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The 100 Best Characters in Fiction Since 1900

List of books with the 100 best characters in fiction since 1900 according to Book Magazine. A ranking compiled by a panel of 55 authors, literary agents, editors, and actors in 2002.
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The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald)
The Great Gatsby
1
F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Catcher in the Rye (J.D. Salinger)
The Catcher in the Rye
2
J.D. Salinger
Lolita (Vladimir Nabokov)
Lolita
3
Vladimir Nabokov
Ulysses (James Joyce)
Ulysses
4
James Joyce
Rabbit, Run (John Updike)
Rabbit, Run
5
John Updike
The Hound of the Baskerville (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
The Hound of the Baskerville
6
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
To Kill a Mockingbird
7
Harper Lee
Ulysses (James Joyce)
Ulysses
8
James Joyce
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (James Joyce)
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
9
James Joyce
The House of Mirth (Edith Wharton)
The House of Mirth
10
Edith Wharton
Breakfast at Tiffany's (Truman Capote)
Breakfast at Tiffany's
11
Truman Capote
Metamorphosis (Franz Kafka)
Metamorphosis
12
Franz Kafka
Invisible Man (Ralph Ellison)
Invisible Man
13
Ralph Ellison
Lolita (Vladimir Nabokov)
Lolita
14
Vladimir Nabokov
One Hundred Years of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
One Hundred Years of Solitude
15
Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Mrs. Dalloway (Virginia Woolf)
Mrs. Dalloway
16
Virginia Woolf
A Confederacy of Dunces (John Kennedy Toole)
A Confederacy of Dunces
17
John Kennedy Toole
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (John Le Carre)
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
18
John Le Carre
To the Lighthouse (Virginia Woolf)
To the Lighthouse
19
Virginia Woolf
Native Son (Richard Wright)
Native Son
20
Richard Wright
In Our Time (Ernest Hemingway)
In Our Time
21
Ernest Hemingway
Catch-22 (Joseph Heller)
Catch-22
22
Joseph Heller
Gone With the Wind (Margaret Mitchell)
Gone With the Wind
23
Margaret Mitchell
To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
To Kill a Mockingbird
24
Harper Lee
The Big Sleep (Raymond Chandler)
The Big Sleep
25
Raymond Chandler
Heart of Darkness (Joseph Conrad)
Heart of Darkness
26
Joseph Conrad
The Remains of the Day (Kazuo Ishiguro)
The Remains of the Day
27
Kazuo Ishiguro
The Baron in the Trees (Italo Calvino)
The Baron in the Trees
28
Italo Calvino
Winnie-The-Pooh (A. A. Milne)
Winnie-The-Pooh
29
A. A. Milne
The Tin Drum (Günter Grass)
The Tin Drum
30
Günter Grass
Wise Blood (Flannery O'Connor)
Wise Blood
31
Flannery O'Connor
Portnoy's Complaint (Philip Roth)
Portnoy's Complaint
32
Philip Roth
The Moviegoer (Walker Percy)
The Moviegoer
33
Walker Percy
Brideshead Revisited (Evelyn Waugh)
Brideshead Revisited
34
Evelyn Waugh
My Man Jeeves (P. G. Wodehouse)
My Man Jeeves
35
P. G. Wodehouse
Henderson the Rain King (Eugene Henderson)
Henderson the Rain King
36
Eugene Henderson
Remembrance of Things Past (Marcel Proust)
Remembrance of Things Past
37
Marcel Proust
The Wind in the Willows (Kenneth Grahame)
The Wind in the Willows
38
Kenneth Grahame
The Cat in the Hat (Dr. Seuss)
The Cat in the Hat
39
Dr. Seuss
The Little White Bird (Peter Pan)
The Little White Bird
40
Peter Pan
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