then voting for a Supreme Court candidate who was both groundbreaking and qualified, Romney's basic decency had left him applauding alone.

While I didn't vote for Romney back in 2012, he's always struck me as a reasonable man. His governorship of  Massachusetts was mostly moderate, and the campaign he ran against Barack Obama mostly avoided demonizing the president and stuck to the issues.  I say mostly because there was one moment that he would come to regret: during the campaign he met with then TV star Donald Trump and accepted his endorsement.  At that time Trump was mostly known for promoting the  "birther" conspiracy that Obama was not actually a legitimate president.  While Romney never embraced this crazy theory, he was birther adjacent.  

Then, to Romney's credit, he gave a speech on March 3rd of 2016 before Trump had won the Republican nomination,  in which he blasted Trump, saying “Here’s what I know: Donald Trump is a phony, a fraud.  His promises are as worthless as a degree from Trump University. He’s playing members of the American public for suckers: He gets a free ride to the White House, and all we get is a lousy hat.”  And unlike other Republicans who criticized Trump during his campaign, Romney continued to go after him even after he won.  And he is the only Republican Senator to vote to remove Trump from office in both of the impeachment trials.

The fact that Romney has always been a Republican is no surprise; his father was a Republican Governor himself.  And, before Mitt went into politics, he was a successful businessman.  It's clear that the appeal of the Republican party to him was that it was seen as the party that was pro business and  lower taxes.  His anger at Trump is for what he revealed about the party; that at the end of the day, race was a far bigger factor than tax cuts.  For years, wealthy Republicans like Romney had somehow convinced themselves that the backbone of the GOP, those middle class, blue collar white workers, cared about issues like capital gains tax cuts and regulations, when what they really cared about were issues like Mexican immigrants "stealing" their jobs and black people "exploiting" welfare.  What Trump did was pull off the pro business band aid of the party and expose the gaping wound of bigotry underneath.  And that stung Romney, who clearly was distressed to see the real feelings of Republican rank and file voters laid bare.

So what's a honorable man like Romney to do?  He's no longer welcome at party gatherings, and he was even booed at a Republican rally in his home state of Utah, but I doubt he will ever switch parties or become an independent; the GOP's pro business image is in his blood.  Sadly, with the passing of John McCain and the further Trumpifying of the party, Romney's brand of polite politics is fading in the GOP.  That a former presidential candidate and strong party member could become an outcast in his own party just 10 years later is proof of just how much Donald Trump has stained the Republicans and the country as a whole.  There's no place anymore for decent people in the Grand Old Party.

100 BEST NOVELS? PT. 10.

 

Here's the final 10 books on the list:

91.  Tobacco Road, Erskine Caldwell, 1932.  Caldwell's look at dirt poor white farmers in rural Georgia during the depression is one wild read.  Its characters are mostly foolish and engage in crazy behaviors  but there is a sadness to them also.  In some ways it reads like a more real, less poetic version of The Grapes of Wrath, and I would suggest reading both books together. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

92.  Ironweed, William Kennedy, 1983.  Set in the depression, this is the bleak story of one man returning to the hometown he left after he inadvertently caused a family tragedy.  Suffused with pain and sadness, this is no pleasant read,  but it's often worth it for Kennedy's moving style.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? Yes.

93.  The Magus, John Fowles, 1965.  This novel starts off in England years after WWII and it follows a young Englishman who moves to Greece to teach English.  There he runs into a wealthy recluse who may or may not have collaborated with the Nazis during their occupation of the town.  Gradually the older man draws the younger man into some bizarre head games (think Eyes Wide Shut).  This sometimes nutty book is fun to read, even if it often stretches credibility. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? Yes, this may be the silliest book on the list, but I can't say I didn't enjoy it!

94.  Wide Sargasso Sea, Jean Rhys, 1966.  Rhys did an interesting thing in this novel, she wrote a prequel to Charlotte Bronte's 1847 novel Jane Eyre, told from the point of view of that story's "mad woman in the attic", giving a more sympathetic portrayal of the character.   DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? Yes.  Honestly, this one is hard for me rate because I've never read Jane Eyre, (I've seen a movie version, but that doesn't really count) so I'm not quite sure how to respond to it since so much of it relies on knowledge of that novel.  I may need to reread it after reading Jane Eyre, but for now I'll keep it on the list.

