Modern Fantasy: The 100 Best Novels

Modern Fantasy: The 100 Best Novels (Book), 102 Books

This collection of 100 brief (2-3 page) essays by British sf magazine editor Pringle offers an informed and admittedly subjective guided tour of a genre that encompasses such widely divergent titles as Tolkien's Lord of the Rings (1954-55), Flann O'Brien's The Third Policeman (1967), and Stephen King's Salem's Lot (1975). Following the format of his earlier collection, Science The 100 Best Novels (LJ 7/86), Pringle presents his selections in chronological order and includes a synopsis of the story, a discussion of the author's overall contribution to fantasy literature, critical commentary on the title's significance, and a brief publishing history. An introductory essay tackles the difficulty of defining fantasy, while a "Brief Bibliography" directs readers to other discussions of the genre. By no means a definitive subject guide, this entertaining volume should serve as a solid introduction to the elusive field of imaginative literature.

Best Books Listed for High School Students

William J. Bennett, 35 Books

In 1984, William J. Bennett, then chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, conducted an informal and unscientific survey among scholars, journalists, teachers, and leaders in government and culture to identify essential readings for high school students. Prompted by a query during a press meeting, Bennett sought to determine a core list of literary works deemed vital for every student to study before graduation. The survey garnered responses from 325 individuals, including feedback through a syndicated column by George F. Will and input from high school teachers participating in seminars sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Mellon Foundation. The resulting list of thirty most frequently mentioned works, highlighted by Shakespeare's oeuvre, the Declaration of Independence, Mark Twain's "Huckleberry Finn," and the Bible, aimed to elevate the standard of reading material in high schools, suggesting that a selection of any ten from the list would offer significant educational value.

*NOTE*
I did not include any of the documents of United States history since they are not books. I also only included the top 3 highest rated William Faulkner novels, since including every one of his novels seems excessive.

Finest Works of Fiction

Martin Seymour-Smith and Editors, 55 Books

In Novels and Novelists, A Guide to the World of Fiction (1980) Seymour-Smith and the other contributors selected about 55 works of fiction as receiving full marks on the four criteria used for evaluation: Readability, Characterization, Plot, and Literary Merit. These represent, for the contributors, the finest works of fiction that have been written.

The 100 Best Books of Two Centuries of Modern Greek Literature (1813 – 2013)

Black & White Publishing SA, 99 Books

120 contemporary Greek writers choose the 100 best books of two centuries of Greek literature(1813 - 2013).

The authors were asked to rate the 20 books they rated as the best, always according to their reading preferences, their judgment of the influence they exerted, or other criteria that determined their choices. These books could include prose titles, novels or short stories, poetry collections (individual, collective or all) and plays.

The Bigger Read List

English PEN, 160 Books

The English PEN staff compiled a list of the best works not written in the English language. This list combines their list with the suggestions made by Fred Armentrout, President of Hong Kong (English-Speaking) PEN.

Famous Authors Name Their Favorite Novels(from 1915)

New York Times, 38 Books

This list of famous authors listing their 6 favorite novels was published in the New York Times on September 5th, 1915. The authors who answered were James Lane Allen, Edwin Lefevre, Oliver Onions, Honore Willsie, Susan Glaspell, Gene Stratton Porter, Eleanor Atkinson, Leona Dalrymple, Frank H. Spearman, and Harvey J. O’Higgins

Finding Comfort in the Classics

NY Times, 21 Books

Editors and writers on the Books desk — along with colleagues from the newsroom — recommend some time-tested books that offer escape from the present moment. This list came out during COVID

48 Good Books

University of Buffalo, 49 Books

Recommended literature by the Undergraduate Academies and Libraries of the University of Buffalo.

description from their old website:
In cooperation with the UB Libraries, the UB Undergraduate Academies announce the Good Books project, a list of 48 good books which embody the mission and spirit of the five Undergraduate Academies: Civic Engagement, Entrepreneurship, Global Perspectives, Research Exploration and Sustainability The Academies Council members, an advisory board of faculty and staff, nominated books that have been personally important to them. You could read one book from this eclectic list, which ranges from biography to politics to poetry, each month over the course of your college career. Some of these books may be familiar, others quite unknown, but Council Members put their heads together to devise a list of “unrequired reading” that have inspired inquiry, pleasure, and a renewed engagement with civic life.

