RHYS BOWEN: I read a piece recently which listed the thirty best novels of history, as voted on by random people. The top three were : Nineteen Eighty Four, Frankenstein and The Lord of the Rings. Two of those I would agree with being on the list, but Frankenstein? Is it only impressive in that it was so original and written by such a young woman? The rest of the list included Four Dickens novels, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Dracula, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe… Fahrenheit 451 was one that left a lasting impression on me, and I’m glad it was included.
Many of them I agreed with: To Kill a Mockingbird, Of Mice and Men, Pride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre, ( they didn’t include Wuthering Heights that I feel is superior) but others I questioned: I agree that A Tale of Two Cities was a masterpiece but A Christmas Carol? It’s a fun, moving, little moral tale but is it a great work of literature? Were all those books considered masterpieces because not many books were published in those days?
Is Alice in Wonderland a masterpiece? Better than Harry Potter? Better than The Wind in the Willows? Dracula is clever but great literature?
The list included the Brothers Karamazov, but not War and Peace. And if we’re including foreign novels why not Les Miserables? Death in Venice? One of Garcia Lorca?
I must note that there are no current works among them so the Reds need not feel slighted that they weren’t on the list. The most recent is the Orwell, or the Steinbeck.
Some I think I might have included are : The Remains of the Day, Animal Farm, The Forsyte Saga, All Quiet on the Western Front, The Grapes of Wrath, and if we’re including Dracula, why not Stranger in a Strange Land?
Other novelists who didn’t make the cut were James Joyce, Hemingway, Thomas Hardy, Stephen Crane, George Elliot, Rudyard Kipling, Goethe, Virginia Woolf, Edgar Allen Poe, Wilkie Collins… Which makes me wonder what makes a great novel? Why do some stories stay with us when others are read, enjoyed and then forgotten? Is it all about the quality of the prose or the story told?
What do you think? And which books would you have included?
HALLIE EPHRON: Boy that’s a lot of books. All outstanding. The one I’d add is my all-time favorite: Water for Elephants. Such a moving portrayal of circus life, a man nearing death, a heartbreaking love story. And then, there’s the elephant. A whodunnit with an elephant!
JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: I always feel both guilty and unlettered when I see these lists, because I’ve never read (or finished) half of the novels listed. This is a little better than most - I’m only missing THE BROTHERS KARAMAZOV and ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST. To be honest, I think the random people voting may just be recalling what they had to read for English Lit in high school - there are a LOT of Old White Guys in this list.
So I’ll suggest a few that I didn’t get exposed to until later in life: MRS. DALLOWAY, THE HANDMAID’S TALE, and THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE (alternative: WE HAVE ALWAYS LIVED IN THE CASTLE.)
Or how about AMERICAN BORN CHINESE by Gene Luen Yang, or PERSEPOLIS, by Marjane Satrapi? Graphic novels are a truly original variation on the traditional form, and I think they deserve to be considered seriously.
HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Impossible. Edith Wharton’s…well, I guess AGE OF INNOCENCE, but I like CUSTOM OF THE THE COUNTRY better. And Mark Helpron’s WINTERS TALE. Thomas Wolfe’s LOOK HOMEWARD ANGEL. Totally think STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND. Yes, ALice in Wonderland is better than Harry Potter. ANd now that I’ve typed that–I wonder, what is “better”?
We could do this forever–it’s fun, but impossible.
And I do think it matters at what point in your life you read them–when I first read Edith Wharton, maybe in high school? I was bored and dismissive. Then I grew up. But I fell madly in love with NICHOLAS NICKELBY. And DRACULA–well, that’s the scariest thing I have ever read, to this day!
DEBORAH CROMBIE: These lists make me crazy! I agree with Julia that I think people put the books they remember from high school English lit–most of which I seem to have missed out on in my checkered education. Is it the best prose? The most profound theme? The most elegant structure? I can only add a few books that were game-changing for me: T.H. White's THE ONCE AND FUTURE KING, THE LORD OF THE RINGS, STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND, THE FORSYTE SAGA. And, as this one has been much on my mind with her death, A.S. Byatt's POSSESSION. And what about, in recent years. HAMNET? Such glorious writing!
And I think I would include ALICE and Harry Potter, because they are so imaginative and such cultural touchstones.
JENN McKINLAY: No Mark Twain? No Alexandre Dumas? No Brothers Grimm? No Maya Angelou? No Gabriel Garcia Marquez? Stupid list.
