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The English Teacher's List of Defiance: Popular Genre Books That Are Better Than "Literature " - Page 3

I was once asked during a job interview who I thought were the 3 greatest American Novelists of the 20th Century. I said Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, and Elmore Leonard. I didn't get the job. (I learned later that I was supposed to say Hemingway, Fitzgerald, and Faulkner.Mea Culpa.) In my subsequent career in Academia, I have held to two principles:1) Drama is not Literature - it is its own separate form; and 2) The best writing is found in the genres. I don't discount mainstream literary fiction; "Gatsby", for example, is a great book. It's just that "The Glass Key" is just as good, and Hammett is a better storyteller AND writer than Fitzgerald. So here are a bunch of genre titles that meet the criteria of "Literature", and are better than some of the crap I was required to teach.
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The Night of the Generals (Kirst)
The Night of the Generals
81
Kirst
Nightmare Alley (William Lindsay Gresham)
Nightmare Alley
82
William Lindsay Gresham
Nightmare at 20000 Feet
Nightmare at 20000 Feet
83
No Blade of Grass (John Christopher)
No Blade of Grass
84
John Christopher
The Ocean at the End of the Lane (Neil Gaiman)
The Ocean at the End of the Lane
85
Neil Gaiman
The Ox-Bow Incident (Clark, Walter Van Tilburg)
The Ox-Bow Incident
86
Clark, Walter Van Tilburg
A Perfect Spy (John Le Carre)
A Perfect Spy
87
John Le Carre
THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE James M Cain
THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE James M Cain
88
Rear Window (Cornell Woolrich)
Rear Window
89
Cornell Woolrich
Rebecca (Daphne Du Maurier)
Rebecca
90
Daphne Du Maurier
The Road to Perdition (Collins)
The Road to Perdition
91
Collins
Rogue Male
Rogue Male
92
Sandman (Gaiman)
Sandman
93
Gaiman
The Searchers (Alan Lemay)
The Searchers
94
Alan Lemay
The Shadow Over Innsmouth
The Shadow Over Innsmouth
95
Shane (Jack Schaefer)
Shane
96
Jack Schaefer
The Sheep Look Up (John Brunner)
The Sheep Look Up
97
John Brunner
Sherlock Holmes (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
Sherlock Holmes
98
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The Shining (Stephen King)
The Shining
99
Stephen King
Shoot the Piano Player
Shoot the Piano Player
100
Slaughterhouse-Five (Kurt Vonnegut)
Slaughterhouse-Five
101
Kurt Vonnegut
Snow Crash (Neal Stephenson)
Snow Crash
102
Neal Stephenson
Song of Kali (Simmons)
Song of Kali
103
Simmons
The Spy Who Came in From the Cold (John Le Carré)
The Spy Who Came in From the Cold
104
John Le Carré
Stand on Zanzibar (John Brunner)
Stand on Zanzibar
105
John Brunner
Station Eleven (Emily St John Mandel)
Station Eleven
106
Emily St John Mandel
Stranger in a Strange Land (Robert a Heinlein)
Stranger in a Strange Land
107
Robert a Heinlein
The Talented Mr Ripley (Patricia Highsmith)
The Talented Mr Ripley
108
Patricia Highsmith
A Taste for Death (P.D. James)
A Taste for Death
109
P.D. James
They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (Horace McCoy)
They Shoot Horses, Don't They?
110
Horace McCoy
The Third Man (Greene)
The Third Man
111
Greene
The Time Machine (H.G. Wells)
The Time Machine
112
H.G. Wells
To Say Nothing of the Dog (Connie Willis)
To Say Nothing of the Dog
113
Connie Willis
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (Jules Verne)
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
114
Jules Verne
The Uninvited (Dorothy McCardle)
The Uninvited
115
Dorothy McCardle
Unknown Man No. 89 (Elmore Leonard)
Unknown Man No. 89
116
Elmore Leonard
Up in Honey's Room
Up in Honey's Room
117
The War of the Worlds (H. G. Wells)
The War of the Worlds
118
H. G. Wells
Warlock (Oakley Hall)
Warlock
119
Oakley Hall
Watchmen (Alan Moore)
Watchmen
120
Alan Moore
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