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“The Conversion of the Jews,” originally published in 1958 in the literary magazine The Paris Review, is a satirical postmodern short story by American novelist Philip Roth (1933-2018). The short story was later included in a collection of Roth’s stories titled Goodbye Columbus (1959), which won the National Book Award for Fiction. This guide references the version collected in The Oxford Book of Jewish Stories (1998).“The Conversion of the Jews” centers around the precocious and... Read The Conversion of the Jews Summary

The Crying of Lot 49 (1966) is a short novel by Thomas Pynchon that handles topics related to the US counterculture movement and the 1960s at large. In the novel, Oedipa Maas unearths a centuries-old conspiracy about warring mail-delivery firms. This discovery leads her along an absurdist investigation of the firms and their motivations. The novel has been heralded as one of the best English-language novels of the 20th century and is considered a primary... Read The Crying of Lot 49 Summary

Anton Chekhov was born in Russia in 1860. His most celebrated works include the plays Uncle Vanya and The Cherry Orchard and the short stories “The Peasants” and “The Lady With the Dog.” Chekhov was no stranger to comedy, but his humor is often couched within serious, unsettling situations, featuring characters who are unable or unwilling to overcome their shortcomings and help themselves. “The Death of a Government Clerk” contains some of these same elements... Read The Death of a Government Clerk Summary

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The Devil Wears Prada, published in 2004, is the debut novel of author Lauren Weisberger. It tells the tale of a hapless assistant working for a tyrannical boss in the fashion industry.The story takes place largely in present-day New York City, mostly in the offices of a high-fashion magazine called Runway. The central character, Andrea Sachs (who uses the nickname Andy), narrates the story from the first-person perspective, and the events she describes transpire over... Read The Devil Wears Prada Summary

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Published in 1969, The Edible Woman was Margret Atwood’s first novel and established her reputation as a significant contemporary novelist. The Edible Woman follows recently engaged Marian McAlpin as she attempts to reconcile her need for personal autonomy with the gendered expectations inherent within the roles of a wife and mother. As Marian begins to feel a loss of identity, her body suddenly refuses certain foods, particularly meat. To reflect the inner struggle her protagonist... Read The Edible Woman Summary

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Published in 1956, The Floating Opera is a literary novel by John Barth. Barth’s first novel, The Floating Opera focuses on Todd Andrews as he makes plans to commit suicide in the late 1930s, utilizing first-person nonlinear storytelling and humor to meditate on life and death. Following its publication, the novel was nominated for the National Book Award. Barth has published numerous novels since, becoming a seminal figure in postmodern American literature. Plot SummaryTodd Andrews narrates... Read The Floating Opera Summary

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First published in 1749, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling is considered one of the best and most influential early novels in English literature. Henry Fielding was a respected dramatist, essayist, and satirist, and as a public official, he helped to establish London’s first professional police force.A comic novel that blends romance, realism, picaresque, and social commentary—while passing itself off as a true history of a life as well as a reflection of human... Read The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling Summary

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The House of God is a novel written by American author and doctor Samuel Bergman under the pseudonym Samuel Shem and originally published in 1978. The book is heavily based on Bergman’s own experiences as a medical intern in the early 1970s, and the fictional hospital “the House of God” is a thinly veiled fictional version of the Beth Israel teaching hospital associated with Harvard Medical School. The novel is a satire in the vein... Read The House of God Summary

Set in New York’s high society at the turn of the 20th century, The House of Mirth (1905), was the second novel by renowned American writer Edith Wharton. Wharton drew upon her own privileged upbringing in a wealthy, long-established New York family for her astute observations of this social milieu during the Gilded Age, a period marked by economic disparities and ostentatious materialism. Prior to the novel’s publication in October 1905, The House of Mirth... Read The House of Mirth Summary

The Joke is a novel by Czech author Milan Kundera. Released in 1967, it tells the story of Ludvik Jahn and his life under the Czech communist regime. The novel has been celebrated as one of the most important literary works of the 20th century. A 1968 film adaptation by director Jaromil Jires was banned in Eastern European cinemas. The Joke was Kundera’s first novel in his long and distinguished career. He received the Jerusalem... Read The Joke Summary

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The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman is a nine-volume novel published between 1759 and 1767 by English novelist Laurence Sterne. The novel is considered by many scholars as an early forerunner of postmodern literature due to its metafictional commentary on its own narrative. Contemporary critics did not view the novel favorably, though its humor and sentimentalism helped it find an audience. The novel has been adapted for radio and opera and as a... Read The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman Summary

Published in 1948, The Loved One: An Anglo-American Tragedy by English writer Evelyn Waugh is a short satirical novel that lampoons both the Los Angeles funeral industry and the Hollywood film business. British expatriates and Americans clash in this morbid but merry tale of smiling corpses and lavish pet funerals. Waugh wrote it after a trip to Hollywood during which he visited the Forest Lawn Cemetery. The book inspired the 1965 film The Loved One... Read The Loved One Summary