A Reader's Manifesto

By B. R. Myers,

Book cover of A Reader's Manifesto: An Attack on the Growing Pretentiousness in American Literary Prose

Book description

"A welcome contrarian take on the state of contemporary American prose."-The Wall Street Journal

The funny and devastating debunking of high "literary" prose stylists, including Don DeLillo, Annie Proulx, and Cormac McCarthy, that caused a literary furor.

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

1 author picked A Reader's Manifesto as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

I loved this book mainly because I detest modern literary fiction. Why? It strikes me as being pointless exercises in self-indulgent style over substance, largely nihilistic, and simply rotten storytelling. There are exceptions, and, of course, they are exceptional. Few of those exceptions are modern. 

Myers wrote this earlier, as a lengthy article in The Atlantic. It was the attacks from literary critics in love with the latest pointless exercises in style that prompted him to expand on the article to really twist the knife.  

Want books like A Reader's Manifesto?

Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 90 books like A Reader's Manifesto.

Browse books like A Reader's Manifesto

Book cover of A Defence of Nihilism
Book cover of The Birth of Tragedy
Book cover of Dirty Snow

Share your top 3 reads of 2024!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,593

readers submitted
so far, will you?

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in nihilism, parody, and modernism?

Nihilism 30 books
Parody 61 books
Modernism 31 books