Twenty Books that Changed the World

The Guardian, 20 Books

A list from The Guardian that was put together by a panel of expert academic booksellers, librarians and publishers from a list of 200 titles submitted by UK publishers

15 Australian Classics for your Consideration

The Sydney Morning Herald, 15 Books

15 Australian books that every Australian can enjoy if they want to understand our literature, our country and ourselves. Susan Wyndham, the Herald's literary editor consulted friends, colleagues and Australian Classics by Jane Gleeson-White and The Macquarie PEN Anthology of Australian Literature, edited by Nicholas Jose and others.

100 Greatest Childrens Books of All Time

BBC, 98 Books

BBC Culture polled 177 books experts from 56 countries in order to find the greatest children's books ever. From Where the Wild Things Are to Haroun and the Sea of Stories, here's the top 100.

What Harvard Professors Think Greatest Books Ever: Top 20 List (1977)

The Boston Globe (Newspaper), 21 Books

Harvard Professors in in the 1970s list their favorite books of all time. Reprinted in the Boston Globe

Horror: The 100 Best Books

"Horror: The 100 Best Books" Book by Stephen Jones (Editor) and Kim Newman (Editor), 100 Books

First published in 1988, Horror: The 100 Best Books has remained the only book of its kind: a solid (and entertaining) annotated reading list spanning the range of horror fiction from the 16th to the 20th century. The device of asking 100 horror, fantasy,and science fiction writers to write about their favorite horror books might seem at first to capture an idiosyncratic sample, but through diplomacy and diligence, editors Stephen Jones and Kim Newman succeeded in obtaining short essays on most (if not all) of the well-known classics, as well as many more lesser-knowns that are well worth discovering. Readers who follow up on these recommendations will find tips about books by writers mostly known for other genres--such as Iain Banks, Robert Holdstock, Lisa Tuttle, and David Morrell.

Africa's 100 Best Books of the 20th Century

Zimbabwe International Book Fair, 100 Books

To mark the beginning of the 21st century, and encouraged by Professor Ali Mazrui, the Zimbabwe International Book Fair launched the international compilation of "Africa's 100 Best Books." This project was organized in collaboration with the African Publishers Network (APNET), the Pan-African Booksellers Association (PABA), African writers' associations, book development councils, and library associations.

Nominations were sought throughout the African continent and internationally. A comprehensive list of all nominations was published at the ZIBF in August 2001 and during the course of the following year regional panels compiled their own short lists of 100 best books. Closing date for nominations was 30 September 2001.

A jury made the final decision from the short list and the final list of "Africa's 100 Best Books" was announced on February 18, 2002.

The 100 Best YA Books of All Time

Time, 100 Books

With a panel of celebrated authors—Elizabeth Acevedo, Kacen Callender, Jenny Han, Jason Reynolds, Adam Silvera, Angie Thomas and Nicola Yoon—TIME presents the most compelling, enlightening and influential young-adult books, in chronological order beginning in the 1800s.

The Main Works of Russian literature

Polka Academy, 108 Books

These are books that left a mark on history, expanded the possibilities of literature, influenced the development of language, thought and society, reported something new about the world and man - and entered the Russian literary canon.

We turned to authoritative writers, literary scholars, publishers, critics, and teachers and offered to name any number of the most important, in their opinion, literary works (without specifying the criteria of importance).

The 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time

Time, 98 Books

With a panel of leading fantasy authors—N.K. Jemisin, Neil Gaiman, Sabaa Tahir, Tomi Adeyemi, Diana Gabaldon, George R.R. Martin, Cassandra Clare and Marlon James—TIME presents the most engaging, inventive and influential works of fantasy fiction, in chronological order beginning in the 9th century.
*note* I combined some of the books here. All the Lord of the Rings books are combined.

Six Professors from "Esteemed" Universities Favorite Books

Democrat and Chronicle (Newspaper), 48 Books

A newspaper article from the "Democrat and Chronicle" from 1982 where they asked 6 esteemed professors to list books that theyh would recommend to anyone as worth reading during a lifetime.

