NYT best book of the 21st century

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want to echo some other posters that All the Light We Cannot See should be on the list. Such a beautiful, sad book.

So should Homegoing. That book is really powerful and I think portrays generational trauma and oppression artfully.

I realize everyone has different tastes but I just can’t imagine thinking “I am going to spend my weekend reading a novel of generational trauma and oppression.” It sounds like emotional self-flagellation.

Wow this is a weird post. There are many of us who would read books like that on weekends.

Go read People magazine.

So I guess this is slamming me as both weird and stupid/shallow? I, at least, acknowledged that everyone has different tastes and preferences. It seems to me “weird” to fail to recognize that people have different interests. (Maybe if you read different types of fiction you’d have a more inclusive and less demeaning approach to others?)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want to echo some other posters that All the Light We Cannot See should be on the list. Such a beautiful, sad book.

So should Homegoing. That book is really powerful and I think portrays generational trauma and oppression artfully.

I realize everyone has different tastes but I just can’t imagine thinking “I am going to spend my weekend reading a novel of generational trauma and oppression.” It sounds like emotional self-flagellation.

Wow this is a weird post. There are many of us who would read books like that on weekends.

Go read People magazine.

So I guess this is slamming me as both weird and stupid/shallow? I, at least, acknowledged that everyone has different tastes and preferences. It seems to me “weird” to fail to recognize that people have different interests. (Maybe if you read different types of fiction you’d have a more inclusive and less demeaning approach to others?)

You called it "emotional self-flagellation." When do you suggest to read such books?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want to echo some other posters that All the Light We Cannot See should be on the list. Such a beautiful, sad book.

So should Homegoing. That book is really powerful and I think portrays generational trauma and oppression artfully.

I realize everyone has different tastes but I just can’t imagine thinking “I am going to spend my weekend reading a novel of generational trauma and oppression.” It sounds like emotional self-flagellation.

Wow this is a weird post. There are many of us who would read books like that on weekends.

Go read People magazine.

So I guess this is slamming me as both weird and stupid/shallow? I, at least, acknowledged that everyone has different tastes and preferences. It seems to me “weird” to fail to recognize that people have different interests. (Maybe if you read different types of fiction you’d have a more inclusive and less demeaning approach to others?)

DP. Fwiw, I didn't read your comment as neutral as you may have thought you made it. It read as a slam to me.

[Anonymous]

I started Wolf Hall after so much hype. It is so boring. Having a hard time picking it back up. Is it going to get any better?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I started Wolf Hall after so much hype. It is so boring. Having a hard time picking it back up. Is it going to get any better?

How far are you?

I loved Wolf Hall (read it at least twice) but it’s a very certain style. I don’t believe in slogging through books you don’t enjoy. It just may not be for you.

[Anonymous]

Did anyone read Murakami’s picks?

(…and how he casually alluded to “Life of Pi” possibly being plagiarized?!)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Did anyone read Murakami’s picks?

(…and how he casually alluded to “Life of Pi” possibly being plagiarized?!)

Oh I’m a fool— it was a Murakami fan page listing favorites.

I really was shocked for a minute, thinking that a literary giant was making such an offhand remark about plagiarism! (I also hadn’t heard the controversy about “Life of Pi” before!)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want to echo some other posters that All the Light We Cannot See should be on the list. Such a beautiful, sad book.

So should Homegoing. That book is really powerful and I think portrays generational trauma and oppression artfully.

I realize everyone has different tastes but I just can’t imagine thinking “I am going to spend my weekend reading a novel of generational trauma and oppression.” It sounds like emotional self-flagellation.

Honest question: What is the best time of the week we should read this book?

[Anonymous]

I read Homegoing and tried to like it but did not.

I was interested in some of the historical part but it didn't feel fully developed.

I want to read "All That She Carried". Sometimes imaginative books grounded in real history work better for me than fiction.

I find the best time to read books you might find depressing is when you're traveling on a plane, train, or car. It's otherwise a substandard experience, so getting dragged down by a book doesn't make anything worse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want to echo some other posters that All the Light We Cannot See should be on the list. Such a beautiful, sad book.

So should Homegoing. That book is really powerful and I think portrays generational trauma and oppression artfully.

I realize everyone has different tastes but I just can’t imagine thinking “I am going to spend my weekend reading a novel of generational trauma and oppression.” It sounds like emotional self-flagellation.

So you never read books that have this type of arc? I find that reading a mix of literature helps me understand the world better. I sat down and read Homegoing in a few days. It wasn’t all depressing but it was honest and made me think a lot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want to echo some other posters that All the Light We Cannot See should be on the list. Such a beautiful, sad book.

So should Homegoing. That book is really powerful and I think portrays generational trauma and oppression artfully.

I realize everyone has different tastes but I just can’t imagine thinking “I am going to spend my weekend reading a novel of generational trauma and oppression.” It sounds like emotional self-flagellation.

I completely agree with you. So many of the books on the NYT list are like that. Personally, I just like a good story. Doesn’t necessarily have to be fun but a good book, to me, is enjoyable to read and not a slog.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want to echo some other posters that All the Light We Cannot See should be on the list. Such a beautiful, sad book.

So should Homegoing. That book is really powerful and I think portrays generational trauma and oppression artfully.