LUCY BURDETTE: Phew, I so agree about this list making me feel unread and so I’m relieved talking with you! THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS would be on the top of my list. I still love reading it. Also CHARLOTTE’S WEB, and maybe something romantic and straightforward like GONE WITH THE WIND? Maybe the question should be ‘which books would you like to have, if shipwrecked on an island?’ I suspect the titles would change…
RHYS: Oh, I so agree with Possession. It's a masterpiece. There are not many books I read twice but that's one of them. Are the rules for a great novel that it has to be more than just a tale of an incident in someone's life? That it echoes the human condition and speaks for everyman? Or is it just a rattling good tale that keeps us turning pages and stays with us long after we've put it back on the shelf? I can think of plenty of those. Connie Willis. Kate Morton. So many mystery friends including those here.
Many of those on the list I only read because I had to. What about adding that the book touches emotions, brings joy?
Which books would you add or not include?
Although I've never been a fan of these types of lists, my list would include the afore-mentioned "To Kill a Mockingbird," "Stranger in a Strange Land," and "Fahrenheit 451" . . . I'd add "I, Robot" . . . "Foundation" . . . "Anna Karenina" . . . "One Hundred Years of Solitude" . . . "Don Quixote" . . .
ReplyDeleteThis reminds me of our book club dilemma - do we read books that are “good” and award nominated? I frequently struggle to plow through those. Or do we pick books that are fun, or at least easier reads? Give me something “unputdownable.” With all of the variety of voices available today, I no longer feel compelled to go back and read missed classics. Why would I find their take on the human condition more meaningful than a contemporary one?
ReplyDeleteI stopped attending a book club for that reason. All the books were chosen because they’d won prizes or got literary acclaim and most were so depressing! I like to feel good when I read
DeleteLisa, thanks for your comment about not feeling compelled to read the missed classics. I prefer to read contemporary literature.
DeleteI am still stunned that Hemingway is not on the list. Gone with the Wind should be on there too. Wuthering Heights. I read the list the other day and just shook my head.
ReplyDeleteJenn voiced my thoughts on this to a T. Stupid list.
ReplyDeleteLOL. :)
DeleteI did read half of the ones Rhys mentioned in junior high & high school English lit classes. Sadly, it was not always an enjoyable experience.
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree that more foreign novels should have been on the list, including some from Canada!
Three Canadian historical books that profoundly affected me include:
TWO SOLITUDES by Hugh MacLennan. Despite learning about history since junior high school, this was the first book that clearly showed me the divide between those living in Protestant (English) Ontario and Catholic (French) Quebec.
NEVER CRY WOLF by Farley Mowat showed this Toronto native a glimpse of the far north when his wildlife naturalist protagonist is sent by the federal government to investigate hordes of bloodthirsty wolves slaughtering Arctic caribou far north in the tundra.
STONE ANGEL by Margaret Laurence was told in the voice of Hagar, a 90-year proud, tyrannical woman recalling her life and that of other women living in small town on the Canadian Prairies.
I was stunned speechless after reading The Stone Angel - read as part of my roommate's reading list in university. At that time, I thought 'what a book!'
DeleteGRACE: I am adding these books to my reading list. Diana
DeleteMARGO: I also had a WOW stunned kind of reaction after reading The Stone Angel. It was one of our required reads in grade 9 English.
DeleteDIANA: Thank you for adding these books to your reading list. Mowat and Laurence are among the Canadian literature greats. MacLennan is definitely not well known. But I listed his book first since I finally started to understand how profound the divide was between Anglo-Canadian vs French Canadian societies in the early 20th century.
Thank you for these recommendations, Grace. I will definitely read them
DeleteLouise Penny addresses the Canadian Anglo and French divides in one of her earlier books. The divide has existed since the 1700’s and has never been resolved. It continues today mostly as a cultural battle in education and language mandates.
DeleteIt's too bad there are only novels. If there were short stories, I'd be pulling for my favorite Canadian writer--Alice Munro. So perfect. Maybe we need another list. - Melanie
DeleteI read most of the books in junior and high school. Definitely Gone With The Wind.
