English Fiction in the 1930s

Chris Hopkins is Professor of English Studies and Head of the Humanities Research Centre at Sheffield Hallam University, UK.

• Introduction: Novel Politics - Language, Genre and History in English Fiction of the 1930s; 1. Modernism and Modernity; 2. Documentary and Proletarian Pastoral; 3. History and the Historical novel; 4. Thrillers and Dystopias; Bibliography; Index.

"English Fiction in the 1930s not only provides new readings of texts that have been relatively or entirely ignored by critics, but suggests a series of productive and sometimes unexpected dialogues between texts. . . Hopkins's style throughout is lucid and whilst this study contributes to scholarship on the literature of the 1930s it does not presume an exhaustive specialist knowledge. . . The chapters [are all] perceptive, well-argued and suggestive. Hopkins's use of particular texts to explore the politics of genre opens the way for further research and an increasingly sophisticated understanding of 1930s literature. He is not the first to propose a more complex, diverse image of writing during the decade, but he offers a new perspective and a series of instructive new readings. English Fiction in the 1930s is consequently a valuable addition to a growing body of critical work that looks beyond the ‘Auden generation." - Review of English Studies