I realize everyone has different tastes but I just can’t imagine thinking “I am going to spend my weekend reading a novel of generational trauma and oppression.” It sounds like emotional self-flagellation.

Wow this is a weird post. There are many of us who would read books like that on weekends.

Go read People magazine.

So I guess this is slamming me as both weird and stupid/shallow? I, at least, acknowledged that everyone has different tastes and preferences. It seems to me “weird” to fail to recognize that people have different interests. (Maybe if you read different types of fiction you’d have a more inclusive and less demeaning approach to others?)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want to echo some other posters that All the Light We Cannot See should be on the list. Such a beautiful, sad book.

So should Homegoing. That book is really powerful and I think portrays generational trauma and oppression artfully.

I realize everyone has different tastes but I just can’t imagine thinking “I am going to spend my weekend reading a novel of generational trauma and oppression.” It sounds like emotional self-flagellation.

Wow this is a weird post. There are many of us who would read books like that on weekends.

Go read People magazine.

So I guess this is slamming me as both weird and stupid/shallow? I, at least, acknowledged that everyone has different tastes and preferences. It seems to me “weird” to fail to recognize that people have different interests. (Maybe if you read different types of fiction you’d have a more inclusive and less demeaning approach to others?)

DP. Fwiw, I didn't read your comment as neutral as you may have thought you made it. It read as a slam to me.

NP - agree, it was not a neutral comment. I didn’t care for All the Light, but I really loved Homegoing and thought it was excellent. I always find NYT booklists stuffy though, biased toward book snobs who don’t consider romance/sci fi/detective genres worth of consideration - and biased toward “serious” male authors. I would like to see them create a best of list based on either the impact books had on the market (like the popularity rise in romance or the way girl with a dragon tattoo opened the market to Scandinavian authors). I mean, I’m not a Colleen Hoover fan, but I have many relatives who were not readers beyond magazines until they picked up her books, which is quite impressive I think. I don’t think Wolf Hall made quite the same impact, regardless of whether I enjoyed it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want to echo some other posters that All the Light We Cannot See should be on the list. Such a beautiful, sad book.

So should Homegoing. That book is really powerful and I think portrays generational trauma and oppression artfully.

I realize everyone has different tastes but I just can’t imagine thinking “I am going to spend my weekend reading a novel of generational trauma and oppression.” It sounds like emotional self-flagellation.

Wow this is a weird post. There are many of us who would read books like that on weekends.

Go read People magazine.

So I guess this is slamming me as both weird and stupid/shallow? I, at least, acknowledged that everyone has different tastes and preferences. It seems to me “weird” to fail to recognize that people have different interests. (Maybe if you read different types of fiction you’d have a more inclusive and less demeaning approach to others?)

DP. Fwiw, I didn't read your comment as neutral as you may have thought you made it. It read as a slam to me.

NP - agree, it was not a neutral comment. I didn’t care for All the Light, but I really loved Homegoing and thought it was excellent. I always find NYT booklists stuffy though, biased toward book snobs who don’t consider romance/sci fi/detective genres worth of consideration - and biased toward “serious” male authors. I would like to see them create a best of list based on either the impact books had on the market (like the popularity rise in romance or the way girl with a dragon tattoo opened the market to Scandinavian authors). I mean, I’m not a Colleen Hoover fan, but I have many relatives who were not readers beyond magazines until they picked up her books, which is quite impressive I think. I don’t think Wolf Hall made quite the same impact, regardless of whether I enjoyed it.

NYT releases bestsellers every weekend, regardless of what critics say. Isn't what you are looking for?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want to echo some other posters that All the Light We Cannot See should be on the list. Such a beautiful, sad book.

So should Homegoing. That book is really powerful and I think portrays generational trauma and oppression artfully.

I realize everyone has different tastes but I just can’t imagine thinking “I am going to spend my weekend reading a novel of generational trauma and oppression.” It sounds like emotional self-flagellation.

Wow this is a weird post. There are many of us who would read books like that on weekends.

Go read People magazine.

So I guess this is slamming me as both weird and stupid/shallow? I, at least, acknowledged that everyone has different tastes and preferences. It seems to me “weird” to fail to recognize that people have different interests. (Maybe if you read different types of fiction you’d have a more inclusive and less demeaning approach to others?)

DP. Fwiw, I didn't read your comment as neutral as you may have thought you made it. It read as a slam to me.

NP - agree, it was not a neutral comment. I didn’t care for All the Light, but I really loved Homegoing and thought it was excellent. I always find NYT booklists stuffy though, biased toward book snobs who don’t consider romance/sci fi/detective genres worth of consideration - and biased toward “serious” male authors. I would like to see them create a best of list based on either the impact books had on the market (like the popularity rise in romance or the way girl with a dragon tattoo opened the market to Scandinavian authors). I mean, I’m not a Colleen Hoover fan, but I have many relatives who were not readers beyond magazines until they picked up her books, which is quite impressive I think. I don’t think Wolf Hall made quite the same impact, regardless of whether I enjoyed it.

NYT releases bestsellers every weekend, regardless of what critics say. Isn't what you are looking for?

DP, this would be interesting to see over a larger time frame, not just a week to week comparison.