Butler, Samuel: The Way of All Flesh, v1.2, IMP, 20 Dec 2007.
 

A posthumous novel. How cold and self-centred parents can really mess up one’s life. The author argues that you are allowed to hate them. George Bernard Shaw thought that this novel was one of the best ever written.


From Wikipedia:
The Way of All Flesh (1903) is a semi-autobiographical novel by Samuel Butler which attacks Victorian-era hypocrisy. Written between 1873 and 1884, it traces four generations of the Pontifex family. It represents the diminishment of religious outlook from a Calvinistic approach, which is presented as harsh. Butler dared not publish it during his lifetime, but when it was published it was accepted as part of the general revulsion against Victorianism.
This novel ranks number 12 of the 100 Great Novels of the 20th Century as chosen by the Modern Library Board of Editors.