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The Most Important Books of the Last Twenty Years

"The end of December is a time when we are bombarded with end-of-year lists—so much so that they start to blur together. But what about the books that stay with us for years? In an effort to come up with a more enduring, definitive list, I reached out to some of my favorite contemporary writers and asked them to name the most important books published over the last two decades."
Article by Michele Filgate
CONTRIBUTORS
Ann Patchett · Azar Nafisi · Ben Fountain · Colson Whitehead · Colum McCann · Curtis Sittenfeld · Eileen Myles · Geoff Dyer · Jane Smiley · Jesmyn Ward · Jess Walter · Jo Ann Beard · Jonathan Franzen · Jonathan Lethem · Kaitlyn Greenidge · Lauren Groff · Leslie Jamison · Maggie Nelson · Paul Harding · Peter Straub · Patti Smith · Porochista Khakpour · Rebecca Solnit · Rick Moody · Roxane Gay · Sarah Waters · Stewart O'Nan · Ruth Ozeki · Victor LaValle
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2666 (Roberto Bolaño)
2666
1
Roberto Bolaño
A Big Enough Lie (Eric Bennett)
A Big Enough Lie
2
Eric Bennett
A Fine Balance (Rohinton Mistry)
A Fine Balance
3
Rohinton Mistry
A Little Life (Hanya Yanagihara)
A Little Life
4
Hanya Yanagihara
A Madman Dreams of Turing Machines (Janna Levin)
A Madman Dreams of Turing Machines
5
Janna Levin
A Visit From the Goon Squad (Jennifer Egan)
A Visit From the Goon Squad
6
Jennifer Egan
Against Identity (Leon Wieseltier)
Against Identity
7
Leon Wieseltier
All Souls' Rising (Madison Smartt Bell)
All Souls' Rising
8
Madison Smartt Bell
Americanah (Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie)
Americanah
9
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Behind the Beautiful Forevers (Katherine Boo)
Behind the Beautiful Forevers
10
Katherine Boo
Before You Suffocate Your Own Fool Self
Before You Suffocate Your Own Fool Self
11
Beneath the Roses (Gregory Crewdson)
Beneath the Roses
12
Gregory Crewdson
Between the World and Me (Ta-Nehisi Coates)
Between the World and Me
13
Ta-Nehisi Coates
Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk (Ben Fountain)
Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk
14
Ben Fountain
Birds of America (Lorrie Moore)
Birds of America
15
Lorrie Moore
Blue Nights (Joan Didion)
Blue Nights
16
Joan Didion
Brick Lane
Brick Lane
17
The Brief Wonderous Life of Oscar Wao (Junot Diaz)
The Brief Wonderous Life of Oscar Wao
18
Junot Diaz
Brother, I'm Dying (Edwidge Danticat)
Brother, I'm Dying
19
Edwidge Danticat
Building Stories
Building Stories
20
Capital in the 21st Century (Thomas Piketty)
Capital in the 21st Century
21
Thomas Piketty
Citizen (Claudia Rankine)
Citizen
22
Claudia Rankine
Cloud Atlas (David Mitchell)
Cloud Atlas
23
David Mitchell
Collected Stories (Lorrie More)
Collected Stories
24
Lorrie More
Command and Control
Command and Control
25
The Conference of the Birds (Peter Sís)
The Conference of the Birds
26
Peter Sís
Counternarratives (John Keene)
Counternarratives
27
John Keene
Debt: The First 5000 Years (David Graeber)
Debt: The First 5000 Years
28
David Graeber
Decreation: Poetry, Essays, Opera (Anne Carson)
Decreation: Poetry, Essays, Opera
29
Anne Carson
Disgrace (J. M. Coetzee)
Disgrace
30
J. M. Coetzee
Drown, Junot Diaz
Drown, Junot Diaz
31
Eaarth: Making a Life on a Tough New Planet (Bill McKibbin)
Eaarth: Making a Life on a Tough New Planet
32
Bill McKibbin
Falling Out of Time (David Grossman)
Falling Out of Time
33
David Grossman
Fight Club (Chuck Palahniuk)
Fight Club
34
Chuck Palahniuk
For the Relief of Unbearable Urges (Nathan Englander)
For the Relief of Unbearable Urges
35
Nathan Englander
Gilead (Marilynne Robinson)
Gilead
36
Marilynne Robinson
Global Crisis (Geoffrey Parker)
Global Crisis
37
Geoffrey Parker
Half of a Yellow Sun (Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie)
Half of a Yellow Sun
38
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage (Alice Munro)
Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage
39
Alice Munro
Head off & Split
Head off & Split
40
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