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Harold Bloom's 278 Books You Should Have Read by Now - Page 2

"Which twentieth-century American writers will last? Here's ....... an eminent critic's long-awaited, monumental list of the greatest literary works of all time." (Esquire magazine; September, 1994).
Impressive hyperbole. Anyway, you've had almost a quarter of a century to tackle the books on this list. in 1994 Harold Bloom, literary critic & compiler of the now infamous "The Western Canon", came up with a list of 278 works by American writers published in the 20th century. He concludes the article: "In this catalog of canonical authors of [the 20th] century, I have ventured a modest prophecy as to survival possibilities." Do you agree these works should survive?
For an alternative list of 278 works (with TIRADE) click on the link.
A somewhat mangled & incomplete version of the list is available at "https://everything2.com/title/278+Books+You+Should+Have+Read+By+Now". Or you can read the source as one of a few free articles on offer from the Esquire archives (that's what I did).
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Page 2 of 7
Where I'm Calling From: New and Selected Stories (Raymond Carver)
Where I'm Calling From: New and Selected Stories
41
Raymond Carver
My Antonia (Willa Cather)
My Antonia
42
Willa Cather
The Professor's House (Willa Cather)
The Professor's House
43
Willa Cather
A Lost Lady (Willa Cather)
A Lost Lady
44
Willa Cather
The Stories of John Cheever (John Cheever)
The Stories of John Cheever
45
John Cheever
Bullet Park (John Cheever)
Bullet Park
46
John Cheever
Westward
Westward
47
Spanking the Maid
Spanking the Maid
48
A Call in the Midst of the Crowd (Alfred Corn)
A Call in the Midst of the Crowd
49
Alfred Corn
Complete Poems, Selected Letters and Prose (Hart Crane)
Complete Poems, Selected Letters and Prose
50
Hart Crane
The Revisionist
The Revisionist
51
Little, Big (John Crowley)
Little, Big
52
John Crowley
Aegypt (John Crowley)
Aegypt
53
John Crowley
Love and Sleep
Love and Sleep
54
The Complete Poems of E. E. Cummings (E. E. Cummings)
The Complete Poems of E. E. Cummings
55
E. E. Cummings
Tatlin! (Guy Davenport)
Tatlin!
56
Guy Davenport
Running Dog
Running Dog
57
Libra (Don Delillo)
Libra
58
Don Delillo
Mao II (Don Delillo)
Mao II
59
Don Delillo
White Noise (Don Delillo)
White Noise
60
Don Delillo
The Early Motion
The Early Motion
61
The Central Motion
The Central Motion
62
On Wings of Song (Thomas M. Disch)
On Wings of Song
63
Thomas M. Disch
The Book of Daniel (E.L. Doctorow)
The Book of Daniel
64
E.L. Doctorow
World's Fair (E.L. Doctorow)
World's Fair
65
E.L. Doctorow
Selected Poems (Hilda Doolittle)
Selected Poems
66
Hilda Doolittle
U.S.A. (John Dos Passos)
U.S.A.
67
John Dos Passos
Selected Poems (Rita Dove)
Selected Poems
68
Rita Dove
Sister Carrie (Theodore Dreiser)
Sister Carrie
69
Theodore Dreiser
An American Tragedy (Theodore Dreiser)
An American Tragedy
70
Theodore Dreiser
Bending the Bow (Robert Duncan)
Bending the Bow
71
Robert Duncan
Collected Poems (Richard Eberhart)
Collected Poems
72
Richard Eberhart
The Complete Poems and Plays of T.S. Eliot
The Complete Poems and Plays of T.S. Eliot
73
Selected Essays (T.S. Eliot)
Selected Essays
74
T.S. Eliot
The Living End
The Living End
75
Invisible Man (Ralph Ellison)
Invisible Man
76
Ralph Ellison
Absalom, Absalom! (William Faulkner)
Absalom, Absalom!
77
William Faulkner
Light in August (William Faulkner)
Light in August
78
William Faulkner
As I Lay Dying (William Faulkner)
As I Lay Dying
79
William Faulkner
Sanctuary (William Faulkner)
Sanctuary
80
William Faulkner
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