Novels - Exodus Books

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To be great, a novel must show an old thing in a new way. It's equally disastrous to espouse tradition for its own sake as to propose novelty for the sake of novelty—only together can these elements have meaning.

Modernist and postmodernist authors are infatuated with newness as a thing in itself. They subject language to increasingly complicated gymnastic maneuvers, play with ideas rather than defending them, and generally wreak havoc on established forms. This results in novels that may or may not be aesthetically pleasing, but are surely meaningless.

If we adhere too closely to the forms of the past, however, we run the risk of shortsightedness, bigotry, and prejudice. Humans too often must be shaken from their stupor, made to see things as others see them in order to promote equality and peace and goodwill. A good novel rooted in universal ideals freshly presented can do just that.

Novels are seldom the impetus for social movements, but they often augment cultural change. As a literary form, they came into being because writers wanted a venue for espousing or exploring ideas that wasn't rooted in history or "real life." They wanted, in short, to write fiction.

Before the novel, works modern readers would view as fictional were generally considered in a different light. Either they were actual history, or they were meta-narratives, or they were religious, or they were simply narrative philosophy. The idea was to impart truth, not simply data. As writers became more concerned with the world-as-it-is and scientific understanding, they turned toward forms more consistent with the Enlightenment emphasis on knowledge-acquisition as a means to truth.

The novel was such a form. Symbolism was never abandoned wholesale (except by certain eccentric groups at various times), but a new attention was paid to detail—not just detail integral to the story or signifying something else, but detail that set the scene, that gave the reader a sense of place, mood, circumstance and character. It was this attention to detail that helped fiction emerge as a respectable genre.

For ancient and Medieval writers, the seen world and the world beyond were indistinguishable. The famed Celtic knot was intended to show the interrelatedness of all things, how each realmbled into the other and held everything in place. Pre-Enlightenment writing reflected this view, and any detail provided in a poem or narrative was intended, not to portray physical or human "realities," but to demonstrate truths consistent between realms.

When the Enlightenment came around and proclaimed scientific observation and empiricism the new guides (replacing revelation and divine authority), a new approach was needed. No longer were things primarily representative of other things, things were essentially what they were—meaning things were eseentially physical.

Description evolved to fit the new ethos, and creative literature evolved with it. The novel, prose rather than poetry, devoted to detail and incident rather than sweeping generalization, was one of the best weapons in the Enlightenment arsenal. Writers were no longer primarily concerned with affecting readers' attitudes and hearts, they wanted to change their minds. Western culture has never recovered.

Fortunately, the novel was never stagnant, and never fully enslaved by Enlightenment practitioners. Novels have diversified: there are philosophical novels, poetic novels, experimental novels, comic novels, historical novel, all of them aimed at the reader in such a way that the encounter is either devastating or uplifting, frightening or comforting, horrible and sad or fresh and beautiful.

We don't pretend to carry every important novel ever penned. We don't apologize for that....or for the fact that we carry novels at all. It's easy to look at fiction as mere escapism, much harder to engage it seriously hoping to be transformed. Our goal is to offer books (whether "classics" or not) that offer new ways of seeing, opportunities for transformation, encounters with the sublime as harrowing as they are exhilerating.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.

