You should go online, put a library hold on this novel, and then--when it becomes available in two or three days--you should drop everything and read it.

A few months ago, a professor of mine recommended Edward St. Aubyn's Patrick Melrose novels. They're about the life of a feckless English aristocrat in the 20th century. This seemed intrinsically fascinating to me. I love 19th century British literature, which is all about squires and aristocrats. Then, at some point, writing became a bourgeois occupati…