A French anglophile in the Age of Reason, Voltaire is best remembered for his fanciful philosophical tales -- "Candide," the most famous and well-constructed of these, is often referred to as the first novel. A reflective adventure story, "Candide" portrays a thinking everyman who meanders through a

18th century literature, Clever, Ironic, Parody, Rebel, Witty

E.M. Forster once said that if he had to choose between betraying his country and his friends, he hoped he'd have the courage to betray the former. This preference for personal loyalty over patriotism reveals the core of Forster's values, the liberalism that he brought to his fictional explorations o

Bloomsbury, Elegant, Homoerotic, Political, Sincere, Witty

Lonely pregnancies, jealous sisters, fears of physicality, and loss of identity are Margaret Drabble's specialties. She spins tales of London's upper-middle-class life, and for the past 30 years England has eaten them up. Fans devour her hyper-accurate descriptions of the furniture, values, and perso

Clean, Composed, Eclectic, Post-war literature, Witty, Women's literature

Ebullient, Fleeting, Modernist literature, Quirky, Smart, The lost generation, Witty, Women's literature