95.  Under the Net, Iris Murdoch, 1954.  An amusing little shaggy dog story, Murdoch's novel deals with a low life writer who barely makes a living by doing translations.  His search for money and a place to stay leads him to some odd places (at one point he kidnaps a movie star dog!), and the novel is really more a  series of episodes than a single story. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? Yes, but I wouldn't call it great.

96.  Sophie's Choice,William Styron, 1979.  Based on Styron's own experiences and set in Brooklyn a few years after WWII, this is about a young writer who comes to know a married couple in his apartment.  Eventually he discovers that the wife was persecuted by the Nazis in Poland.  This is a lively and fun to read book that often uses humor to offset the sadness of the story. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? Yes.

97.  The Sheltering Sky, Paul Bowles, 1949.  A dark look at a failing relationship, Bowles's novel has a married couple traveling through the North African desert. The story takes some surprising turns, and  while I don't always believe all of the characters decisions, it's still an interesting read.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? Yes.

98.  The Postman Always Rings Twice, James M.  Cain, 1934.  A thrilling, exciting crime novel that pulsates with sex and violence, this is one fun read.  A young drifter gets a job at a diner and starts to fall for his boss's wife.  Together they plan to kill her husband, and that's just the beginning of the story. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? Yes.

99.  The Ginger Man, J. P. Donleavy, 1955.  American born Irishman Donleavy sets his novel in Dublin in 1947.  The main character is a reprobate, a drunken, unfaithful and abusive husband.  The novel features shifting tones and points of view, and while it's sometimes interesting, it felt to me like mostly 10 cent Joyce. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  No.

100. The Magnificent Ambersons, Booth Tarkington, 1918.  Tarkington's well written account of a wealthy turn of the century American family's fall is an excellent look at the changes that occurred in the US during the industrial revolution. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? Yes.

Well, that's it.  All 100 of the books read and reviewed.  I hope anybody reading this will find some books on the list that interest them.  And for the record, there are 29 novels that I don't think deserve to be on the list.  I thought about doing a last list of 29 novels that I think should be on the list instead of those,  but I had a hard time coming up with that many great books (that I've read) in the 20th century.  So I'll just say again, I don't understand how To Kill a Mockingbird is not on this list!

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 movie 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.

100 BEST NOVELS? PT. 8

 

Here are the next 10 titles on the list:

71.  A High Wind in Jamaica, Richard Hughes, 1929.  When an English family living in Jamaica has their plantation ruined in a storm, they take a ship back to England and are beset by pirates.  This is an unusual nautical tale in that it's mostly about the family's children who wind up being held by the pirates, who aren't all bad.  There are some moments in the novel that don't ring true (one character's death is strangely shrugged off), but for the most part this a lively and interesting tale. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

72.  A House for Mr Biswas,V. S. Naipaul, 1961.  Set in rural Trinidad and Tobago, and loosely based on the life of Naipaul's own father, this is a very good look at one mans' difficult life.  It also makes some interesting points about colonialism and religion.  There are some slow parts, and the ending is an anticlimax, but it's mostly good. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

73.  The Day of the Locust, Nathanael West, 1939.  A rambling but engrossing look at an odd group of people mostly just getting by in Hollywood (the main character paints backdrops for movies).  A riotous movie premiere makes for a surprising (but fitting) ending. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

74.  A Farewell to Arms, Ernest Hemingway, 1929.  Based on Hemingway's own experiences serving in Italy during WWI, this is my personal favorite Hemingway novel.  Along with realistically depicting the war,  it's also a tender, sad love story.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

75.  Scoop, Evelyn Waugh, 1938.  Based partly on Waugh's own experiences working at The Daily Mail newspaper, this amusing satire is about a young columnist who is, due to a name mixup,  sent as a correspondent to a (fictional) East African country he knows nothing about. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? No.  While Waugh's cynical view of journalism is often clever, I don't think this novel reaches the level of greatness, and Waugh's better known Brideshead Revisited is more worthy of being on the list.

