Russell Banks's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 9 Books

These are Russell Banks's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Donna Tartt's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 9 Books

These are Donna Tartt's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Vendela Vida's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 13 Books

These are Vendela Vida's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Charles R. Johnson's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 11 Books

These are Charles R. Johnson's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Siri Hustvedt's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 13 Books

These are Siri Hustvedt's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Richard Ford's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 8 Books

These are Richard Ford's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Jane Hirshfield's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 8 Books

These are Jane Hirshfield's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Laurie Frankel's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 13 Books

These are Laurie Frankel's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Viet Thanh Nguyen's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 16 Books

These are Viet Thanh Nguyen's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Dave Eggers's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 12 Books

These are Dave Eggers's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Louise Erdrich's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 13 Books

These are Louise Erdrich's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Amor Towles's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 14 Books

These are Amor Towles's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Maaza Mengiste's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 21 Books

These are Maaza Mengiste's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Michael Chabon and Ayelet Waldman's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 22 Books

These are Michael Chabon and Ayelet Waldman's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Readers’ Top 100 Novels Of All Time

Guardian (2026), 100 Books

After critics and authors picked their top 100 novels we asked for your favourites. From Uruguay to the Isle of Skye, more than 3,000 readers cast their votes.

Madeline Miller's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 17 Books

These are Madeline Miller's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Andrew Sean Greer's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 14 Books

These are Andrew Sean Greer's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Susan Choi's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 12 Books

These are Susan Choi's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

T. C. Boyle's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 14 Books

These are T. C. Boyle's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Jennifer Egan's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 13 Books

These are Jennifer Egan's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Luis Alberto Urrea's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 13 Books

These are Luis Alberto Urrea's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Laila Lalami's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 19 Books

These are Laila Lalami's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

Jonathan Lethem's Book Choices from "The Writer's Library"

The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives (Book) (2020), 16 Books

These are Jonathan Lethem's book choices from the interview with him in the book "The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives" by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager

The 100 Best Novels Of All Time (Runners-Up)

The Guardian (2026), 489 Books

The Guardian’s 2026 list of the 100 best novels of all time ranks novels published in English, including works originally written in other languages and later translated. The list was compiled from ranked top-10 ballots submitted by 172 authors, critics, and academics from around the world, with titles scored by both number of votes and placement on individual ballots. George Eliot’s Middlemarch took the top spot, followed by Toni Morrison’s Beloved, James Joyce’s Ulysses, Virginia Woolf’s To the Lighthouse, and Marcel Proust’s In Search of Lost Time. The Guardian notes that this new list is broader than its earlier versions, with more women writers represented and a mix of canonical classics, modernist landmarks, contemporary fiction, and major works in translation.

These are the books that were voted for in the Guardian's new "100 Best Novels of All Time" list, but ultimately did not make the cut. These are the runners-up.

(Full list compiled here: https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/1tbfaz6/comment/oliid0l/?context=3&utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button)

The 100 Best Novels Of All Time In English

The Guardian (2026), 100 Books

The Guardian’s 2026 list of the 100 best novels of all time ranks novels published in English, including works originally written in other languages and later translated. The list was compiled from ranked top-10 ballots submitted by 172 authors, critics, and academics from around the world, with titles scored by both number of votes and placement on individual ballots. George Eliot’s Middlemarch took the top spot, followed by Toni Morrison’s Beloved, James Joyce’s Ulysses, Virginia Woolf’s To the Lighthouse, and Marcel Proust’s In Search of Lost Time. The Guardian notes that this new list is broader than its earlier versions, with more women writers represented and a mix of canonical classics, modernist landmarks, contemporary fiction, and major works in translation.

