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The Times' 50 Best Books of the Past 100 Years

The publication of Ulysses in 1922 marked a new era for the novel, writes Laura Hackett. Joyce's masterpiece inspired countless other books, so on its centenary, The Times asked a panel of 16 writers and critics — including novelists Sebastian Faulks, Colm Tóibín, Diana Evans and David Nicholls — to choose their favourite novels written in English that were published after Ulysses. Our list couldn't include everything, so we invited readers to nominate their own favourites, which became the 51st book on our list.
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from thetimes.com · made by The Bibliophile
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The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald)
The Great Gatsby
1
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Wide Sargasso Sea (Jean Rhys)
Wide Sargasso Sea
2
Jean Rhys
Midnight's Children (Salman Rushdie)
Midnight's Children
3
Salman Rushdie
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (Muriel Spark)
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
4
Muriel Spark
Beloved (Toni Morrison)
Beloved
5
Toni Morrison
Lolita (Vladimir Nabokov)
Lolita
6
Vladimir Nabokov
To the Lighthouse (Virginia Woolf)
To the Lighthouse
7
Virginia Woolf
Nineteen Eighty-Four (George Orwell)
Nineteen Eighty-Four
8
George Orwell
Things Fall Apart (Chinua Achebe)
Things Fall Apart
9
Chinua Achebe
Mrs. Dalloway (Virginia Woolf)
Mrs. Dalloway
10
Virginia Woolf
Giovanni's Room (James Baldwin)
Giovanni's Room
11
James Baldwin
The Handmaid's Tale (Margaret Atwood)
The Handmaid's Tale
12
Margaret Atwood
A Passage to India (E.M. Forster)
A Passage to India
13
E.M. Forster
Housekeeping (Marilynne Robinson)
Housekeeping
14
Marilynne Robinson
Never Let Me Go (Kazuo Ishiguro)
Never Let Me Go
15
Kazuo Ishiguro
The Remains of the Day (Kazuo Ishiguro)
The Remains of the Day
16
Kazuo Ishiguro
A Suitable Boy (Vikram Seth)
A Suitable Boy
17
Vikram Seth
The God of Small Things (Arundhati Roy)
The God of Small Things
18
Arundhati Roy
Disgrace (J. M. Coetzee)
Disgrace
19
J. M. Coetzee
Gilead (Marilynne Robinson)
Gilead
20
Marilynne Robinson
Lord of the Flies (William Golding)
Lord of the Flies
21
William Golding
The Blue Flower (Penelope Fitzgerald)
The Blue Flower
22
Penelope Fitzgerald
A House for Mr. Biswas (V.S. Naipaul)
A House for Mr. Biswas
23
V.S. Naipaul
Atonement (Ian McEwan)
Atonement
24
Ian McEwan
The Color Purple (Alice Walker)
The Color Purple
25
Alice Walker
The Bell Jar (Sylvia Plath)
The Bell Jar
26
Sylvia Plath
Wolf Hall (Hilary Mantel)
Wolf Hall
27
Hilary Mantel
The Talented Mr. Ripley (Patricia Highsmith)
The Talented Mr. Ripley
28
Patricia Highsmith
The Power and the Glory (Grahame Greene)
The Power and the Glory
29
Grahame Greene
The Bonfire of the Vanities (Tom Wolfe)
The Bonfire of the Vanities
30
Tom Wolfe
Olive Kitteridge (Elizabeth Strout)
Olive Kitteridge
31
Elizabeth Strout
The Death of the Heart (Elizabeth Bowen)
The Death of the Heart
32
Elizabeth Bowen
Half of a Yellow Sun (Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie)
Half of a Yellow Sun
33
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Never Mind (Edward St Aubyn)
Never Mind
34
Edward St Aubyn
The Catcher in the Rye (J. D. Salinger)
The Catcher in the Rye
35
J. D. Salinger
Blood Meridian (Cormac McCarthy)
Blood Meridian
36
Cormac McCarthy
Lady Chatterley's Lover (D.H. Lawrence)
Lady Chatterley's Lover
37
D.H. Lawrence
Nights at the Circus (Angela Carter)
Nights at the Circus
38
Angela Carter
The Golden Notebook (Doris Lessing)
The Golden Notebook
39
Doris Lessing
The Sun Also Rises (Ernest Hemingway)
The Sun Also Rises
40
Ernest Hemingway
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