A Tale of a Tub
A Tale of a Tub was the first major work written by Jonathan Swift, arguably his most difficult satire and perhaps his most masterly. The "Tale" is a prose parody divided into sections each delving into the morals and ethics of the English. Composed between 1694 and 1697, it was eventually published in 1704. It was long regarded as a satire on religion, and has famously been attacked for that, starting with William Wotton.
The Grim Smile of the Five Towns
The Grim Smile of the Five Towns is the second major collection of stories written by Arnold Bennett. The book first appeared in print in June 1907. Only around half of the stories had previously appeared in print.Bennett anticipated that the collection would help to establish his stature as a writer, showing that he could rise above what he termed his "potboilers". But the book had some initial sharp criticism from press reviewers. Critics focussed especially on the macabre story "In a New Bottle" (the "Staffordshire Sentinel" called it "nasty" and "The Bookman" termed it "grotesque") and on the sexual frankness of the long story "The Death of Simon Fuge". For instance the 1907 "Spectator" review remarked that "Simon Fuge"... "very much oversteps the boundaries of good taste". "Simon Fuge", not having been written for what Bennett called the "unperceptive stupidity" of the magazine audiences, was able to be bold with its themes and approach.