The voters were: Louis Rubin, Joseph Summers, R.W.B Lewis, Clark Blaise, Edward Rosenheim, and William Chace

Best Philosophy Books of All Time

Fivebooks, 18 Books

Fivebooks interviewed hundreds of philosophers, these are the philosophy books that come up again and again

The 16 Greatest Books of All Time

NYU Local, 46 Books

Two book editors for the nyulocal.com present their list of the 16 greatest books of all time, with a list of runner-ups as well.

The Great American Read

PBS, 100 Books

PBS and the producers worked with the public opinion polling service “YouGov” to conduct a demographically and statistically representative survey asking Americans to name their most-loved novel. Approximately 7,200 people participated.

The results were tallied and organized based on our selection criteria and overseen by an advisory panel of 13 literary industry professionals. The criteria for inclusion on the top 100 list were as follows:

Each author was limited to one title on the list (to keep the list varied).

Books published in series or featuring ongoing characters counted as one eligible entry on the list (e.g. the Harry Potter series or Lord of the Rings)to increase variety.

Books could be from anywhere in the world as long as they were published in English.

Only fiction could be included in the poll.

Each advisory panel member was permitted to select one book for discussion and possible inclusion on the top 100 list from the longer list of survey results.

The New Lifetime Reading Plan

The New Lifetime Reading Plan, 202 Books

Clifton Paul "Kip" Fadiman (May 15, 1904 – June 20, 1999) was an American intellectual, author, editor, radio and television personality.

The New Lifetime Reading Plan provides readers with brief, informative and entertaining introductions to more than 130 classics of world literature. From Homer to Hawthorne, Plato to Pascal, and Shakespeare to Solzhenitsyn, the great writers of Western civilization can be found in its pages. In addition, this new edition offers a much broader representation of women authors, such as Charlotte Bront%, Emily Dickinson and Edith Wharton, as well as non-Western writers such as Confucius, Sun-Tzu, Chinua Achebe, Mishima Yukio and many others.
This fourth edition also features a simpler format that arranges the works chronologically in five sections (The Ancient World; 300-1600; 1600-1800; and The 20th Century), making them easier to look up than ever before. It deserves a place in the libraries of all lovers of literature.

The Best Southern Novels of All Time

Oxford American, 32 Books

A list of the best southern novels of all time by Oxford American Magazine judged by 130 experts as well as authors.

The Celebrity Reading List

Gardiner Public Library, 72 Books

The Gardiner Public Library, from 1988 to 2007, polled various famous figures from all around the world (writers, artists, filmmakers, politicians, actors, etc.) to ask for their book recommendations. This list is based on the books that received at least two mentions.

1000 Novels Everyone Must Read

The Guardian, 997 Books

Selected by the Guardian’s Review team and a panel of expert judges, this list includes only novels – no memoirs, no short stories, no long poems – from any decade and in any language. Originally published in thematic supplements – love, crime, comedy, family and self, state of the nation, science fiction and fantasy, war and travel – they appear here for the first time in a single list.

Koen Book Distributors Top 100 Books of the Past Century

themodernnovel.com, 100 Books

Intended as a companion to the infamous Modern Library ranking of the top 100 books of the past century, this list represents a different viewpoint--that of the booksellers themselves. Compiled from the responses of over 150 Koen Book Distributors customers, the following titles represent the very best in modern literature.

100 Most Influential Books of the Century

Boston Public Library, 100 Books

Boston Public Library's list of "The 100 Most Influential Books of the Century". A booklist for Adults.
Compiled by Dawn Cook, General Library, Adult Reader and Information Services, Boston Public Library, May 2000

The Best Books of All Time, as Chosen by the Good Housekeeping Team

Good Housekeeping, 20 Books

The Good Housekeeping team have all the picked their top read - the one they would happily read, again and again.

The Modern Philosophical Classics

The Philosophical Forum, 27 Books

We asked respondents to name the five most important books in philosophy in the twentieth century, and also the five most important articles. Giving five choices permits discretion, but five is a small enough number to force voters to choose their selections carefully. Since we were interested in judgments of quality, we instructed respondents to make their choices on the basic of intrinsic merit, not on the basis of causal influence. (By the causal influence standard, Mein Kampf might be the most important book of the twentieth century.)