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	20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Sterling Classics by Jules Verne, translated by Lewis Page Mercier and illustrated by Scott McKowen from Sterling Publishing Co. for 5th-10th grade in Science Fiction (Location: FIC-SCI)
	20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Bantam Classics by Jules Verne, translated by Anthony Bonner from Bantam Books Science Fiction for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $5.99
	20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Windermere Readers #19 by Jules Verne, translated by Philip Schuyler Allen 1956 printing from Rand McNally for 10th-Adult in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC) $10.00 (2 in stock)
	20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Windermere Series 2 (Cover 1) by Jules Verne, translated by Philip Schuyler Allen from Rand McNally for 10th-Adult in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
	20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Windermere Series 2 (Cover 2) by Jules Verne, translated by Philip Schuyler Allen from Rand McNally for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
	20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Windermere Series 3 by Jules Verne, translated by Philip Schuyler Allen from Rand McNally for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
	20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Windermere Series 4 by Jules Verne, translated by Philip Schuyler Allen 1935 Edition from Rand McNally for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
	2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke from ROC Science Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $8.99
	Brave New World by Aldous Huxley from Harper Perennial for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $6.50 (1 in stock)
	Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller from HarperCollins for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $16.99
	Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller from Bantam Books for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $8.99
	Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller from Harper & Row for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $4.50 (1 in stock)
	Children of Dune Dune Chronicles Book 3 by Frank Herbert from ACE Publishing Science Fiction for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $9.99
	Children of Dune Dune Chronicles Book 3 by Frank Herbert from ACE Publishing Science Fiction for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $50.00
	Complete Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne, translated by Emanuel J. Mickel from Indiana University Press for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
	Dune Dune Chronicles Book 1 by Frank Herbert from ACE Publishing Science Fiction for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $10.99
	Dune Dune Chronicles Book 1 by Frank Herbert, introduction by Brian Herbert Second Ace hardcover, 2019 from ACE Publishing Science Fiction for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $40.00
	Dune Messiah Dune Chronicles Book 2 by Frank Herbert from ACE Publishing Science Fiction for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $9.99
	Dune Messiah Dune Chronicles Book 2 by Frank Herbert from ACE Publishing Science Fiction for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $50.00
	Earth Abides by George R. Stewart from Harper Voyager for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $18.99
	ECL: Time Machine & Invisible Man by H. G. Wells, illustrated by Dick Cole from Classic Press Science Fiction/Dystopian literature for 7th-Adult in Educator Classic Library (Location: VIN-ECL)
	Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card from Tor Classic Science Fiction for 7th-Adult in Science Fiction (Location: FIC-SCI) $9.99
	Eyre Affair Thursday Next Book 1 by Jasper Fforde from Penguin Putnam for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $18.00
	Five Weeks in a Balloon by Jules Verne, translated by William Lackland and illustrated by Edouard Riou Illustrated Fir from SeaWolf Press for 5th-10th grade in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW) $9.95
	Foundation Foundation Trilogy #1 by Isaac Asimov Revised from Bantam Books Science Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $8.99
	Foundation and Empire Foundation Trilogy #2 by Isaac Asimov from Bantam Books Science Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $8.99
	From the Earth to the Moon by Jules Verne, Translated by Louis Mercer & Eleanor King Illustrated 1874 from SeaWolf Press for 9th-Adult in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW) $11.95
	Hitchhiker's "Trilogy" set by Douglas Adams from Ballantine Books Humorous Science Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
	Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Hitchhiker's Trilogy #1 by Douglas Adams from Ballantine Books Humorous Science Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $7.99
	I, Robot by Isaac Asimov from Bantam Books Science Fiction for 7th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $7.99
	Invisible Man by H. G. Wells from Signet Classics Science Fiction for 7th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $5.95
	Invisible Man by H.G. Wells from Heritage Press for 10th grade-adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
	Invisible Man by H. G. Wells, illustrated by Louis Strimpl from SeaWolf Press Science Fiction for 7th-Adult in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW) $7.95
	Invisible Man & Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells from Reader's Digest for 10th grade-adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $8.00 (1 in stock)
	Island of Dr. Moreau Signet Classics by H. G. Wells from Signet Classics Speculative Fiction for 9th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $4.95
	Island of Dr. Moreau Signet Classics by H. G. Wells from Dover Publications Speculative Fiction for 9th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $4.00
	Island of Dr. Moreau by H. G. Wells from SeaWolf Press Speculative Fiction for 9th-Adult in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
	Journey to the Center of the Earth Sterling Classics by Jules Verne, illustrated by Scott McKowen from Sterling Publishing Co. Science Fiction for 6th-10th grade in Science Fiction (Location: FIC-SCI)
	Journey to the Centre of the Earth Great Illustrated Classics by Jules Verne from Dodd, Mead & Co. Science Fiction for 6th-10th grade in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
	Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. Le Guin from Charles Scribner's Sons for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $17.00
	Life, the Universe and Everything Hitchhiker's Trilogy #3 by Douglas Adams from Ballantine Books Humorous Science Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $8.99
	Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny from HarperCollins for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $13.99
	Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury from Bantam Books Science Fiction for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $6.00
	Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury Reprint from Simon & Schuster Macmillan Science Fiction for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $8.99
	More Than Complete Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams from Del Rey for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $9.00 (1 in stock)
	Mostly Harmless Hitchhiker's Trilogy #5 by Douglas Adams from Del Rey for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $8.99
	Mysterious Island Signet Classics by Jules Verne from Signet Classics Science Fiction for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $7.95
	Mysterious Island by Jules Verne, illustrated by N. C. Wyeth from Charles Scribner's Sons Science Fiction for 8th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
	Mysterious Island by Jules Verne, illustrated by N. C. Wyeth from SeaWolf Press Science Fiction for 10th-Adult in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW) $15.95
	Mysterious Island by Jules Verne, illustrated by Edward A. Wilson from Heritage Press Science Fiction for 8th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
	Paris in the Twentieth Century The Lost Novel by Jules Verne from Random House for 9th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $15.00
	Poison Belt by Arthur Conan Doyle from SeaWolf Press for 9th-Adult in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW) $6.95
	Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs from Dover Publications for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $5.95
	Ready Player One by Ernest Cline from Broadway Books for 8th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $18.00
	Restaurant At the End of the Universe Hitchhiker's Trilogy #2 by Douglas Adams from Ballantine Books Humorous Science Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $8.99
	Restaurant At the End of the Universe Hitchhiker's Trilogy #2 by Douglas Adams Book Club Edition from Harmony Humorous Science Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $4.00 (1 in stock)
	Second Foundation Foundation Trilogy #3 by Isaac Asimov from Bantam Books Science Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $7.99
	So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish Hitchhiker's Trilogy #4 by Douglas Adams from Ballantine Books Humorous Science Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $7.99
	So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish Hitchhiker's Trilogy #4 by Douglas Adams from Crown Publishers Humorous Science Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $6.00 (1 in stock)
	Space Trilogy - Hardcover Set by C. S. Lewis from Simon and Schuster Allegorical Science Fiction/Fantasy for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $71.10
	Space Trilogy - Quality Softcover Set by C. S. Lewis from Simon and Schuster Allegorical Science Fiction/Fantasy for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $40.78
	Starship Troopers by Robert Heinlein from ACE Publishing Science Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $18.00
	That Hideous Strength Space Trilogy Book 3 by C. S. Lewis from Charles Scribner's Sons Allegorical Fantasy for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $17.99
	That Hideous Strength Space Trilogy Book 3 by C. S. Lewis from Charles Scribner's Sons Allegorical Fantasy for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
	Time Machine by H. G. Wells from Dover Publications for 7th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $2.00 (1 in stock)
	Time Machine by H. G. Wells from Penguin Classics for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $11.00 $6.00 (1 in stock)
	Time Machine by H. G. Wells 100th Anniversary Edition from SeaWolf Press for 10th-Adult in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW) $6.29
	Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea Signet Classics by Jules Verne, translated by Mendor Brunetti from Signet Classics Science Fiction for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $5.95
	Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne from Nelson Doubleday, Inc. for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
	Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea Seawolf Classics by Jules Verne, translated by F. P. Walter Illustrated 1875 from SeaWolf Press for 10th-Adult in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW) $15.45
	Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne, illustrated by Milo Winter from Barnes & Noble for 10th-Adult in Science Fiction (Location: FIC-SCI)
	Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea Oxford World's Classics by Jules Verne, translated by William Butcher 2^nd edition from Oxford University for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $12.95
	Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne, translated by Philip Schuyler Allen and illustrated by Joseph Ciardiello from Reader's Digest for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
	Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne, with essays by Matthew Booth and David Stuart Davis from Worth Press for 10th-Adult in Science Fiction (Location: FIC-SCI)
	Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne, translated by Lewis Page Mercier and illustrated by Edward A. Wilson from Heritage Press for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
	Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne, translated by Lewis Page Mercier and illustrated by W. J. Aylward from Charles Scribner's Sons for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
	Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea Vintage Classics by Jules Verne, translated by Henry Frith from Vintage Classics Science Fiction for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $10.00
	Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas by Jules Verne, translated by Lewis Page Mercier and Ron Miller, illustrated by Ron Miller from Unicorn Publishing House for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
	Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Five Novels in One Outrageous Volume by Douglas Adams, introduction by Neil Gaiman from Del Rey for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $9.50 (1 in stock)
	War in the Air by H. G. Wells, illustrated by A.C. Michael from SeaWolf Press for 10th-Adult in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW) $9.79
	War of the Worlds Signet Classics by H. G. Wells from Signet Classics Science Fiction for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $5.95 $3.50 (1 in stock)
	War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells, illustrated by Scott McKowen from Sterling Publishing Co. for 8th-10th grade in Science Fiction (Location: FIC-SCI)
	War of the Worlds Books of Wonder by H. G. Wells (illustrated by Tom Kidd) from HarperCollins for 8th-10th grade in Science Fiction (Location: FIC-SCI)
	War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells, Illustrated by Henrique Alvim Corrêa Illustrated 1898 from SeaWolf Press for 10th-Adult in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
	War of the Worlds / Time Machine by H. G. Wells from Reader's Digest for 8th-10th grade in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
	Woman Who Died A Lot Thursday Next Book 7 by Jasper Fforde from Penguin Putnam for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $17.00

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