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20th Century's Greatest Hits: 100 English-Language Books of Fiction

"Lists are many things: memory aids, containers of information, a means of organizing materials, efforts to prioritize and overcome chaos and entropy. The following list of the 20th Century's Greatest Literary Hits is all of the above, as well as being a means of sharing with my readers my own views about what books are going to be read 100 or 1000 years from now. It's also an opportunity to argue, share enthusiasms, exchange information, and a challenge to anyone who cares passionately about fiction to comprise their own lists and share them with the steadily-shrinking audience of other people who love books."
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Pale Fire (Vladimir Nabokov)
Pale Fire
1
Vladimir Nabokov
Ulysses (James Joyce)
Ulysses
2
James Joyce
Gravity's Rainbow (Thomas Pynchon)
Gravity's Rainbow
3
Thomas Pynchon
The Public Burning
The Public Burning
4
The Sound and the Fury (William Faulkner)
The Sound and the Fury
5
William Faulkner
Three Novels
Three Novels
6
Samuel Beckett
The Making of Americans (Gertrude Stein)
The Making of Americans
7
Gertrude Stein
The Soft Machine (William S. Burroughs)
The Soft Machine
8
William S. Burroughs
Nova Express
Nova Express
9
The Ticket That Exploded (William S. Burroughs)
The Ticket That Exploded
10
William S. Burroughs
Lolita (Vladimir Nabokov)
Lolita
11
Vladimir Nabokov
Finnegans Wake (James Joyce)
Finnegans Wake
12
James Joyce
Take It or Leave It (Raymond Federman)
Take It or Leave It
13
Raymond Federman
Beloved (Toni Morrison)
Beloved
14
Toni Morrison
Going Native
Going Native
15
Under the Volcano (Malcolm Lowry)
Under the Volcano
16
Malcolm Lowry
To the Lighthouse (Virginia Woolf)
To the Lighthouse
17
Virginia Woolf
In the Heart of the Heart of the Country
In the Heart of the Heart of the Country
18
JR
JR
19
Invisible Man (Ralph Ellison)
Invisible Man
20
Ralph Ellison
Underworld (Don Delillo)
Underworld
21
Don Delillo
The Sun Also Rises (Ernest Hemingway)
The Sun Also Rises
22
Ernest Hemingway
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (James Joyce)
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
23
James Joyce
The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald)
The Great Gatsby
24
F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Ambassadors (Henry James)
The Ambassadors
25
Henry James
Women in Love (D.H. Lawrence)
Women in Love
26
D.H. Lawrence
60 Stories (Donald Barthelme)
60 Stories
27
Donald Barthelme
The Rifles (William T. Vollmann)
The Rifles
28
William T. Vollmann
The Recognitions (William Gaddis)
The Recognitions
29
William Gaddis
Heart of Darkness (Joseph Conrad)
Heart of Darkness
30
Joseph Conrad
Catch-22 (Joseph Heller)
Catch-22
31
Joseph Heller
1984 (George Orwell)
1984
32
George Orwell
Their Eyes Were Watching God (Zora Neale Hurston)
Their Eyes Were Watching God
33
Zora Neale Hurston
Absalom, Absalom! (William Faulkner)
Absalom, Absalom!
34
William Faulkner
Dhalgren (Samuel R. Delany)
Dhalgren
35
Samuel R. Delany
The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck)
The Grapes of Wrath
36
John Steinbeck
The Stain (Rikki Durcornet)
The Stain
37
Rikki Durcornet
Entering Fire (Rikki Durcornet)
Entering Fire
38
Rikki Durcornet
The Fountains of Neptune (Rikki Durcornet)
The Fountains of Neptune
39
Rikki Durcornet
The Jade Cabinet (Rikki Ducornet)
The Jade Cabinet
40
Rikki Ducornet
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