Using the Philosophers’ Email Directory, we mailed our questionnaire to 5,000 teachers of philosophy. About 1,000 emails bounced back for mis-typed or obsolete addresses, 4,000 reached their targets. We received 414 survey replies, a healthy response rate of better than 10%. Since there are about 10,000 teachers of philosophy in North America, we had replies from 4% of the entire profession.

The Best Southern Nonfiction of All Time

Oxford American, 25 Books

The best southern United States nonfiction books of all time judged by 130 literary experts and authors.

The Greatest Books of All Time

Reader's Digest, 100 Books

Reader's Digest has created a list of greatest books of all time. Their website says:

To land in the top 100, a book needed to truly stand out in the stacks. We considered best sellers, award winners, and books that are highly rated by readers and critics alike. Many have been made into blockbuster movies. (Make sure to check out these exciting book to movie adaptations coming out this year!) Going on, many are taught in schools today. Many have snagged spots on other “best of” lists published by the likes of the New York Times, The Guardian, NPR, PBS, Time magazine, and more. And most have had profound impacts on literature, culture, or the world in general.

Reader's Digest mentions that the list is updated periodically by writers specialize in book content. Book selections are made by editors at Reader's Digest.

222 Best Books of All Time That Deserve a Spot on Your Bookshelf, With Picks from Bestselling Authors and Indie Booksellers

Parade, 222 Books

The best books in Spanish for the last 25 years

El Pais, 5 Books

50 critics, writers and booksellers from both sides of the Atlantic choose the milestones of the last quarter century.

The 10 Best Books Through Time

New York Times, 190 Books

Each fall, the editors of the Times Book Review select the best fiction and nonfiction titles of the year. Our editors read, nominate, discuss, and debate the merits of each year’s books, working together to land upon our list. The practice of editors sharing their picks of the year dates nearly back to the beginning of the Book Review in October 1896. But over the years, that list has taken many different names and forms. Now, we call this list the “Ten Best Books” and have done so since 2004.

What’s the Best Book of the Past 125 Years? We Asked Readers to Decide.

New York Times, 11 Books

A list from the New York Times. Here's the description from the website:

In October, as we marked the Book Review’s 125th anniversary, we invited readers to nominate the best book published during that time. This was a nod to our history: In its first few decades, the Book Review often asked readers to anoint the best books, the best short stories, the best poems. We wanted this project, like those early ones, to reflect readers’ tastes and preferences.

Responses began pouring in from all 50 states and 67 countries. In November, we presented a list of the 25 most-nominated books (one per author) for a vote. There were more than 200,000 ballots.

Big Read (Hungarian)

Hungaria, 100 Books

Big Read is the Hungarian version of the BBC Big Read.

The Big Read was imported into Hungary under the name A Nagy Könyv (lit. "The Big Book") and took place in 2005. Around 1400 libraries, 500 book shops and 1300 schools participated in the competition in various ways. It proved to be far more popular in Hungary (with a population of 10 million) than in the UK (with a population of 60 million), with 400,000 votes arriving (as opposed to 140,000 votes in the UK competition in the corresponding period).

Voting for the top 100 began in late February: one was allowed to vote for any novel published in Hungarian. It ended on April 23, when the 50 "foreign" and 50 Hungarian most popular novels were selected.

On June 11, the top 12 novels were chosen in the framework of a television show presented by cultural celebrities. In the next months, 12 short films were made from these novels and screened in television, which competed with each other in pairs.

On December 15, the population selected their ultimate favourite by SMS and phone. The winning novel, which received the title "the most liked novel of Hungary 2005", was the same book as the result of the previous round, Eclipse of the Crescent Moon. The other two Hungarian books that participated in the final were The Paul Street Boys and Abigél.

100 Books to Read in a Lifetime

Amazon.com (USA), 100 Books

A bucket list of books to create a well-read life, from Amazon Book Editors.