76.  The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, Muriel Spark, 1961.  Set in 1930's Edinburgh, this novel tells the story of a school teacher and the six ten year old girls that she has a strong (but not always good!) influence on, even as they eventually leave her class.  What might at first seem like a sentimental look at an inspirational teacher winds up in a darker place. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

77.  Finnigan's Wake, James Joyce, 1939.  It took Joyce 17 years to write a followup to Ulysses, and the result was easily the most difficult to read famous novel ever written.  According to Wikipedia, Joyce created his own language for the novel "composed of composite words from some sixty to seventy world languages", and I don't doubt it.  Add to that the 10 examples of 100 letter words (!), and I'm sure you can understand why this novel took me longer to finish than any other. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? I'm going to say no for now, because too much of this book gave me a headache.  But famed literary critic Joseph Campbell has written a "translation" of the novel, and I may revisit it with his guidance.  

78.  Kim, Rudyard Kipling, 1901.  Set in India, Kipling tells a fun adventure story about a young orphan who embarks on a spiritual journey with a Tibetan Llama and gets mixed up in some British/ Russian spy intrigue.  Although a bit too long, Kipling's look at turn of the century India is always fascinating. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

79.  A Room With a View, E. M Forster, 1908.  A love story that begins in Italy in 1900,  this is a mostly successful, relatively straightforward story (that has an interesting anti religious undercurrent running through it). DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? No, while this certainly isn't bad, Forster's staid style keeps it from greatness.  The only Forster novel that I think should be on the list is A Passage to India.

80.  Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh, 1945.  Starting in 1923 and ending during WWII, Waugh's most famous novel deals with a young aspiring painter and his relationship with a wealthy family that live in an estate called Brideshead.  The various romantic entanglements  and the buildup to the war are all well described by Waugh.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

100 Best Novels? Pt. 7

 Here's the next ten books on the list:

61.  Death Comes for the Archbishop, Willa Cather, 1927.  More a collection of short stories around a theme than a novel, Cather's book is about Catholic missionaries in New Mexico in the late 19th. century.  Although at times slow, Cather's style is mostly engaging, and the sympathetic view of the Native Americans that the missionaries meet was very progressive for the time. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

62.  From Here to Eternity, James Jones, 1951.  So many stories have been told about soldiers at war, so few have told about soldiers at peace, which is the theme of this extremely entertaining novel.  Based on Jones's own experiences as a soldier based in Hawaii and  set in 1941 before the Pearl Harbor bombing (which does happen at the end), Jones goes into the details of everyday life for the soldiers, and it's not always pretty.  (Believe me, if you've only seen the famous 1953 movie, you really don't know this story!).  Surprisingly foul mouthed and honest about sexuality, this is a great read. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

63. The Wapshot Chronicles, John Cheever, 1957.   A semi-autobiographical novel about an eccentric family living in a fishing village in Massachusetts.  Perhaps better known as being the first book recommended by the Book of the Month Club that had the word "fuck" in it, and for having a main character that has  bisexual tendencies, then for its quality.  Although it certainly isn't a bad book, it's far from memorable. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  No.

64.  The Catcher in the Rye, J. D. Salinger, 1951.  I first read this book in high school, and it spoke deeply to me.  Decades later I think it still holds up as the ultimate story about the difficulties of teenage boyhood.  Still taught in high schools to this day, this is an absolute classic. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes, in fact I think it should be higher up.

65.  A Clockwork Orange, Anthony Burgess, 1962.  Another rare Science Fiction selection on the list, Burgess's dark tale told from the point of view of an amoral teenage thug was sharply prescient in its look at juvenile crime and government overreaction.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

66.  Of Human Bondage, W. Somerset Maugham, 1915.  Maugham's  semi-autobiographical novel about a young slightly crippled man and the waitress he becomes obsessed with is one of the best stories about sexual desire I've ever read.  A classic. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes, higher up.

67.  Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad, 1902.  Conrad's most famous novel, based on his own experiences traveling by steamer in the Congo, is a searing look at British colonialism and a powerfully written story that has influenced any number of movies and books over the years.   DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes, I would put it higher on the list and take off 2 of the other Conrad novels, Lord Jim and Nostromo.

