This past weekend JP and Doc spent time
discussing the merits of establishing a ranking for our 216 books. This back and forth was initiated by comments
made by several members over the years that went something like:
·
“This book is definitely in the top ten of all
our books.”
·
“This book is definitely in the upper quartile…”
·
“This book is at the mean…”
·
“This book is below the mean…”
·
“This author hates everybody…”
I might have taken some liberty in how I remember the
comments. But you get what I
mean.
It was a harder task to rank than expected. Authors, editors, publishers, reviewers put
in a lot of effort in putting the printed work in your hands, and I respect the
book business. I love literature. Almost all works have redeeming
qualities. And only Faulkner should have
been called out. Ha!
So, what are my criteria for deciding the placement? It’s subjective because it's mine. Your list will be...?
Considerations:
1. I
have or would read the work again
2. Its
subject matter is compelling
3. The
characters are memorable
4. The
author’s style allows the work to be accessed by most readers
5. There
is entertainment value
6. A
reader can connect to and identify themes
7. Intangibles
Ah, yes, the intangibles. That allows me some
license in where a work settles on the list and I structured my list in
thirds. This exercise made me aware who critical I am as a
reader. More books are in the bottom third.
The top third, in my opinion, represents solid writing. You won't be disappointed in picking up those books. Somewhere in the middle third rests the
mean. That mythical work that all other works fall above or below. The numbers are not a ranking. They are simply the chronological
order as they appear in the list.
I hope this will generate some discussion within the Apes
and beyond. I look forward to hearing
about it. Read on.
Books in the top third
3. In the Lake of the Woods Tim
O’Brien
5. Lolita Vladimir Nabokov
(January ’95)
7. The Ginger Man JP Donleavy
9. Nobody’s Fool Richard Russo
14. Water Music TC Boyle
17. The Killer Inside Me Jim
Thompson
18. Tropic of Cancer Henry Miller
24. Gunfight! James Work (Editor)
25. The Mambo Kings Play… Oscar
Hijuelos
27. A Case of Curiosities Allen
Kurzweil (January ’97)
30. Independence Day Richard Ford
31. White Noise Don DeLillo
35. The Brothers K David James
Duncan
37. Undaunted Courage Stephen
Ambrose
41. Bonfire of the Vanities Tom
Wolfe
44. Cities of the Plain Cormac
McCarthy
45. Of Human Bondage W. Somerset
Maugham
46. Into Thin Air Jon Krakauer
51. The Iceman Cometh Eugene
O’Neill
53. Picture of Dorian Gray Oscar
Wilde
54. Rising Tide John M. Barry
56. A Death in the Family James
Agee
57. Travels with Charley John
Steinbeck
59. Treasure of Sierra Madre B.
Travern
60. Deliverance James Dickey
62. Tortilla Curtain TC Boyle
(January ’00)