ReplyDeleteWell, I would include one I only stumbled on, and that was Cervantes' Don Quixote. I read it as research for a story I was writing for my story collection, and I wanted to know more than I'd gleaned from the musical The Man From La Mancha. I have to say, it was one of the funniest books I'd read. And I did enjoy it so much I read it again. My husband would be making coffee in the kitchen, and I'd be sitting at the kitchen table snickering and even laughing out loud.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, yes to Gabriel Garcia Marquez, yes to A. S. Byatt's Possession, yes, to The Remains of the Day, and I, too, think Alice in Wonderland is better than Harry Potter. I also liked Bel Canto by Ann Patchett. But I agree, who makes the lists? I think it's just good that there are so many great books out there. I certainly am keeping this post to refer to when I'm looking for another good read that is on the heavier side. (Although these days I'm more into reading the mysteries I find here and am having a hard time keeping up as a reader with so many good reads.)
I’d rather think about authors who have produced a great body of work Individually, their books range from great to “huh?” But that all have that grain of genius that comes through over and over again.
ReplyDeleteThese authors are the ones whose books I revisit over and over. They include Sigrid Undset, Steinbeck, Mark Twain, Maggie O’Farrell, Tolstoy, Annie Proulx, Poe, Shirley Jackson, Allende, Atkinson, Backman, and at least a hundred others.
As was pointed out, this is predominantly an Old White Guy list. It lacks representation of women, black authors and authors outside of western literature. Indeed a stupid list.
ReplyDeleteI would include some hard-boiled mystery staples: Hammett, Chandler, Spillane's I, THE JURY, and Fredric Brown's THE FAR CRY. Does that make me a low-brow?
ReplyDeleteI could name more mystery authors who deserve to be on the list.
DeleteAh, Raymond Chandler, yes! Low brow? I don't think so. I read he was the father of the literary mystery.
DeleteNo way can I do this. What is the definition of 'best novel'? Are they asking about 'great literature'? Because, if so, then I am lost. I've always had trouble with titles that are on lists of 'literary novels.' Who decides such things? Give me a good story. That's all I ask. To those folks whose list of all things 'great,' why they can keep them!
ReplyDeleteI would prefer Lucy's suggestion for a list of "books you'd like to have if shipwrecked on an island." The list will surely change and Dracula won't be on it. (Hah)
ReplyDeleteI read a lot of those stories and many are dystopian, tragic, and dark. Why does that make a better tale than the one that bring great joy and laughter? Is happiness not a great emotion, too? Is that why Mark Twain isn't there or Cervantes?
Another consideration, is it the story that is great? The way it is told? My list would be different.
My response to this blog, make your own list!
DeleteI'm relieved to find so many here echoing my thought of, "oh, great, another old white guy list." That said, I'm glad Debs wants to include Lord of the Rings.
ReplyDeleteAgreed! This blog discussion should have been framed as what books would you include in a great book list. This list being discussed has little meaning for most readers.
DeleteI'm not going to get into what should or shouldn't be on that list. It's not my list and what I like to read is what would be on any kind of list I would write up.
ReplyDeleteI will say this though...A Tale of Two Cities...total crap. No, seriously. As a story for a movie, makes a great script. As one of those idiotic required reading books in high school that helped temporarily kill my love of reading, it is complete dreck. I hated that book so much that I got into an argument with the teacher which ended with me in trouble after I told her that just because a book is 200 years old does not make it a classic.
Getting back to the list: Of the ones that Rhys mentioned, I've only read the C.S. Lewis book and (again, required reading) both 1984 and Animal Farm. Yep, I haven't even read the Lord of the Rings books even though the majority of what reading I did as a teenager was fantasy related (Robert Jordan, Terry Brooks, Lloyd Alexander and the incomparable David Eddings).
A lot of the books mentioned by Rhys, the Reds and the Repliers have had movies made of them. A lot of them I've seen and probably enjoyed. But if I've seen the movie, I don't generally go back and read the source material book. I just don't have the time or interest and I'd rather spend my reading time on stuff I like. You know, mysteries and thrillers.
I won't be joining literary academia or anything so I'm fine with that distinction.
Jay, I have all of the Belgariad books--I'd read them and pass them on to my mom--who loved them. I re-read the whole series every few years.
DeleteJay, I'm glad to see another Lloyd Alexander fan here. I grew up in Prydain.
DeleteFlora, I read both series featuring Belgarion and crew, plus the two side books. Then I read the two series featuring Sparhawk as well. I don't get to do much re-reading but if I do find the time, I'd love to read all of them again.
