All the Not So Classic Books That I Have Read, Part Three

1. Bad Monkeys (2007) -- Matt Ruff.

Conspiracy thriller for people who hate conspiracy thrillers.

2. Auntie Mame (1955) -- Patrick Dennis.

Inspiration for the classic movie of the same name. The story of an orphaned boy raised by an eccentric aunt. Oddly dated but in a good way.

3. Around the World with Auntie Mame (1958) -- Patrick Dennis.

A sequel -- and in some ways, a prequel -- to Auntie Mame.

4. I Capture the Castle (1948) -- Dodie Smith.

The daughter of an eccentric writer comes of age in an impoverished household. Better and more interesting evocation of the bohemian lifestyle than Auntie Mame.

5. The Town in Bloom (1965) -- Dodie Smith.

An onetime aspiring actress looks back upon her life after a brief reunion with friends.

6. The Hundred and One Dalmations (1956) -- Dodie Smith.

Not a novelization of the Disney movie of the same name but the original source for said movie.

7. The New Moon with the Old (1963) -- Dodie Smith.

A young woman starts work as a servant at a house filled with eccentric young people -- people who are forced to mature when their father unexpectedly leaves the household.

8. The House on Mango Street (1984) -- Sandra Cisneros.

A young Mexican-American woman grows up in a “transitional” neighborhood.

9. Blast from the Past (1998) -- Ben Elton.

A British woman gets an unexpected visit from a former lover that proves to be more complicated than she or he anticipates.

10. The First Casualty (2005) -- Ben Elton.

A confirmed pacifist finds himself drafted during World War I to investigate a murder case involving a British soldier.