So we all know of works like Lolita, Lord of the Rings, the Sherlock Holmes novels--genre-defining novels that are still widely read and discussed today. This thread is to honour all of those equally great works that have, for whatever reason, been eclipsed by their more successful rivals. Share your favourite forgotten gems and give these greats the attention they deserve! I guess I'll start off with Yukio Mishima's Forbidden Colours. Published in 1953 (1968 in English) it makes a good comparison with Lolita--both deal with aging writers pursuing younger lovers, questions of beauty, love, identity. Stylistically, Mishima isn't far off Nabokov. His writing is very eloquent, lyrical without being needlessly overloaded, and there are more than a few moments of awe-inspiring brilliance. Despite critical success, his novels don't sell well outside of Japan, and while he has been considered several times for the Nobel Prize, he has never been awarded a significant literary award. Furthermore, his death by ritual suicide in 1970 tends to overshadow the writing itself. Yukio Mishima is one of the few writers of the 20th century who was unquestionably brilliant. Rush to your nearest bookstore and pick up a copy of Forbidden Colours!
Thomas Pynchon's V., On the Road by Jack Kourac, and Libra by Don Delillo. These are all neglected masterworks, and Don Delillo is the most underrated writer I know of.
On the Road neglected? I guess in the sense that its sheer awesomeness is neglected by the douchebags who pretend to like it to seem cool or whatever... And I agree about Delillo, deserves much more attention than he gets.
Delillo is actually fairly well-known here in America, at least it seems that way from the few reading enthusiasts I've spoken to. He's known particularly for his novels Underworld and White Noise. I admit that I've never heard of his other novels. As for Pynchon and Kerouac, I wouldn't consider either of them to be neglected either, since a lot of people know about Kerouac. If you are talking about the average reader, then perhaps these three may not be known, but I would guess that those who study/read literature have heard of those writers.
... I was talking about specific books; V. for example is overlooked in favour of Gravity's Rainbow, as are all his other works ... and yeah, On the Road is rather will known - I can admit that, I still feel it is in some ways neglected, which is the point of this thread.
I guess you're right about V and Gravity's Rainbow, although all of the people I know who have read Gravity's Rainbow have read, or at least heard of, V. As for actual writers, not many people have heard of Muriel Spark, who was a Scottish writer. She's a writer worth checking out.
The Caine Mutiny by Herman Wouk. He won a Pulitzer Price for it in 1952 and while most know it for the adaptation on the big screen, I didn't know it was based upon a book, until very recently. I might be alone in this, but I thought it was worth the mention.
Agree. At least with people I know, everyone has read on the road. It seems like it speaks to some people and not to others. I know I read this book for a class in high school, so I don't think is really counts as neglected.