DeleteGigi, I am definitely a fan. I have to get myself a new set of The Chronicles of Prydain but I read each of the five books many times as a young teen. Especially the last book in the series, The High King. I even read some of Alexander's other books even though they weren't strictly fantasy.
These lists drive me mad. Most of the time I think people are putting out titles they think make them sound "well read" or "intelligent."
ReplyDeleteNot that no title is later than Orwell. That's a long time ago. Nothing "recent" is ever on these lists.
And nothing "genre."
This topic brings me back to my question, does a book pass the test of time?
ReplyDeleteBooks I have read and was completely gripped with AT THE TIME: Mila 18 by Leon Uris – I was with those people. Charles Dickens – other than David Copperfield which we had to read, and bored me silly, I later tried and couldn’t put down A Tale of Two Cities – why, I don’t know. Maybe because DC was when I was 15, and didn’t care, and Two Cities I was 30 and post-partum. The same with Gone with the Wind – just couldn’t put it down. Most of the books on the list, I have not read, or have read part of, and then DNF as it was not the book for me.
I have read The Nymph & the Lamp by Thomas Raddell three times now. As it and I have aged I see more things in it that I didn’t see before. It was written in 1950 set about a local island in 1920’s. The first time I read the story in university, and absorbed some of the atmosphere. The second time was preparatory to actually going to see and be on that lonely scrap of land. The love story was unimportant, but various ‘locals’ were recognizable having lived in Halifax earlier. I just re-read it a month ago, again for Book Club. The normal behaviour in 1920 would be very much frowned upon today. The language and places are now in many cases, gone. I wondered at the time of reading if any of my kids would like it. To me, it was a look back in time, to things and places that either I had been in contact with myself or lived vicariously through my father and grandfather – that history was still rememberable, and not a story as it would be to my kids.
When you compare it to other books where time is the setting, the time and setting become the book itself. However, like many older books, I wonder how long until someone bans it, because that behaviour/language is now considered politically incorrect. I imagine that on a lot of these books on the list, the clock is ticking.
Most book banning lists have nothing to do with political correctness. Most banned books tell the real story concerning racism and misogony.
DeleteFrom Celia: so many comments to agree with. I second Julia’s dead white, particularly as I have just read Where the Crawdads Sing - what a triumph of writing, and - it’s a mystery! Love Jenn and Jays comment. In fact as a take on what I’ve read, you’ve read and on what what we agree or not, I wish we were all talking together instead of one finger typing on my phone. Thanks Rhys and everyone, this was fun.
ReplyDeleteCelia: To my surprise, I liked WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING because it received a lot of attention on social media. It is rare that I like a novel that is popular.
DeleteDiana
Wow! At first I thought the post was going to be about historical novels and I was going to mention Jean Plaidy and Antonia Fraser. Then after reading the post, it is about books considered to be best books.
ReplyDeleteHow do they define "best" books? I think the random people recalled the books they read in English lit. In high school, I recall reading lots of books by Old White Men. I got permission from my teacher to write a paper about Louisa May Alcott (because at that time I loved LITTLE WOMEN) for English lit class. I discovered her other books. I did Not discover L.M. Montgomery's ANNE OF GREEN GABLES until I was at uni when they had a tv series based on the novels on PBS.
There was a book that I read for English lit class my first year at Uni. I loved it because it was easy to read. A ROOM OF HER OWN by Virginia Woolf.
Someone asked "why no Alexandre Dumas...." When my Mom taught English lit in high school. she had a wide reading list where students could choose which books they wanted to read. The reading list included Toni Morrison, Alexandre Dumas, and authors who were NOT old white men. I remember reading THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO in high school.
Diana
DIANA: I have never read ANNE OF GREEN GABLES but most of my Japanese cousins loved the book. Since the 1950s, most Japanese children read the book in school & consider Anne a Canadian heroine. As a result, thousands of Japanese tourists make the pilgrimage to visit Anne of Green Gables house in Prince Edward Island. I remember when 2 cousins traveled from Kyoto, Japan to briefly visit our family in Toronto & then flew off for that coveted visit to Anne's house.