68.  Main Street, Sinclair Lewis, 1920.  Set in the fictional town of Gopher Prairie, Minnesota, this is an amusing novel about an ambitious, educated  young librarian who works in a Chicago library.  After she marries  a doctor, he convinces her to return to his small hometown  with him to live.  Almost immediately  she sets out to improve the town, causing some inevitable friction.  This is a charming, feminist story that has a likable lead who's far from perfect.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

69.  The House of Mirth, Edith Wharton, 1905.  Like her other novel on the list (The Age of Innocence), this is a sad novel about a young woman who's life is ruined by the sexism and classism of the time.  Bleak, but an interesting chronicle of a time and place. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

70.  The Alexandria Quartet, Laurence Durrell, 1957, 1958, 1958, 1960.  Set in Egypt during the 1930's, Durrell's 4 novels each tell the same story from different points of view.  The fact that the narrative often skips around in time without warning makes this already difficult series hard to follow.  And while there are some interesting parts, (the description of a homophobic hate crime in the second novel is certainly interesting, and unusual for the time)  overall the series feels too complicated and not worth the concentration. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  No.

100 BEST NOVELS? PT. 6

 Here's the next 10 titles on the list:

51.  The Naked and the Dead, Norman Mailer, 1948.  Considered the first popular novel about WWII and based on Mailer's own military experiences, this is a painfully realistic and sharply written war novel.  Along with deglamorizing war, Mailer also works in some moments of absurd satire, beating Heller's Catch-22 to the punch by years. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

52. Portnoy's Complaint, Philip Roth, 1969.  Roth's funny story based on his own years of childhood and young adulthood has a breathless pace and was considered groundbreaking in its extremely honest look at a young boy's puberty. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes, but it's not my favorite Roth novel, I prefer The Human Stain and American Pastoral.

53.  Pale Fire, Vladimir Nabokov, 1962.  This novel is more famous for its unusual style than its story.  It mostly contains a long poem, with many footnotes.  The footnotes wind up telling a story, allowing the reader to either read the whole novel straight through in order, or to jump back and fourth from the poem to the foot notes.  (This is not  an easy book to read on a Kindle!)  And then there's ambiguity beyond that, making this a truly unusual read.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? No, the style may be interesting, but the story itself is not so engaging.  I think just Lolita from Nabokov is enough.

54.  Light in August, William Faulkner, 1932.  Another difficult but rewarding Faulkner novel that avoids traditional narrative as it illustrates the lives of Southern characters in the 1920's and the sexual and racial trauma they endure. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? Yes.

55.  On the Road, Jack Kerouac, 1957.  Written in 5 parts in a famously immediate style that details the travels of Kerouac and his friends as they take drugs, groove on jazz music, and have a wild time.  One of the most famous American novels ever, I think it really holds up well. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? Yes.

56.  The Maltese Falcon, Dashiell Hammett, 1930.  Probably the most famous detective mystery novel ever written, Hammett's terse style contains treacherous dames, sadistic villains, a twisty plot, and, of course, a hard boiled, hard drinking hero in a trench coat.  Wildly entertaining. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? Yes.

57.  Parade's End, Ford Maddox Ford, 1924, 1925, 1926, 1928.  4 Novels detailing the lives of some upperclass English people before during and after WWI.  While the war parts are interesting, much of what precedes it is quite dull. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? No, I  think that Erich Maria Remarque's All Quiet on the Western Front and Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms are both better WWI novels.

58.  The Age of Innocence, Edith Wharton, 1920.  The only female author to have 2 novels on the list, the American Wharton captured the sexist double standards of the time in both of them.  Here, she tells the story of a well off young man who falls in love with an unconventional, "fallen" woman that society prevents him from marrying,   DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? Yes.

59. Zuleika Dobson, MaxBeerbohm, 1911.  Painfully dated satire about a lovely young female magician's assistant whose arrival at Oxford sends the whole student body into a tizzy of romantic longing.  But she only thinks that she can love someone who doesn't love her!  I imagine that this novel was the height of wit over a 100 years ago, but now it just feels strange and unbelievable.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? No.