25 Books to Read Before You Turn 25

The Guardian (2026), 25 Books

This list presents a curated set of 25 essential reads—one recommended for each year of life up to 25—designed to help young readers (and those introducing them to books) rediscover the pleasure and formative power of reading rather than impose a rigid syllabus; selections were guided by age-appropriateness, enduring emotional or cultural value, and the ability to spark enjoyment, and the compiler framed the choices as a buffet of suggestions rather than a prescriptive regimen. It was created for The Guardian by Sam Leith, who assembled the recommendations by consulting leading children’s and literary writers and critics and by prioritising titles that might kindle or rekindle a lifelong love of reading; the notable methodological points are that the list pairs one title with each year up to 25, explicitly leans on expert recommendations, and acknowledges that many worthy books were necessarily left out.

Who Voted: unknown people voted -- Jacqueline Wilson, Michael Rosen, Katherine Rundell, Frank Cottrell-Boyce, Nicolette Jones and others

R/ClassicLiterature's Top 100 Favorite Books

R/ClassicLiterature (2026), 100 Books

Hello everybody! Last month I have launched a poll to find the 100 favourite books of this subreddit, inspired by similar contests over at r/TrueLit and 4chan's /lit/. With 163 people participating in the poll, 1425 votes being cast and 504 different books being entered, I'm happy to finally share the results.

It was actually incredibly close at the top: our #1 Moby Dick got 485 points, while our #5 The Count Of Monte Cristo got just 36 less. The point difference between #5 and #6 is nearly twice as big as the difference between #1 and #5.

In the second image I have added images showing how many votes have been cast for books released in each century and written in each language. These percentages were calculated by counting up all of your votes, so not just the books that made the top 100.

In the third image I've added the top 20 authors with the most votes. This is largely similar to the top 20 books, since most authors have just one or two books that are particularly popular, but it does raise authors like Shakespeare and Dickens who have many popular works.

Los mejores libros del siglo XXI, elegidos por 21 librerías españolas

elDiario.es (2025), 25 Books

A Spanish survey published at the end of 2025 to identify the 25 most important books of the first quarter of the 21st century. The list was compiled from Top 10 selections submitted by 21 independent bookstores across Spain. The only eligibility requirement was that the books had been published in Spain after January 1, 2000, regardless of language, country of origin, or genre. The final Top 25 was determined by cross-referencing all ballots and counting repeated titles. In the event of ties, literary and critical significance (such as awards and major reviews) was prioritized over recent commercial success when establishing the final ranking.

Overlooked Five direly underappreciated U.S. novels >1960.

Salon (1999), 5 Books

David Foster Wallace's l ist of 5 underappreciated us novels released after 1960

Prix Goncourt

Prix Goncourt (Yearly Award), 123 Books

The Prix Goncourt is France’s best-known literary prize for fiction, awarded each year to the author of what the jury describes as the “best and most imaginative” prose work published in French. Founded in 1903, it comes with a symbolic €10 purse, but it carries huge prestige and typically drives major sales and international attention; the winner is traditionally announced in early November after several rounds of shortlist selections.

How many people pick/vote? The winner is chosen by the Académie Goncourt, which consists of 10 members (often called les Dix).

Are their names known? Yes — the members are public and listed (with bios) by the Académie Goncourt.

Women's Prize for Non-Fiction

Women's Prize (Yearly Award), 2 Books

The Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction is an annual book award run by the Women’s Prize Trust that celebrates exceptional narrative non-fiction written by women. It’s open to women writers worldwide whose books are published in the UK and written in English, and it rewards work chosen for excellence, originality, and accessibility—with the winner receiving £30,000 plus a limited-edition artwork called “the Charlotte.”

Goldsmiths Prize

Goldsmiths Prize (Yearly Award), 13 Books

The Goldsmiths Prize is a UK-based annual literary prize (worth £10,000) founded in 2013 by Goldsmiths, University of London (in association with the New Statesman) to reward “fiction at its most novel”—i.e., books that break the mould or extend the possibilities of the novel form.

