The English Novel: A Short Critical History

by Walter Allen

A distinguished book recognised as one of the finest critical histories of the English novel. The author, Walter Allen, was an English novelist whose work included'All In A Lifetime', 'Dead Man Over All' and 'Innocence Is Drowned'; and a writer and critic whose literary studies included a second volume on the novel,'Tradition and Dream' and a unique history of the short story in English. Here he tells the story of the novel and storytelling from Bunyan through to all the great writers of fiction to the two 20th century giants, D.H. Lawrence and James Joyce. The passage of time may have made this work appear outdated, but it still has a role to play in any debate on the subject of the novel.

Genres: Nonfiction, Literary Criticism, Literature, Books About Books, History, Criticism

454 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1954

About the author

Walter Ernest Allen was an English literary critic and novelist.

Reviews

[Justin Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Remember when literary critics read books and wrote about them? No? Well, I do now. He got a few things wrong - what did these people ever see in H.G. Wells? In Meredith? That they should be put next to (even sometimes above!) Forster and Woolf? Who knows. But at least you can get upset about this and know that Allen would probably have argued with you, instead of complaining that Forster was a crypto-imperialist (which is extraordinarily stupid, by the way), and Wells a eugenicist, and therefore they're not worth reading. He's a bit obsessed with 'symbolism' too, which is distracting, and has a soft spot for 'Englishness' and 'nonconformism,' which is more touching now than it might have been when there was still an empire. Anyway, I'd much rather read this than Greenblatt, and I imagine that goes for most people.

[Etta Mcquade · Rating 5 out of 5]

A marvelous reference book which I turn to when reading Austin, Bronte, Fielding, E. M. Forster, Dickens, etc.

[Tom Walsh]

Here's a good old fashioned (i.e. intelligently written) critique of our favorite authors. It reads like a classroom lecture.

[Will Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Incredibly boring and dense but I learned a lot so that’s the point I suppose

[Persephone Abbott · Rating 5 out of 5]

"..Mrs. Smith wrote admirable sober prose, with flashes of biting descriptive power, as in the phrase 'Her whole face was the colour of veal'. It is odd that so good a novel should not have been reprinted since 1820." Most entertaining to learn of forgotten authors, however the reviews of better known, Bronte or Dickens, were rather enlightening and I appreciated the analysis. I read this book backwards, starting with the modern (1951) when Mr. Allen put forth that of the three prominent authors of the time -- D.H. Lawrence, Virginia Woolf and James Joyce -- it was Lawrence who had his vote but I did enjoy the book more the further back I journeyed.

[GONZA · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is nothing to do, this is one of my favorite books of English literature, I love it and I think I will never stop re-read it.

Non c'é niente da fare, questo é uno dei miei libri di letteratura inglese preferiti, lo adoro e credo che non smetteró mai di rileggerlo.

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

A relatively short, lively-written survey of the history of the English novel by an actual novelist not an academic. Walter Allen loves his subject.

[Hagar · Rating 4 out of 5]

a very good reference..was really helpful!

[Mona Kamel · Rating 5 out of 5]

من أفضل الكتب التي تعطي موجز عن فن الرواية الانجليزية مع التركيز على أبرز الكتاب وأعمالهم.

[Luiz Felipe · Rating 4 out of 5]

The English Novel é um livro que você lê como aula, fluido e acessível, escrito certamente por alguém apaixonado pela literatura inglesa e que também é autor de romances, o que traz não só um denso conhecimento como também bons insights sobre criação de personagens e escrita criativa.
O livro segue uma cronologia do romance, ou seja, passa muito rápido pela sátira e pela peça teatral - apesar de pontuar as influências de Shakespeare, Dom Quixote e da história escrita sobre os primeiros romancistas - e repousa no século XVII quando John Bunyan publica 'O Peregrino', em 1678. A partir de então você acompanha a evolução do romance inglês na Inglaterra até James Joyce e D.H. Lawrence.
Nesses 250 anos de história literária, você se encanta com boas críticas formuladas a Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, Jane Austen e as irmãs Brontë, enquanto se frustra toda vez que o lê falar com tanta propriedade sobre autores nunca publicados no Brasil ou obras que não aparecem sequer nas biografias de wikipedia.
Essa obra de Walter Allen é um lembrete de que:
(1) ainda há muita boa literatura para ser publicada no país;
(2) há muito material feito por leitores apaixonados e qualificados que não inspiram o consumismo desenfreado enquanto criticam a folha de guarda ou a cor do corte lateral do livro e fazem propaganda de óculos escuro no youtube.

[Marko]

I have two different editions.