There are the acknowledged classics of world literature: the canonical works assigned in schools, topping every must-read list . . . and then there are the B-Sides. These are the books that slipped through the cracks, went unread, missed their rightful appointment with posterity. They were ahead of their times or behind their times or on a whole different schedule than the rest of the universe. What do you do when a book that you love has been neglected or dismissed by everyone else? In B-Side Books, leading writers, critics, and scholars show why their favorite forgotten books deserve a new audience. From dusty westerns and far-out science fiction to obscure Czech novelists and romance-novel precursors, the contributors advocate for the unsung virtues of overlooked books. They write about unheralded novels, poetry collections, memoirs, and more with understanding, respect, passion, and love. In these thoughtful, often personal essays, contributors—including Stephanie Burt, Caleb Crain, Merve Emre, Ursula K. Le Guin, Carlo Rotella, and Namwali Serpell—read books by writers such as Helen DeWitt, Shirley Jackson, Stanislaw Lem, Dambudzo Marechera, Paule Marshall, and Charles Portis.

Table of Contents:
Foreword, by Sharon Marcus, series editor Acknowledgments Introduction, by John Plotz Part I: Childhood, Through a Glass Darkly 1. A Girl of the Limberlost (Gene Stratton-Porter), by Rebecca Zorach 2. The Young Visiters (Daisy Ashford), by Caleb Crain 3. The Diary of “Helena Morley” (Elizabeth Bishop, trans.), by Elizabeth Ferry 4. Brown Girl, Brownstones (Paule Marshall), by Adrienne Brown 5. An American Childhood (Annie Dillard), by Salvatore Scibona 6. The Last Samurai (Helen DeWitt), by Toril Moi Part II. Other Worlds 7. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, by Seeta Chaganti 8. The House on the Borderland (William Hope Hodgson), by Namwali Serpell 9. Lolly Willowes (Sylvia Townsend Warner), by Ivan Kreilkamp 10. Mythology (Edith Hamilton), by Kathryn Lofton 11. Other Leopards (Denis Williams), by Emily Hyde 12. Solaris (Stanislaw Lem), by Kate Marshall 13. Riddley Walker (Russell Hoban), by Paul Saint-Amour Part III. Comedy 14. The Beggar’s Opera (John Gay), by Yoon Sun Lee 15. Lady Into Fox (David Garnett), by Maud Ellmann 16. Prater Violet (Christopher Isherwood), by Stephen McCauley 17. “Rogue’s Gallery” (Mary McCarthy), by Sean McCann 18. Gringos (Charles Portis), by Carlo Rotella Part IV. Battle and Strife 19. The Road to Calvary (Alexei Tolstoy), by Upamanyu Pablo Mukherjee 20. The Forbidden Zone (Mary Borden), by Steven Biel and Lauren Kaminsky 21. Nikola the Outlaw (Ivan Olbracht), by Jonathan Bolton 22. The House of Hunger (Dambudzo Marechera), by Isabel Hofmeyr 23. The Short-Timers (Gustav Hasford), by Steven Biel 24. A Flag at Sunrise (Robert Stone), by Ben Fountain 25. The Vehement Passions (Philip Fisher), by Lorraine Daston Part V. Home Fires 26. Annals of the Parish (John Galt), by Ursula K. Le Guin 27. The Dry Heart (Natalie Ginzburg), by Merve Emre 28. Life Among the Savages; Raising Demons (Shirley Jackson), by Sharon Marcus 29. My Uncle Napoleon (Iraj Pezeshkzad), by Pardis Dabashi 30. We Think the World of You (A. J. Ackerley), by Kevin Brazil 31. All Aunt Hagar’s Children (Edward P. Jones), by Elizabeth Graver Part VI: Mysteries and Trials 32. The Diaries of Lady Anne Clifford, by Ramie Targoff 33. The Riddle of the Sands (Erskine Childers), by Margaret Cohen 34. Stamboul Train (Graham Greene), by Penny Fielding 35. The Hours Before Dawn (Celia Fremlin), by Leah Price Part VII: Journeys of the Spirit 36. A Life of One’s Own (Marion Millner), by Vanessa Smith 37. Butcher’s Crossing (John Williams), by John Plotz 38. Journey in Search of the Way (Satomi Myōdō), by Theo Davis 39. I Remember (Joe Brainard), by Andrew H. Miller 40. Transformatrix (Patience Agbabi), by Stephanie Burt List of Contributors