The Greatest Books of 2025 - Honorable Mention

The Greatest Books (2025), 790 Books

This is honorable mention lists of greatest books of 2025. The original list of the top 100 is here: https://thegreatestbooks.org/lists/1088. This list are the books ranked 101 and after. This list is ranked

The 100 Greatest Books of 2025

The Greatest Books (2025), 100 Books

This list is aggregated from many lists by various sources by The Greatest Books Since this is an aggregation of many 2025 specific lists, I am using a voter count of 150

25 best pieces of Horror Fiction of the 21st century so far

The Quietus (2025), 25 Books

This list is The Quietus’s curated chart of the 25 best pieces of horror fiction of the 21st century so far, produced to showcase notable novels, short stories and graphic novels that exemplify the range, influence and strangeness of contemporary horror rather than to reflect sales figures; choices were made by a small panel of experts who each submitted ranked top tens and whose submissions were aggregated to produce the final ranking, with a one-author/one-work rule in place and an explicit note that judges did not vote for their own work. The piece is written for The Quietus (tQ) by Sean Kitching with input from tQ writers and invited genre figures, and the methodology — six judges contributing ranked lists which were combined to form the top 25 — is clearly described in the article.

Who Voted: 6 people voted -- Catriona Ward, Michael Cisco, Greg F. Gifune, Leila Taylor, Mat Colegate, Sean Kitching

Australia’s Radio National top 100 books of the 21st century

ABC Radio national (2025), 100 Books

ABC RN launched this as an annual, Hottest-100-style books poll: Australians voted for their 21st-century favourites (fiction and nonfiction), and RN counted them down over a weekend special. The inaugural winner was Trent Dalton’s Boy Swallows Universe, with Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief at #2; ABC’s summary also breaks down voting patterns by gender, age, and state

Barack Obama's Reading Lists

Barack Obama (2025), 172 Books

This is every book that Barack Obama listed on his yearly reading lists since 2008 to 2015

The 25 Best Mystery Novels of the Past 25 Years

Wall Street Journal (2025), 25 Books

This list shines a spotlight on the 25 best mystery novels of the past 25 years, emphasizing the emergence of new writers in the crime fiction genre while still acknowledging the contributions of seasoned authors. Curated by Tom Nolan for the Wall Street Journal, the selection prioritizes narratives that tell gripping stories in memorable ways, with a preference for those who have risen to prominence in recent decades. The methodology appears to focus on the storytelling prowess and impact of each novel rather than popularity or sales figures.

Who Voted: Tom Nolan

National Book Award for Young People's Literature

National Book Award (Yearly Award), 56 Books

The National Book Award for Young People's Literature is one of five annual National Book Awards. It was established in 1996, following earlier “Children’s” categories that were awarded from 1969 to 1983.

Who voted: The award is judged by five litterateurs, whose names can be seen on the National Book Awards' website.

National Book Award for Translated Literature (1967-1983)

National Book Award (Yearly Award), 23 Books

The winners of the National Book Award for Translated Literature from 1967 to 1983. The award was reintroduced in 2018 with different eligibility criteria.

who voted:
The prize was judged by Karen Maeda Allman, Sinan Antoon, Susan Bernofsky, and Álvaro Enrigue and chaired by Harold Augenbraum.

National Book Award for Translated Literature (2018-present)

National Book Award (Yearly Award), 8 Books

The National Book Award for Translated Literature honours outstanding translations of literary works published in the US and translated from any language into English. It first ran from from 1967 to 1983, and was reintroduced in its current form in 2018. The prize is open to living authors and translators and includes both fiction and nonfiction works.

Who voted: The award is judged by five litterateurs, whose names can be seen on the National Book Awards' website.

PEN Translation Prize

PEN America (Yearly Award), 64 Books

The PEN Translation Prize is an annual award for book-length prose translations from any language into English, and published in the United States.

Who voted: Each year, the Awards Committee selects approximately four litterateurs to serve as judges. Nominations may come from members, anonymous nomination panels, or both. Judges are also encouraged to submit their own nominations.

Warwick Prize for Women in Translation

University of Warwick (Yearly Award), 9 Books

The Warwick Prize for Women in Translation is an annual award honouring works by female authors that have been translated into English and published by a UK- or Irish publisher. Only works authored by a woman are eligible, the gender of the translator is irrelevant.

