Under the Net by Iris Murdoch

Published in 1954, Under the Net is the first novel by Anglo-Irish novelist, Iris Murdoch. The novel depicts the comedic struggles of Jake Donaghue, a striving young writer, to make it in the world and redeem himself for past faults. After getting kicked out of the house where he was freeloading, Jake finds his way to the workplace of his ex-girlfriend, Anna Quentin, who tells him to contact her sister, Sadie, for help. Jake quickly realizes that the two sisters have a connection to Hugo Belfounder, an old friend and philosopher who Jake betrayed by writing a novel about their philosophical conversations. After a series of misadventures, Jake and Hugo finally reconnect, and Jake reconciles with his past and ultimately realizes that his literary adventures are just beginning. Under the Net propelled Iris Murdoch to the public eye–it is known as one of her most popular novels. In 1998, Under the Net was selected as one of the books to appear in the Modern Library’s 100 Best Novels of the 20th-century list.