How Literature Works

Interested readers—whether recreational or academic—will be hard-pressed to find another book that so elegantly, precisely, accessibly, and masterfully explains the West's approach to literature across the ages as Sutherland (Emeritus Lord Northcliffe Professor of Modern English Literature, Univ. Coll. London; Curiosities of Literature: A Feast for Book Lovers) does here. Indeed, only if Sutherland ghost-wrote (Concept #47) this review could it reflect the charm and erudition, devoid of pomposity, found in his book. He presents his 50 key concepts within six sections, from "Some Basics" (e.g., Ambiguity, Epic, Gothic) through "Machinery: How It Works," "Literature's Devices," "New Ideas," "Word Crimes," and "Literary Futures." Each concept is covered in four consistently formatted pages. In each presentation, he employs rhetorical questions that keep readers engaged and text boxes with enticing particulars of lit-crit history. Customized time lines across the bottom of each initial spread indicate useful reference points (e.g., his Gothic time line extends from the Goths sacking Rome in 410 to 1974's publication of Stephen King's gothic Carrie). The second spread always includes "the condensed idea" (e.g., "Terrify us, please!").