64. Angle of Repose Wallace
Stegner
72. Endurance Alfred Lansing
74. The Art of Happiness Dalai
Lama
75. A Moveable Feast Ernest
Hemingway
78. A Confederacy of Dunces John
Kennedy Toole
81. Empire Falls Richard Russo
84. Citizen Soldier Stephen
Ambrose
86. Carter Beats the Devil Glen
David Gold
92. Middlesex Jeffrey Eugenides
99. For Whom the Bell Tolls Ernest
Hemingway
100. The Inner Circle TC Boyle
101. The Last Good Kiss James
Crumley
104. Man in Full Tom Wolfe
107. Hell’s Angels Hunter S.
Thompson
108. Under the Banner of Heaven Jon
Krakauer
111. The Devil in the White City Erik
Larsen
113. East of Eden John Steinbeck
(January ’06)
115. The Earth is Flat Thomas
Friedman
121. No Country for Old Men Cormac
McCarthy
123. The Road Cormac McCarthy
(January ’07)
128. The Worst Hard Time Tim Egan
130. The Tender Bar EH Moehringer
132. The Omnivore’s Dilemma
Michael Pollan
133. The Bridge of Sighs Richard
Russo (January ’08)
139. The Master and Margarita Mikhail
Bulgakov
140. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar
Wao Junot Diaz
144. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle David
Wroblewski
145. All the King’s Men Robert
Penn Warren
149. Coal Black Horse Robert
Olmstead
150. The Adventures of Huckleberry
Finn Mark Twain (September ’09)
163. Spooner Pete Dexter
167. The Cello Suites Eric Siblin
178. The Leopard Guiseppe di
Lampedusa
185. KillShot Elmore Leonard
186. The Marriage Plot
Jeffrey Eugenides
188. A Night Train to Lisbon
Pascal Mercier
189. Dog Stars Peter Heller
190. Canada Richard Ford
192. The Bartenders Tale Ivan
Doig
193. The Art of Fielding Chad
Harbach
195. Hummingbird's Daughter Luis
Alberto Urrea
197. Kafka on the Shore Haruki
Murakami
201. City of Bohane Kevin
Barry
205. The Human Stain Phillip Roth
209. Boys in the Boat Daniel
Brown
211. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle
Maintenance, Robert Pirsig
212. Cinnamon and Gunpowder, Eli
Brown
213. The Razor's Edge, Somerset
Maugham
215. Oil!, Upton Sinclair
Books in the middle third
1. Blood Ties Ted Kerasote (September ’94)
2. June Rise William Tremblay
8. Tarzan of the Apes Edgar Rice
Burroughs
21. Altered States Paddy
Chayefsky
38. Idoru William Gibson (January
’98)
42. Dog Eat Dog Edward Bunker
43. American Pastoral Philip Roth
61. Tuesdays with Morrie Mitch
Albom
69. Corelli’s Mandolin Louis
DeBernieres
71. Bridge over San Luis Rey Thornton
Wilder
73. Plainsong Kent Haruf (January
’01)
88. The Corrections Jonathan
Franzen
95. The Life of Pi Yann Martel
102. Where I’m Calling From Raymond
Carver
103. The Future of Freedom Farheed
Zachariah (January ’05)
126. Manhunt James Swanson
134. The Virginian Owen Wister
147. The Complete Short Novels Anton
Chekhov
152. Rabbit at Rest John Updike
164. Cutting for Stone Abraham
Verghese
172. Waiting for Godot Samuel
Beckett
173. Gabriel’s Story David
Anthony Durham
174. When the Killing’s Done TC
Boyle
176. Last Night at the Lobster
Stewart O’Nan (January ’12)
179. Rules of Civility Amor
Towles
181. A Tale of Two Cities Charles
Dickens
183. The Sense of an Ending
Julian Barnes
200. The Caine Mutiny Herman Wouk
203. The Silence and the
Roar Nihad Sirees
207. Brown Dog Jim
Harrison
216. Serena, Ron Rash
Books in the bottom third
4. Evolution Man Richard Lewis
6. Herzog Saul Bellow
10. Catapult Jim Paul
11. Montana 1948 Larry Watson
12. Therapy Steven Schwartz
13. The River Why David James
Duncan
15. Ancient Child N. Scott
Momaday
16. Absalom, Absalom William
Faulkner (January ’96)
19. Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter Mario
Vargas Llosa
20. Small is Beautiful EF
Schumacher
22. Swimming in the Volcano Bob
Shakokis
23. Fifth Business Robertson
Davies
26. Midaq Alley Naguib Mafouz
28. Master and Commander Patrick
O’Brian
29. Field Notes Barry Lopez
32. Mating Norman Rus
33. Cruising Paradise Sam Shepard
34. A Child in Time Ian McEwan
36. The Bell Curve Herrstein and
Murray
39. In the Beauty of the Lilies John
Updike
40. The Good Book Peter J. Gomes
47. Bad Land John Raban
48. An American Requiem James
Carroll
49. The Tetherballs of the
Bougainville Mark Leyner
50. London Fields Martin Amis
(January ’99)
52. Wicked Gregory Maguire
55. The Earth is Enough Harry
Middleton
58. A Flag for Sunrise Robert
Stone
63. The Vision of the Anointed Thomas Sowell
65. Keep the Change Thomas
McGuane
66. Motherless Brooklyn Johnathon
Lethem
67. The Reader Bernhard Schlink
68. ‘Tis Frank McCourt
70. Fierce Individuals… Tom
Robbins
76. Heartbreaking Work… David
Eggers
77. The Woman Lit by Fireflies Jim
Harrison
79. The Last American Man
Elizabeth Gilbert (October ’02)
80. Tomcat in Love Tim O’Brien
82. Blue Latitudes Tony Horwitz
(January ’03)
83. Love in Ruins Walker Percy
85. The Big Sky AB Guthrie
87. The Power of the Dog Thomas
Savage
89. Jayber Crow Wendell Berry
90. The Satanic Verses Salman
Rushdie
91. The First American H W Brands
(January ’04)
