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blinker1315Feb 5, 2012
I think, as more time passes, Tom Wolfe's "Bonfire of the Vanities" will be recognized as one of the top books of the 20th century. Not so different from "The Great Gatsby," in that it captured an exact moment in time.
bille3Feb 5, 2012
Agreed.
He gave a most interesting TV interview. His discussion on the 5 primary freedoms made a great deal of sense.
pinappuFeb 6, 2012
It is not the least of "greatest books of all time", it is "greatest Western Authors books of alltime".
bleueFeb 7, 2012
Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Nabokov and Checkov as western authors?
wipisFeb 7, 2012
Well greatest WHITE authors of all time. And it reads like a list of "Smart books" and books assigned by your teacher.
I also question the inclusion of Shakespeare. While his plays read very well, all he did was write dialogue (and a little bit of stage direction). He wrote plays not books (not to say I don't love Shakespeare's work).
This list is good but predictable and bland. If you asked a college student the 20 most boring, difficult, famous, most likely to be assigned to you by an English teacher with delusions of grandeur you would probably get very similar lists.
mbraynardFeb 6, 2012
I dug around and can't find the list of the 125 writers who made up the jury. Anyone have a link?
Something I've noticed is that the writing style of nearly all of the writers who are on the top ten lists, with the exception of Hemingway and maybe Fitzgerald, is that they all use a style that is far more verbose than that of today's authors.
Nonetheless, it is till great to see that today's writers draw from the greats of the past whose writing stands the test of time (although a little odd to see just 5 votes for Kafka. Hmmm).
aronwyrthFeb 6, 2012
This may be what you are looking for, though there are more than 125 names listed: http://www.toptenbooks.net/about.html
mbraynardFeb 6, 2012
I don't know what to think of the few authors on that list I recognize.
- Stephen King (duh)
- Norman Mailer
- Ben Marcus (corresponded with him; a nice guy)
- Tom Wolfe
I'm sure I've read many of them but I am horrible with names.
Also a little disappointed Ayn Rand didn't make the list - although if the voting was open to the public, I'm sure she would be #1.
Well, maybe after JK Rowling and Stephanie Meyer.Comment is buried, click here to see the rest.
aronwyrthFeb 6, 2012
So much for the taste of the "public". Perhaps Rand didn't make the list because 1) she's long dead (about 30 years now?); and 2) a dreadful writer.
bookantFeb 6, 2012
"Also a little disappointed Ayn Rand didn't make the list - although if the voting was open to the public, I'm sure she would be #1. "
It would be a tough race between "Atlas Shrugged," "The Book of Mormon," and "Dianetics," depending on which group of followers were the most motived.
Thankfully, *not* being open to the public gave us a list based on actual merit.
bleueFeb 7, 2012
No, if the public voted the top ten list would probably look like lord of the rings, da vinci code, harry potter and humongous franchise, one or two Shakespeare plays, the little prince, possibly one of the ancient epics (illiad/odyssey, Beowolf, song of roland, pick one), catcher in the rye... If the poll includes non english speakers something above would be swapped for Don Quixote, Les Misérables, something from La Comédie Humaine, Les trois mousquetaires, and i'd like to think something by Kundera,
I doubt any of your three make the top 25. Atlas Shrugged maybe. And the bible would come in before the book of mormon.
mbraynardFeb 7, 2012
Library of Congress/ Book of the Month Club did a survey in 1991 or so and AS was #2 to the Bible. But this was a survey among serious readers.
http://www.englishcompanion.com/Readings/booklists/loclist.html
bookantFeb 7, 2012
To clarify, they're not "my" three nor do I think any of them are worth the paper they're printed on. I was responding to mbraynard's post about Rand; my point was, like "Atlas Shrugged," those other two books have also spawned a horde of cultish followers who would be likely to engage in "get out the vote" efforts to push their undeserving books to the top of the list (see: the Book of the Month survey he just cited).
icwydFeb 6, 2012
Just WOW!
For someone to think that Ayn Rand is anything but a fantasy novel writer?
It never ceases to amaze me.
jaradams664Feb 6, 2012
Do these people read Russian? Spanish? French/ How can they judge a writer they've only read in translation?
Closed AccountFeb 7, 2012
im sure some moron somewhere is screaming twilight is the best!!!!.
personally i thought hemingway's for whom the bell tolls was a badass book.
KaostricksFeb 6, 2012
Some of them are my favorite,loved to read them.
"In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust" is the favorite of all time.
HTTP4O4Feb 6, 2012
Damn I took Shakespeare and 10 points.
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wizwearincFeb 6, 2012
The list is different for different people not all books appeal to all people
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