10 Underrated Modern Classic Novels

Modern Classic is a term that is always very difficult to define. Penguin Publishing tried to define it with their own "Modern Classic" series, which to this day is expanding. Other people state that a Modern Classic is any classic novel written in the modern era - which would be after the reign of Queen Victoria ended in 1901. However, the actual meaning of "Modern Classic" is a bit shady and some even believe that it means a classic novel of the modern era that critiques how life has changed for us all born within its confines of time. Be that as it may, I find that definition far too wordy and also, it doesn't include nearly half of the novels published by the Penguin Modern Classics series because not all times within the 20th and 21st Century can apply to everyone. For example - I was born in the 90s and different time confines will apply to me than someone born in the last year or so. Their time confines may go on longer than my own and therefore, theirs won't apply to me either.

I think a Modern Classic is basically this: a book written in the 20th or 21st century that continues the traditions set out in the 19th century and prior in which they explain and critique their lifestyles, positions, social hierarchies and personal tragedies in a dramatic and endearing fashion. But then again, even I may be wrong. The point is that nobody can actually tell you exactly what a Modern Classic is, everyone has their own meaning for it and even if you think you're wrong - you are actually right if your definition is based upon the evidence of which you have read.

When we look at underrated novels, we're looking at novels that we think haven't received the same appreciation as others even though they are just as well written, if not better written. The whole point of this article will be to inspire you to read these lesser respected classics and if you're even better than I am (which really isn't that hard), then you've probably already read them or have them on your TBR pile in your bedroom right now. Some of these were published in the 20th Century and some were published only recently, but I have reasoning for why all of them should be considered Modern Classics and why they should be just as respected as the novels published within the confines of that term.

Let's have a look at ten underrated modern classics (this is by no means all of the underrated modern classics, just a few that I picked out for the purpose of promoting them to you. I have no affiliation with any advertisement, I just think these books are cool and I need friends to talk about them to).

This list is in no particular order:

1. Basic Black With Pearls by Helen Weinzweig

This strange espionage novel is both dark and intense. There's a lot of romance and identity politics within the book too. What I can't understand is why this book hasn't been read by more people. The way the book is written is in first person of a woman who is travelling to meet with her lover in a different country. However, along the way, she explains a strange backstory and an intense love affair with a man that she is sure is a spy. The romantic relationship evolves into something of secrecy and darkness - it is simply amazing.

2. We Think the World of You by JP Ackerley

The NYRB is a great source for underrated and under-read classics and this book is one of the reasons why. It's about a man called Johnnie who goes to jail and his friend comes over to help out, mainly wanting a point of contact with him. He finds that Johnnie's father, Tom, is abusing the family dog and the mother cannot do anything about it but will also not let him talk to Johnnie. This evolves into a massive family drama that revolves around the relations with the dog and there may be a grand amount of obsession blooming within. It's a beautiful novel and needs to be more read as it really appreciates the great extremes of the human condition.

3. Kafka was the Rage by Anatole Broyard

This book, written by one of my heroes, Anatole Broyard seems to be severely under-appreciated. It's about displacement of lifestyle after the second world war and returning to a New York in which the protagonist seems to not know in the slightest what he's supposed to do now. He's lost and deprived of the basics of life and there's a woman called Sherri who seems to be one of the strangest people you'll ever meet. It's a beautiful anti-war novel about how certain aspects of history destroy far much more than just the physical landscape - they destroy you emotionally and mentally too.

4. The Brothers by Masha Gessen

If I've said it once, I have said it a million times - this book should be required reading at high school. It's about the Boston Marathon and a backstory of the people who committed it. It goes through their upbringing and childhood, migration and then the strangeness that came along only days before the attack. It's basically Truman Capote's "In Cold Blood" for the 21st Century and reads like an absolute nightmare. You almost forget that it's 100% true as you're reading it and it needs to be appreciated more as a work of pure genius.

5. Frankenstein in Baghdad by Ahmed Saadawi

This is what modern classic actually means. Ahmed Saadawi's take on Mary Shelley's classic tale set against the backdrop of war, brotherhood and the want for progress in a nation torn apart by inhumane activity. It's written with brilliant style and sounds like it could potentially happen. A brilliantly twisted nightmare, this is a tale of people who just wanted to live again. It covers all aspects of humanity and inhumanity and is set to become an instant classic.

6. Different Class by Joanne Harris

When I first read this book a couple of years ago, it scared the absolute crap out of me. I went to a private school and I also encountered a shady bunch of kids, there's so much in this book that I related to that when the story started to unfold, I was already heavily invested. When McDermid calls this a 'masterpiece of misdirection' it means that even if you think you've got it, you're probably still very very far away from the actual truth. It's one of those books that if you fail to read one single word, then you've probably missed a key hint at the ending. The trick is to never take your eyes off it, not for a second.

7. Tyll by Daniel Kehlmann

Daniel Kehlmann is a very talented author and if you didn't know that then you haven't read this book. Tyll is about a mysterious man who goes to a town to perform tricks and when he tries to call on a young girl called Martha to come along with him, she declines. Tyll then sings a song about an on-coming war that is bound to ruin the town it comes to and, some time after he leaves - the town is ravaged by war and everyone dies. It then goes back to tell the story of where Tyll came from. It is a dark, intensely cold and disturbing tale. It is one of the best written novels of the last ten years. Don't believe me? Then read it.

8. The Secrets We Kept by Lara Prescott

I read this on a virtual book club along with the members of the Reese Witherspoon Book Club members. This book is all about the writing of "Dr. Zhivago" by Boris Pasternak and the life of the family who lived alongside him. During this turbulent time in Russia, there were things tearing families apart, "War and Peace" style. This book is fuelled by espionage and daring possibility, love affairs and political imprisonment. It's one of those books that shakes the foundation of the earth it touches.

9. Cathedral by Raymond Carver

Raymond Carver is one of America's best modern writers and this is a great example of why. I remember when I read "What we talk about when we talk about love" and thinking it was thoroughly average but then, I read "Cathedral" and I wondered why this wasn't more appreciated than the previous one. "Cathedral" has some intensely great stories in there especially the one about the blind man. I was absolutely astounded, it was brilliant and so incredibly raw and human. To understand Raymond Carver, you must read this book and read it today.

10. A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J Gaines

This book rests along the same road as "To Kill a Mockingbird" when it comes to explaining the wrongs against the African-Americans. It's about a man who is wrongfully convicted of murder and jailed when his teacher, Grant, is asked to come and teach him how to make a man of himself before he is sent to his death. The greatest factor of this book is the humanity of it. When it desperate times, people turn to their teachers, their lessons and their morality. They pray and take their time. You'd think that when someone knows they're going to die, everything speeds up. But no, in this case it slows down. It slows down to every fine detail of life, examined through lessons of growth and preparation.