DeleteGrace, as an elementary school librarian, I was thrilled to see Anne of Green Gables on the shelves. Unfortunately, (in my opinion) that’s where they stayed - on the shelves. I loved Anne as a pre-teen/teenager and adored the Megan Fellowes TV version but I couldn’t interest the best readers to try them. — Pat S
DeleteHow about REALLY OLD WHITE MEN? No Iliad, no Odessey? No Shakespeare?? No poets at all, actually. This list is too skewed for me! For myself, great literature is one where great writing tells a great story--the writing sucks you in, sweeps you along to the end of the tale. I will laugh out loud every time reading MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, and this isn't even considered one of Shakespeare's great plays by the experts--it's merely 'a comedy.' There are modern mysteries where I've finished the book, then thought about the craft, the story, the humanity it revealed long, long after. So, basically, I neither make lists nor pay attention to those put forth by others of what constitutes 'great literature.'
ReplyDeleteFlora, David Tennant and Catherine Tate did Much Ado About Nothing onstage in London some years back. I found it on YouTube in black and white, split into parts. I had to stitch it together to watch but it was so funny and inventive and fresh I continue to recommend it to all my friends. If you can find it, watch it!
DeleteThanks, Gigi! Didn't know about that version--will check it out! (Flora)
DeleteFlora, what an excellent point you've made. The really old white guys are left out, too. I guess poetry isn't considered a great story, which is so wrong. I included Spoon River Anthology in my list. It tells a great story, damn it.
DeleteI agree Flora. I think Shakespeare is the greatest author that ever lived. Not just one great play which would be enough to put any other author on the greatest list but 38 (THIRTY EIGHT!!) and that doesn't include the numerous sonnets, etc. People still produce his plays and I find myself quoting him often because after all, "All's Well that Ends Well."
ReplyDeleteSome of my more "recent" favorites are Tom Sawyer and Harry Potter, but only because I haven't read many of the other greats on the 30 great list!
^ from above - i wanted to say (although I've never read the series) that Lord of The Rings is very popular too.
ReplyDeleteWhere are you all finding this list? Could someone give me the URL so I can check it out? I agree with you all that this kind of thing is totally frustrating because there are no criteria for defining "best." Off the top of my head, I'd say "best" means (1) ground-breaking in some way, like the first of its kind or something that typifies a genre; (2) carrying a moving, maybe even profound message that reverberates for the reader for a long time; and (3) well-written and entertaining throughout---not an awful struggle to get through (although lots of books, like "Middlemarch," were a struggle for me to get through when I had to read them as a teenager but not when I read them in my 40s or 50s.) I also think maybe a book has to be at least (say) twenty years old for us to have some perspective on it. Having said that, I just read Ann Patchett's brand-new TOM LAKE and would include it in a list of great books instantly! It probably has a special appeal for women, however so it would be interesting to know if most men would also find it a great book. The fact is, no matter how hard one tries to generalize, some books speak to me personally (or turn me right off), and that makes it hard to be objective, doesn't it?
ReplyDeleteWell, I took Detective and Mystery Stories in High School which I thoroughly enjoyed after having been force fed Of Mice and Men and Lord of the Flies in 9th grade. None on the list. Don’t care.
ReplyDeleteUgh. I hated both those books. And The Old Man and the Sea (although I like other Hemingway novels.) It is a wonder to me that anyone keeps reading books for pleasure after being subjected to these examples of "literature." Who decides these books have to be taught?
DeleteOld white guys who wrote in English? Where are the books from earlier times? Canterbury Tales, Morte d'Arthur, The Way of the Bodhisattva, El Cid, Tom Jones, Tale of the Genji, or the Old Norse Sagas? If we are sticking with the 19th century and going forward, what about The Wizard of Oz? lists? pah.. fun to discuss, but sometimes a real chore to read. I am talking about you Bleak House.
ReplyDeleteWhere is Vanity Fair?
DeleteCoralee, Canterbury Tales is such a favorite of mine. I have a large print of the pilgrims hung over my desk and some four Rye Pottery (English pottery company in existence since Moses) of the pilgrims. And, yes to Tom Jones. And, for me, Far from the Madding Crowd by Hardy.
DeleteWater for Elephants was wonderful. I'd also add And Ladies of the Club as well as Gone With the Wind. I know not everyone loves both or either but I loved the relationships between the women. aprilbluetx at yahoo dot com
ReplyDeleteI agree with all who hate lists like this. It's the sort of list that only people with permanently implanted snob sticks put together. They make them for classical music, too, but nobody listens.
