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The New York Times' 100 Best Books of the 21st Century is a ranked list of the 100 best novels published in the English language since January 1, 2000.

Selection criteria

The list was compiled by a team of critics and editors at The New York Times and, with the input of 503 writers and academics, assessed the books based on their impact, originality, and lasting influence. The selection includes novels, memoirs, history books, and other nonfiction works from various genres, representing well-known and emerging authors.

The following are a few of the individuals who contributed to the list.

Authors (fiction)

Authors (non-fiction)

Journalists and critics

Other professions

List of books

The highest-ranked book on the list was the Elena Ferrante novel My Brilliant Friend published in 2012. Authors Ferrante, Jesmyn Ward, and George Saunders each had three books on the list, the most of any author. The following authors were listed twice: Roberto Bolaño, Edward P. Jones, Denis Johnson, Alice Munro, Hilary Mantel, Zadie Smith and Philip Roth.

Detailed list

Sortable list

Criticism

The list was criticized as biased towards English-language books, particularly those published by American authors. Nigerian academic Ainehi Edoro criticized the lack of literature by African authors and the predominance of American literature on the list and called the list "an act of cultural erasure". The list was also criticized for its lack of genres such as graphic fiction, science fiction, fantasy, and children's literature. Indian publication Scroll.in wrote of the list "How much, and for how long, is America going to obsess over reading and dissecting itself? Why do reading lists emerging from the West claim authority on culture with such hyperbole?"

References

1. "100 Best Books of the 21st Century". The New York Times. Retrieved July 13, 2024.
2. "Our Critic's Take on the 100 List: Books That 'Cast a Sustained Spell'". The New York Times. Retrieved July 13, 2024.
3. Schmitt, Amandine (July 20, 2024). "Le « New York Times » a listé les 100 meilleurs livres du XXIᵉ siècle et franchement ça se discute". Le Nouvel Obs (in French). Retrieved August 5, 2024.
4. Edoro-Glines, Ainehi (July 26, 2024). "The New York Times' "Best Books of the Century" List Was an Unforgivable Erasure of African Literature". Literary Hub. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
5. Jiménez, Marisol (July 17, 2024). "Todo lo que omitió la lista de los 100 mejores libros del siglo XXI de 'The New York Times'" [Everything that was omitted from the list of the 100 best books of the 21st century by The New York Times]. El País US (in Spanish). Retrieved August 5, 2024.
6. "Not the NYT list: 100 fine books from around the world (and not just the USA) of the 21st century". Scroll.in. July 21, 2024. Retrieved August 5, 2024.

• The New York Times
• Lists of novels
• Top book lists