The Book of Forgotten Authors

Now wasn't this fun?

Christopher Fowler takes his English eye to the world of lost writers—a clever look at authors who wrote one great novel or who wrote oodles or novels, authors who were once highly acclaimed but are not now, authors who wrote a brilliant novel that was overlooked.

It's a delightful read, stuffed with names of books and authors you will want to scribble down, names of books and authors you will spend many, many hours browsing the bookshelves of old bookshops in search of (probably uselessly, but, still, a wonderful time).

Our guide is charming, too, and he's done the research on these folks, and if he opinionated, at least he's also well-read and fun. There were lots of references I didn't know (I'm American, and most of the authors are English after all) but it's a fun ride anyway. I don't think you will find a quirkier collection of writers anywhere.