Who are your favorite authors of the 1950’s, which books, and why?
Post WWII society, the emergence of corporate culture, established suburban culture, a new optimism, a new a new layer of cynicism, emerging civil rights, the new Angry Young Men of literature, the emergence of the Beats, gay culture begins to emerge from the underground, the emergence of anti-establishmentism, the atomic bomb, the nuclear arms race, space exploration, the new angst, the Korean War, and much more had an effect on Literature. Which authors or books of this period hit home with you?
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11 Answers
I like John Wyndham. He wrote ‘The Day of the Triffids’ and ‘The Kraken Wakes’ . They are apocalyptic science fiction novels set against the backdrop of the cold war.
More Tolkien.
Asimov. T.H. White. More Agatha Christie and Dr. Seuss.
A lot of the Sci-Fi greats arose in the 50s. Heinlein, Arthur C. Clarke, Phillip K. Dick.
I adore The Day Of The Triffids and Phillip K. Dick, which were previously mentioned.
I also love Catcher In The Rye, which just hits me on all the right levels.
Naked Lunch is one of my favorite books of all time. I think Burroughs had an understanding of the culture of police surveillance/bureaucratic control that remains very pertinent today.
Jack Kerouac is one of my favorite authors. On The Road is a classic and it’s really a great book with a lot of energy. I also like The Subterraneans.
I am also with @filmfann on Catcher In The Rye by J.D Salinger.
The 50’s were a great century in literature in my opinion.
@Bookish1 Ha, yeah, the Steely Dan… Amazing. All the Beats; Corso, Kerouac, Holmes, Ginsburg, all great characters on and off the page.
Salinger. Loved the short ones; A Good Day for Banana Fish, To Esme With Love and Squalor.
What about James Jones, Michener, Malamud, Cheever, Roth, Heller, Arthur Miller, Henry Miller, the hilarious Ms. Flannery OConnor—anybody like these guys?
James Jones – Never read
Malamud – Like
Cheever – so-so
Roth – love/hate
Arthur Miller – Good plays
Flannery O’Connor – Weird
Heller – Loved “Catch 22”
Salinger – Also love the short stories. Tried to reread “Catcher” a few years ago and was appalled by the snotty little twit.
There’s also Saul Bellow.
Ian Fleming/James Bond/just because.
@janbb Yeah, Catcher is best read while one still is a snotty little twit. Confirmation.
You didn’t like Cheever’s_The Swimmer?_
O’Connor’s A Good Man is Hard to Find?
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