"Best" books since 1923 (according to Time Magazine)
Time Magazine has come out with a list of the 100 best books since 1923 (the year they started publishing). While I think there's a lot of good stuff on there, there's also a lot of stuff that's overrated, too. And I was pretty surprised at how much stuff I hadn't read (mostly the more contemporary action/mystery type novels, so I'm not really worried about missing them).
My thoughts on some of the books on the list:
Animal Farm, George Orwell - You know, I've never actually read this. It's on our shelves at home, but in a way, I feel I don't need to read it, since I know the story. I'm sure I will someday, though.
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret, Judy Blume - An excellent book. I re-read it recently, and it still holds up, even as an adult.
Beloved, Toni Morrison - I am not a big fan of Toni Morrison's writing style, but I liked this book. However, I've tried to read a couple others of hers and not gotten more than 20 pages in.
The Blind Assassin, Margaret Atwood - I'm not sure why this is on the list, but The Handmaid's Tale isn't. Of course, The Handmaid's Tale is a little more politically charged and frighteningly possible, these days.
Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh - Hysterical, but not for everyone.
The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger - This is one of those books that I'm told I'm supposed to like, but never have. I like several other of J.D. Salinger's books and stories, but not this one. Maybe it's because I was never forced to dissect it in high school that I never learned to "appreciate" it.
A Clockwork Orange, Anthony Burgess - A frightening - and excellent - book. Infinitely better than the movie, which was all about shock value.
Gone With the Wind, Margaret Mitchell - Why is this book on here? It's not particularly well-written or seminal.
Invisible Man, Ralph Ellison - Excellent book. Go read it.
The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, C.S. Lewis - I have never liked this book (or any of the others in the series). Even as a kid, I thought the Christian symbolism was heavy-handed.
Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov - An excellent book, though his short story "The Nose" is infinitely better. On the other hand, "The Nose" didn't become part of the culture.
The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien - I like The Hobbit better. Always have.
Mrs. Dalloway, Virginia Woolf - I can't stand Woolf's writing. That notwithstanding, I've read this and To the Lighthouse, which also made the list. In fact, I've read a great many of Woolf's writing, including some of her letters. But that doesn't mean I think she should be on the list twice.
Naked Lunch, William Burroughs - Overrated. Read it as a teenager and shock all your friends with how cool you are (even though you didn't understand any of the drug-addled ramblings).
Neuromancer, William Gibson - Excellent. I wish his more recent stuff was as good.
On the Road, Jack Kerouac - Much like Naked Lunch, vastly overrated. Kerouac was a hack.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Ken Kesey - Very good. I even have a copy he signed for me. :)
Ragtime, E.L. Doctorow - If you haven't read it, you should.
Snow Crash, Neal Stephenson - This is a good book, but I don't think it deserves to be on the list. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed it, but I don't think it's one of the "100 best."
Ubik, Philip K. Dick - It's a shame they're only including novels, since his short stories are so, so much better. And I'd still vote that Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? is better than Ubik.
Watchmen, Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons - Very good, but where's Maus? I'd put that on this list before Watchmen.
Wide Sargasso Sea, Jean Rhys - A book that I enjoyed, but I'd really never want to read again. But I'm glad I did.
What books were, in my opinion, missing from the list?
- The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood
- Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Phillip K. Dick
- Maus, Art Spiegelman
- Grass, Sherri Tepper
- Bridge to Terabithia, Katherine Paterson
- To Say Nothing Of the Dog, Connie Willis
- The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Robert Heinlein
- Alienist, Caleb Carr
- Something Wicked This Way Comes, Ray Bradbury
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News about the list via PopWatch
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2 Comments:
Animal Farm is one of my favourite books because it's easy.
It doesn't get to the top of my list because I can't read anything more complicated (although may be a factor), it gets there because if you're going to write a political novel that you want to impact society you should write it so it can reach, and affect, the most people you can. Orwell achieved that with Animal Farm.
For the same reason I like Brave New World, and the His Dark Materials series as well.
I enjoyed Invisible Man, too. :) And I've never read Animal Farm either.
The film version of Gone with the Wind is more important to film than the book was
to books. I like P. K. Dick, but I think I like Alfred Bester a little more (e.g.,
The Stars, My Destination, Demolished Man, etc. )
I'll have to check the list & give this more thought...
I suppose it's not too early to compose my Summer reading list. :)
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