Sinclair Lewis is not read so much today because his ....
characters and the millieu they existed in have somewhat disappeared. In his two great novels, Babbitt (sp?) and Main Street, Lewis wrote a diatribe against the mediocre business man and small town life. These are biting satires, but the words and situations that they are ensconced in are not as significant as they once were. Boosters and Chataqua aren't understood by readers today or probably by academia. The poet, Chum Frinkley I think was his name, was a biting parody of the mundame poet Edgar Guest. Edgar Guest disappeared with Dorothy Parker who said:
"I'd rather flunk my Wasserman test,
than read a poem by Eddie Guest."
In Main Street, small town USA is taken to task by the female protaganist, Carol Kennicut (sp?). When Caro l is aked her true feelings about Gopher Prarie,Minnesota, she replies, "I think its an ash heap." Small towns have largely been merged into suburbs of larger cities, and the retailers who formed the population have been taken over by Walmarts. In any event, no one characterizes them as ash heaps.
I have read most of Lewis' novels, but the two mentioned above are his major works. A few others, such as Elmer Gantry, are worth reading. This one was made into a major motion picture in the 60s starring Burt Lancaster. I like Lewis, but he wont gain in popularity until he is read by academia and taught in our universities which I don't think is likely. Don't blame his unpopular status on Fitzgerald. One doesn't have to choose between two writers. If anyone is to blame, it is academia for not introducing students to Lewis.