Laura Corin Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 Gifted link https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/books/best-books-21st-century.html?unlocked_article_code=1.7E0.goXm.MIr2Q8dSt1Xl I'd quarrel with number one. Glad to see Kavalier and Clay on there, as well as two Mantels and H is for Hawk. 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennyD Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 My mom, brother-in-law and I have been discussing this list all week (they released it 20 at a time). I thought #1 was a perfectly reasonable pick. Two of my all-time favorite nonfiction books are on it: Random Family and Far from the Tree. I have given away multiple copies of each and am constantly recommending them to people. I have never read Hilary Mantel but am going to start with Wolf Hall as soon as I finish my current book. I'm trying to get DH to read it with me -- he he will read anything and everything about or set in England from about the 11th through the 14th centuries, so he claims that Thomas Cromwell is "too late" for his tastes, but I can't imagine that he won't like it. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 (edited) I was happy to see White Teeth so high on the list. One of my favorites that I have read this year. I’ve added a few to my Goodreads list from this series this week. The #1 choice surprised me, but I never read it. Judging the book by its cover had me assuming it was fluff reading. So I added it to my Want To Read list and I’ll keep an open mind. Edited July 14 by Amethyst 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teaching3bears Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 I have only read 3 of these, though I have 2 more on my bookshelf. Thank you for posting this. I should go through it and write down the ones that seem most interesting. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marbel Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 I have read so few of these, and there are many I've never heard of. There were also several I had started and rejected at some point, and some already on my list to-read list. I was glad to see Station Eleven on the list, surprised it was so low. The number one choice surprised me a bit. I had started that book once and didn't find it compelling enough to carry on, despite it's popularity, or maybe because of it. I'm not sure how far I got. But maybe I'll give it another try. Thank you for posting it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ali in OR Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 Thanks for the list. I've read 18 of them, some (like #1) I don't even remember well. But I'm also finding more I would like to read and I have a couple on my shelf I should try to get to. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted July 14 Author Share Posted July 14 45 minutes ago, Ali in OR said: Thanks for the list. I've read 18 of them, some (like #1) I don't even remember well. But I'm also finding more I would like to read and I have a couple on my shelf I should try to get to. I've read 16 or 17 - I can't remember if I finished Persepolis. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 Thanks for the list. I will use it as a list to request books from the library from. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corraleno Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 I think it's odd that so many authors are on the list multiple times, while others are completely ignored. There are 3 books each by George Saunders, Jesmyn Ward, and Elena Ferrante, and 2 books by Hilary Mantel, Zadie Smith, Alice Munro, Philip Roth, Roberto Bolaño, and Edward Jones, but no Haruki Murakami or Madeline Miller. I'm surprised that Kafka on the Shore and Song of Achilles aren't on the list, especially in lieu of some of the titles that are the 2nd or 3rd choice from the same author. I'd also have included Emily Wilson's brilliant, widely lauded translations of the Iliad and Odyssey, although I recognize that most of the authors the NYT contacted for this list probably wouldn't have read those. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bookbard Posted July 15 Share Posted July 15 I've read quite a few of these, definitely agree with number one - I remember reading it and just being blown away by it. I think there was only one Australian book on it - The Overstory. I could be wrong, but that was the only one I noticed. Quite a few books on it I didn't think were that great (Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow - a fun read, but not 'great literature'). But then I didn't think Bel Canto or Station Eleven were that great either, and I know people who love them. Kind of weird to think we're a quarter of the way through the 21st century already. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madteaparty Posted July 16 Share Posted July 16 On 7/14/2024 at 7:00 AM, Laura Corin said: Gifted link https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/books/best-books-21st-century.html?unlocked_article_code=1.7E0.goXm.MIr2Q8dSt1Xl I'd quarrel with number one. Glad to see Kavalier and Clay on there, as well as two Mantels and H is for Hawk. I will join you in quarreling with number 1. I didn’t understand the Ferrante mania in the United States over these particular books. I’ve read her earlier, much shorter books, some of them in Italian even, and they’re better, but they would not make any top 10 lists either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bookbard Posted July 16 Share Posted July 16 I've read 14 of them, I think. The best of all would be "Never Let Me Go", although it's so traumatic I've only been able to read it once. I quite like Small Things Like These and H is for Hawke, and I loved Ferrante's Naples trilogy, but not her other books. Which ones would you say are must-reads? I tend to prefer non-traumatic books which have a fantasy or sci-fi bent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted July 16 Author Share Posted July 16 2 hours ago, bookbard said: Which ones would you say are must-reads? I tend to prefer non-traumatic books which have a fantasy or sci-fi bent. I think that the Wolf Hall trilogy is extraordinary. It doesn't quite fit your criteria though. You might like Kavalier and Clay - there's a playfulness to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrie12345 Posted July 16 Share Posted July 16 Thank you for the link! About halfway through it, I’ve only read a handful, but I’ve been needing to use Audible credits! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephanier.1765 Posted July 16 Share Posted July 16 Is there a way to print it? I'd like to have a hard copy so I don't have to keep referring back to it online. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bookbard Posted July 16 Share Posted July 16 15 hours ago, Laura Corin said: I think that the Wolf Hall trilogy is extraordinary. It doesn't quite fit your criteria though. Ha, yes I read the first one and I am still traumatised lol. 15 hours ago, Laura Corin said: You might like Kavalier and Clay - there's a playfulness to it. It is very familiar, there's a chance I read it pre-kids and it's not stuck in my brain. I'll have another look. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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