60.  The Movie Goer, Walker Percy, 1961.  Set in New Orleans, this is about a successful stock broker and Korean war veteran looking for meaning in the changing South.  Not a lot of plot, here, instead the book has much philosophizing (Percy was a big fan of  Kierkegaard).  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST? Yes, as you can guess from the summary, this novel is not for everyone, but its odd style was worth following for me.

100 BEST NOVELS? PT. 5

 

Here's the next ten titles on the list:

41.  Lord of the Flies, William Golding, 1954.  Still taught in schools, this is an absolute classic about how even the most proper little English gentlemen can become savages under the right conditions.  It's a tragic disturbing story that still OK for kids to read.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes, how could it not be? 

42.  Deliverance, James Dickey, 1972.  Considering how many of these novels are reserved  in their style, it was bracing for me to read a modern  novel that's part adventure story and part dissertation on the savage nature of men.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

43.  A Dance to the Music of Time, Anthony Powell, 1951, 1952, 1955, 1957, 1960, 1962, 1964, 1966, 1968, 1971, 1973, 1975.  If you're wondering about all the publishing dates, that's because this twelve volume series was counted as only one novel on the list!  Based on Powell's own life as a publisher, writer and officer during WWII, the sprawling narrative of this series begins just after WWI and ends in 1969.  While it's an impressive feat for Powell to have written all of it, quite frankly it's often tedious.  Not surprisingly, it's often hard to keep all the characters straight, and much of the novel feels like pointless gossip passed at social gatherings.  It's not all bad, Powell's writing about the way the different men in the war related to each other is interesting, and the odd recurring character of  Kenneth Widmerpool, a politician with possible Communist leanings who winds up in a hippie cult(!), is memorable.  But overall, this isn't worth the effort. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Obviously not, I think Evelyn Waugh's Brideshead Revisited covers much of the same ground in less time. 

44.  Point Counterpoint, Aldous Huxley, 1928.  Based on people Huxley knew, the style here eschews plot to tell several overlapping stories.  As an idea, it's ambitious, but as an actual novel it's not easy to follow.  The most interesting thread, not surprisingly, is that of an intellectual vainly looking for proof of the divine in the world.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  No, I think one novel from Huxley is enough.

45.  The Sun Also Rises, Ernest Hemingway 1926.  Hemingway's melancholy look at Americans traveling from Paris to Spain in the 1920's is perhaps his most famous work.  While I certainly don't share his love of bullfighting, I still consider it a great novel. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

46.  The Secret Agent, Joseph Conrad, 1907.  The rare Conrad novel not about seafaring in foreign lands, this is a dark thriller about a foreign agent living in London who carries out terrorist attacks.  Sadly, decades later the main characters manifestoes influenced the Unabomber.  Still, a very good read. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes.

47.  Nostromo, Joseph Conrad, 1904.  Set in a fictional South American land, this deals with an Englishmen trying to get the rights to a silver mine.  While there are some exciting moments, much of the story bogs down into detail about the politics of the fictional country, making this a lesser Conrad novel.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Obviously not, especially given how Conrad has 3 other novels on the list.

48.  The Rainbow, D. H. Lawrence, 1915.  Set in England and spanning three generations of the same family, this was another controversial at the time novel for Lawrence, as one young woman's search for love leads her to another woman.  DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes, I would replace Your Sons and Lovers with this one.

49.  Women in Love, D. H. Lawrence, 1920.  A sequel to The Rainbow, this has far less scope and deals mainly with the marriages of two couples.  Once again, controversial in its sexual subject matter at the time. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  No, I think The Rainbow is the only Lawrence that needs to be on the list.

50.  Tropic of Cancer, Henry Miller, 1934.  Miller's novel is probably more famous for the controversy around its publishing than its content.  It was first published in Paris in 1934, didn't reach America until 1961, and was finally ruled "non obscene" by the US Supreme Court in 1964. Is it worth all the attention?  Well, it's certainly not dull.  Part autobiography, part fiction, written almost more as a sustained screed than a story (and the swearing is prodigious even by modern standards), it's not for everyone.. DO I THINK THAT IT DESERVES TO BE ON THE LIST?  Yes, but, again, not for everyone.