ReplyDeleteI have a question, though. I think The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should be on the list, but Huck is one of those books that often gets banned because Twain accurately reflected the language of the time and his characters. Why, considering the animosity toward Huck, is Gone With the Wind still on so many lists? Generation after generation of the women in the southern branch of my family love that book and pass it along to their daughters to read. I confess that I have not read it, although I watched the movie once. Do people love it because Scarlett is such a strong woman at a time when very few female characters were? Is that enough to overlook all the Lost Cause romanticism?
My take on this kind of list: No one can read ALL the books, so it is by necessity a list of favorite books read by a segment of people. I just can't take it seriously. If someone has read ten books, and their favorite is "X" title, how does it compare to another who may have read 20,000 different books in their lifetime? It can't possibly. And it's an even less serious list when you ignore work by women writers, or foreign writers, or classic works from many centuries ago, or current works.
ReplyDeletePound of salt here. I might be a little cranky today.
In rereading my answer I believe I was cranky, too. LOL. We can be crabby appletons together, Karen. LOL.
DeleteI think this list has made us all cranky, LOL.
DeleteThanks for the solidarity!
DeleteIt's especially cranky-making that some of the best living writers, including, in my opinion, some of our beloved Reds, are ignored. Boo, hiss
I'm with most of you in that these lists are arbitrary and can be generally meaningless. But, as a fan of Regency and Victorian lit, I'm going to stick my bit in. Toss out a Dickens or two, much as I do love his work. Make way for George Eliot's Middlemarch and Antony Trollope's Barchester Towers. One of my favorite things about Trollope is his naming of characters. Who wouldn't seek spiritual advice and comfort from Mrs. Proudie, the Bishop's wife? Need some medical attention--Dr. Fillgrave at your service! - Melanie
ReplyDeleteI'm laughing at many of your comments. Any time I see a "best" list, whether it is best colleges, places to retire, movies, or books, I move on. It's all a matter of taste or appeal and we're all different. Thank heavens!
ReplyDeleteHear, hear!
DeletePat D, that's why my year end list is entitled "My Favorite Mysteries and Thrillers of 202_" each year. It's what I read and what I liked most. But I harbor no delusions that my opinion is the one true be all end all.
DeleteAgree, Pat. My local newspaper has apparently decided it's chief (only?) attraction is endless "best" lists - taco trucks, spas, shoe repair, vegan restaurants, etc. etc. I ended my subscription which I only had to support local journalism, which this isn't!
DeleteFlora said, “great writing tells a great story”. She was referring to great literature. I ofttimes feel cowed by the term “literature”. I read a number of the titles/authors on that list when required to in high school or college. Most of the time I was glad I “had to “ read them because I never would have voluntarily chosen to. But I would much rather read something that has a voice that tells a great story. I always recall enjoying West with the Night by Beryl Markham. I can’t tell you why it was so special to me, but I loved the way it was told. — Pat S
ReplyDeletePat, that is one of my favorite books, too! She, and her contemporary Karen Dinesen of Out of Africa fame, were amazing, strong, independent, and courageous women.
DeletePat S, for me, great writing doesn't have to bear a label as 'great literature'. Many books that make 'great' lists, didn't start out to be so high-falutin'--they started out as stories to entertain. The writing holds up over time--and we have many fine writers whose work holds up over time--take any book from any of the commenters and Reds here--so many terrific authors, so many wonderful books.
DeleteAll of us who love to read have those books that, as Pat S says, transported us for whatever reason... "Lost in a book" is a lovely place to be and for each of us there are books that take us there. "Lists" are best left to librarians and English teachers and (heaven help them these days) Boards of Education.
ReplyDeleteI think these best novels in history are kept in a file, with maybe two or three different lists to shake it up, and when an editor of a publication says they need to run such a list, one of the on-file lists is pulled out to run. Best really is such a subjective qualification. And, even though I don't think much of these lists, I'm always embarrassed that I haven't read many of them. Well, not as embarrassed as I once was.
ReplyDeleteI do think there are masters of literature who have proved their staying power, but the cut-off date/year excludes too many authors who are more contemporary and have proved themselves, too. Some books that would be on my list (not a complete list here) are Fahrenheit 451, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Chronicles of Narnia (all), Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice, Ethan Frome (all you Ethan Frome haters stay silent, please), Things Fall Apart (although I admit it's the only book by Chinua Achebe I've read), The Scarlett Letter, The Sun Also Rises, Spoon River Anthology (yes, I'm counting it as a novel), Doctor Zhivago, The Hobbit, and more. I have a list of contemporary or moor contemporary books I keep that is ten pages long so far.