Who votes: The prize is judged by Amanda Hopkinson, Boyd Tonkin, and Susan Bassnett.

Independent Foreign Fiction Prize

Independent Foreign Fiction Prize (Yearly Award), 21 Books

The Independent Foreign Fiction Prize was a British literary award honouring contemporary fiction translated into English and published in the United Kingdom. It was inaugurated by British newspaper 'The Independent' in 1990 and ran for five years before falling into abeyance. The prize was revived in 2001 and ran until its disbandment in 2016, after which it was merged with the International Booker Prize.

The Independent Foreign Fiction Prize was determined by a small panel of literary experts—typically 4 to 6 judges such as critics, editors, and authors—with strong literary and linguistic experience.

International Booker Prize

The Booker Prizes (Yearly Award), 10 Books

The International Booker Prize is an annual literary award honoring a single work of fiction or a short story collection, translated into English and published in the UK or Ireland. It was established in 2016 following the disbandment of the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize.

The 100 Best Books by Women Writers in Translation

biblibio (2019), 100 Books

The 100 Best Books by Women in Translation is a crowdsourced list created through nominations and votes from readers around the world over a nearly two-month period. Focused on works originally written in languages other than English, it celebrates books by women, trans, and nonbinary authors that have resonated deeply with readers. While not claiming to be definitive, the list reflects global reading passions and highlights both acclaimed titles and hidden gems that deserve more attention. It is a tribute to the diversity, richness, and emotional power of women’s voices in translation.

Who voted?
readers could sent up to 10 recommendations. Overall they got 800 unique books. I am going to estimate they had 100 people who sent feedback. Although I suspect it's probably more.

Fifty French Writers Choose Their Favorite 10 Books - Honourable Mention

On en garde 10 ! Pour la littérature (2022), 385 Books

This is the honourable mention followup list for https://thegreatestbooks.org/lists/1051

This is all the lists from the 50 french writers and critics that were only mentioned one time. please see that list for more details

Fifty French Writers Choose Their Favorite 10 Books

On en garde 10 ! Pour la littérature (2022), 51 Books

Drawn from a festive project led by France’s independent booksellers for World Book Day 2022, this list distills the passionate recommendations of 50 celebrated French writers—each of whom revealed ten works from their personal “literary pantheon.” We kept only those titles that surfaced at least twice, capturing the books that spark a rare, collective resonance across their diverse reading lives. The result is a compact canon of masterpieces that, in the writers’ own words, nourish imagination, shake off clichés, and illuminate the craft of fiction itself. Think of it as an invitation to board a “timeless caravel,” guided by authors past and present, where every book has already lit more than one creative mind on fire—and is now poised to kindle yours.

Who Voted
50 named french authors

The 100 Most Important Translations

Notos Magazine (Turkey) (2018), 98 Books

This is the result of Notos magazine’s 11th major literary survey, titled “En Önemli 100 Çeviri” (“The 100 Most Important Translations”). The Turkish literary magazine asked 279 writers and translators to each nominate up to 10 translated books published in Turkish, resulting in a ranked list of 100 titles. The list focuses on translations that have had lasting cultural and literary value in Turkey and reflects the collective judgment of the literary field regarding quality translation and enduring influence. Many entries are classic works of world literature in their most recognized Turkish renditions. It is considered the most comprehensive translation-focused survey in the Turkish literary sphere to date.

Distinguished Fiction, 1945-1965.

New York Herald Tribune (1965), 20 Books

In the 9 May 1965 Book Week supplement of the New York Herald Tribune, editors canvassed 200 prominent critics, authors, and literary editors, asking each to list “the works of fiction by American writers, published between 1945 and 1965, that are most memorable and likely to endure.” Ballots were counted by simple frequency of citation, and the twenty novels that garnered the most mentions were published in rank order under the banner “Distinguished Fiction, 1945–1965.” Because the voters spanned major newspapers, magazines, and publishing houses, this snapshot captured a broad mid-century critical consensus; ever since, scholars have cited the poll as a key barometer of post-war American literary reputation.