The Top 100 Mystery Novels of All Time

Mystery Writers of America, 100 Books

Not to be outdone by the British Crime Writers' Association - Top 100 Crime Novels of All Time, the Mystery Writers of America came up with their list five years later.

The 100 Favorite Novels of Librarians

Bookman.com, 100 Books

Based on a survey of Librarians conducted by Brodart Co., September, 1998 - March, 1999. Brodart is an international company that services libraries around the world.

Quintessential American Fiction, According to the Rest of the World

Literary Hub, 100 Books

On the occasion of the 4th of July, we the asked the rest of the world for its opinion on American literature. In a deeply unscientific survey of nearly 50 writers, editors, publishers, critics, and translators, representing 30 countries, we asked them to name three quintessentially American books, and tell us about their choices.

100 Books to Read in a Lifetime

Amazon.com (UK), 100 Books

Amazon UK editors select 100 books that they deem "essential".

Harvard Book Store Staff's Favorite 100 Books

Harvard Book Store, 106 Books

In early 2010 Harvard Book Store employees worked together to come up with a list of our favorite books. Each staff member submitted a list of their favorite books of all time, in (rough) order of preference. Their selections were then weighted according to the order and the results were tabulated. It was by no means a perfect system, but it was the best way we could think of to quantify opinions that are in no way quantifiable.

Now, we read a lot, so it was hard to narrow it down. What we came up with are the books that moved us, that changed the way we think about the world, and that we will happily read over and over again. We hope you enjoy them too.

The Modern Library | 100 Best Novels

Modern Library, 100 Books

Modern Library's 100 Best Novels is a 1998 list of the best English-language novels published during the 20th century, as selected by Modern Library from among 400 novels published by Random House, which owns Modern Library. The purpose of the list was to "bring the Modern Library to public attention" and stimulate sales of its books

The board of review consisted of Daniel J. Boorstin, A. S. Byatt, Christopher Cerf, Shelby Foote, Vartan Gregorian, Edmund Morris, John Richardson, Arthur Schlesinger Jr., William Styron and Gore Vidal.

The Top 100 Crime Novels of All Time

Crime Writers' Association, 100 Books

The Top 100 Crime Novels of All Time is a list published in book form in 1990 by the British-based Crime Writers' Association.

10 Most Influential Books by the ISA

ISA (International Sociological Association), 10 Books

One of the major aims of the ISA World Congress of Sociology held in Montreal 1998, was to make a critical assessment of sociological heritage of the twentieth century. In this framework the ISA Congress Programme Committee carried on in 1997 an opinion survey in order to identify ten most influential books for sociologists. ISA members were asked to list five books published in the twentieth century which were most influential in their work as sociologists. 16% of ISA members (455 out of 2785) participated in the survey

Select 100

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 100 Books

"This list was compiled by tabulating nominations by UWM faculty, staff and students for the Select 100. It includes changes which have resulted from nominations received since the original list was released. We asked you to recommend books which you have found to be so useful and important that no one could consider himself/herself an educated or enlightened person without having read them. This is your cumulative response."

Inteliquest's World's 100 Greatest Books of All-Time

InteliQuest, 100 Books

InteliQuest contacted the literature departments of some of America's top universities and asked for their rankings of what they considered to be the greatest works of literature. We then compiled and analyzed these lists and chose the 100 books mentioned most often. The books in this collection are not presented in order of greatness. They are presented in chronological order

InteliQuest then sold the books on cassette tape

50 Classics You Must Read Before You Die

Gyldendal (Denmark Publisher), 50 Books

This list is from Gyldendal, the largest publisher in Denmark. This is what the translated description says:

We asked Gyldendal's fiction editors about their greatest reading experiences. Here are their picks for 50 classics you should read before you die. Find out which ones you have already read, which ones you should re-read and, not least, which ones you should read for the first time. Happy reading!

Best Books Ever

bookdepository.com, 100 Books

"Whatever it's called we love a list of what we think are the best books of all time so we've compiled an entirely arbitrary and personal selection of 100 titles below for you to disagree with."

72 Philosophy Books Everyone Should Read

The Institute of Art and Ideas, 78 Books

The Institute of Art and Ideas asked experts across the philosophy discipline to put together a list of their recommended philosophy books that everyone should read.