93. The Piano Tuner Daniel Mason
94. Angels and Demons Dan Brown
96. The Siren of the Titans Kurt
Vonnegut
97. Summerland Michael Chabon
98. The Snow Leopard Peter
Mathiessen
105. Stormy Weather Carl Hiaasen
106. King Solomon’s Mines H.
Rider Haggard
109. Gates of Fire Stephen
Pressfield
110. Founding Brothers Joseph J.
Ellis
112. The Long Walk Slavomir
Rawicz
114. Red Harvest Daishell Hammett
116. Roughing It Mark Twain
117. Pan Knut Hamsun
118. The March EL Doctorow
119. The Know It All AJ Jacobs
120. To Rule the Waves Arthur
Herman
122. Ghostwritten David Mitchell
124. The Known World Edward Jones
125. To the Elephant Graveyard Tarquin
Hill
127. A History of the World…
Julian Barnes
129. The Secret Servant Daniel
Silva
131. The Coast of Chicago Stuart
Dybek
135. Tree of Smoke Denis Johnson
136. Peace Like a River Leif
Enger
137. The Willow Field William
Kittridge
138. Driving Mr. Albert Michael
Paterniti
141. The Long Goodbye Raymond
Chandler
142. Saturday Ian McEwan
143. No Man’s Land Scott Huler
146. Sons and Lovers DH Lawrence
148. The White Tiger Aravind
Adiga
151. Out Stealing Horses Per
Petterson
153. 1491 Charles Mann
154. And the Hippos were Boiled in
their Tanks Burroughs and Kerouac
155. Till We Have Faces CS Lewis
156. The Book of Ebenezer LePage GB
Edwards
157. Shop Class as Soul Craft Matthew
B. Crawford
158. The Carpenter’s Pencil Manuel
Rivas
159. Appointment in Samarra John
O’Hara
160. Three Cups of Tea Greg
Mortenson and David Oliver Relin
161. Shadow Divers Robert Kurson
162. Freedom Jonathan Franzen
165. Await Your Reply Dan Chaon
(January ’11)
166. The Republic of Wine Mo Yan
168. Falconer John Cheever
169. A Sand County Almanac Aldo
Leopold
170. A House for Mr. Biswas VS
Naipaul
171. The Given Day Dennis Lehane
175. Where Rivers Change Directions
Mark Spragg
177. The Sojourn Andrew Krivak
180. 61 Hours Lee Child
182. Mink River Brian Doyle
184. The Book Thief Marcus Zusak
187. Fall of Giants Ken Follett (January
’13)
191. 13 Moons Charles Frazier
194. Sometimes a Great Notion Ken
Kesey
196. Kenneth Rexroth, An
Autobiographical Novel Kenneth Rexroth
198. Billy Lynn's Long Halftime
Walk Ben Fountain
199. The Yellow Birds Kevin
Powers
202. Life Among Giants Bill
Roorbach
204. Don Quixote Miguel
de Cervantes
206. A Fan's Notes Frederick
Exley
208. Wayfaring Stranger James
Lee Burke
210. Johnny Cash Robert
Hilburn
214. Waterland, Graham Swift
