#144. "Dog Man: Twenty Thousand Fleas Under the Sea" by Dav Pilkey

A lot has happened since Dav Pilkey last visited the world of Dog Man. As the most successful spin-off of the Captain Underpants series, it has developed its own spin-off that encourages kids to create their own stories as well as a stage musical and rumors of a movie. For a hero who's half dog, half man, he hasn't done all that bad. The question ultimately was if he'd ever return. After a hiatus, Dog Man has returned with "Twenty Thousand Fleas Under the Sea," which finds our favorite hero once again getting into wacky hijinks and delivering some of the most enjoyable madcap children's literature of recent years. It's a reliably silly tale that also finds Pilky once again turning to deeper morals as the story goes on. It's a story that covers the entire spectrum of feeling, and the final one is thankfully satisfaction.

#143. "A Passage to India" by E.M. Forster

There have been few English writers who have felt empathetic to global politics quite like E.M. Forster. Over his short career, he explored the different ways that cultures interact and nowhere is that more prevalent than in "A Passage to India." It's a story that goes back centuries but focuses on a moment where England and India struggle to offer each other freedoms. There's racial undertones at every turn, making the reader aware at the discomfort that each character faces. It's hard to believe that anyone will end the story on a happy note, but Forster finds something even more profound emerging along the way. There is a study of discomfort caused by stereotypes, but what also emerges are friendships that cause the reader to long for sympathy from their own lives. The book is ultimately a call for a better world without relying on bad tropes. Instead it mixes reason with emotion in such a way that the results create their own spiritual DNA. It's a powerful novel and one of the essential British novels of the early 20th century.

#142. "Loveless" by Alice Oseman

It's a story as old as time. Most coming of age stories are about a search for identity, and it usually comes with the feeling of being alone. For the most part, nothing about "Loveless" is that revolutionary, becoming a story about trying to understand the struggles to fall in love and find a deeper connection. However, Oseman provides an interesting twist that ends up making it an essential text within youth queer literature. The protagonist is not someone who winds up falling in love by the end but learns to love herself for what she has achieved. There are the familiar stumbles along the way, but most of all "Loveless" gives readers a unique read on what it means to be young and confused. It's a story of identity that hasn't been explored as often, and the attention to detail makes it essential for anyone questioning who they are and what they want out of life.

#141. "A Room With a View" by E.M. Forster

Throughout "A Room With a View," there is one question that E.M. Forster seeks to answer. What's the importance of being open-minded? The titular room is at a hotel that overlooks the city, allowing its inhabitants to witness the wonders of the world. For some in the wealthier division, a view isn't as important, though for the protagonist it's a chance to find their own dependence on those around her. It's a chance to experience the world and take in art and culture that is there but feels cut off. It's not because of any exclusionary practice, but because she's been taught to not pay attention to it. When she allows herself to open up and embrace the world, her identity forms and makes the view something worth investing in. 

#140. "Orlando" by Virginia Woolf

In a career full of playful writing, "Orlando" may be Virginia Woolf's most enjoyable. The conceit of the text was to write a parodic text like it was historical. The premise itself was silly enough, finding the titular Orlando existing across multiple generations and taking on many forms. Sometimes it's female while others are male, placing Woolf in different contexts that allow for a curious study of gender politics throughout the centuries. Even as it delves into sometimes personal and affirming language, it reflects how sometimes the only difference between a man and a woman is clothes. Society places expectations on them that are in themselves ridiculous and it results in the humor in the text becoming something more intellectual. It's a commentary on what it means to be alive, finding that some things are difficult to reason with. Sometimes it's best just to be taken in by the magic of the moment. 

#139. "Mrs. Dalloway" by Virginia Woolf

A lot can happen over the course of a day. The issue is that the average person isn't often aware of every formative experience during a 24-hour period. There's very little reason to chronicle things as mundane as walking to a flower shop or sitting in a park. Even then, these can lead to some great revelations. For Virginia Woolf, she uses one day in England to uncover the intertwining lives of two individuals. They may never be in the same room nor really share similar interests, but they're more similar than you'd expect. What Woolf ultimately achieves is something sensitive and beautiful. She finds how the mundanity of every life can be full of beautiful meaning. It may be a story that comes to an end along with the sun, but it's one of the greatest, most lasting works of modernist fiction. It gives the reader a lot to think about, creating an intimacy that not only enhances the characters but connects them to every personal experience. In "Mrs. Dalloway," everything is connected. It goes beyond the physical and into somewhere mental and even spiritual. Its profundity is enormous.

#138. "Night and Day" by Virginia Woolf

While Virginia Woolf is now known as one of the most experimental writers of the modernist movement, her early work painted a very different picture. Maybe it was due to publishing novels under another company, but works like "Night and Day" were more in tune with what audiences of the time had expected. They were reminiscent of the romanticism of the 19th century, capturing a very stuffy and direct use of language that sought to trap its characters. However, within the conventional was something interesting. As the last "traditional" novel that Woolf produced, it showed signs of where her career would be heading. The characters were about trying to separate themselves from the old guard, to establish their voices in a society that didn't have a use for them. It may not be Woolf's most clever or energetic work, but it has way more personality and potential than many would think at first glance.