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Best Twentieth Century American Novels
1

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4.26 avg rating — 7,165,218 ratings
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2

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3.92 avg rating — 6,183,309 ratings
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3

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3.80 avg rating — 4,034,626 ratings
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4

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4.04 avg rating — 1,035,515 ratings
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5

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3.99 avg rating — 908,489 ratings
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6

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3.97 avg rating — 3,020,586 ratings
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7

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3.90 avg rating — 2,975,637 ratings
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8

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4.10 avg rating — 1,536,938 ratings
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9

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3.87 avg rating — 986,077 ratings
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10

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4.20 avg rating — 799,048 ratings
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11

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4.46 avg rating — 769,314 ratings
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12

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4.28 avg rating — 777,233 ratings
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13

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3.82 avg rating — 1,388,720 ratings
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14

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4.04 avg rating — 1,334,764 ratings
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15

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3.85 avg rating — 153,280 ratings
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16

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3.98 avg rating — 110,054 ratings
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17

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3.86 avg rating — 202,960 ratings
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18

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3.89 avg rating — 310,648 ratings
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19

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3.99 avg rating — 520,037 ratings
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20

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really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 403,422 ratings
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21

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4.16 avg rating — 95,849 ratings
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22

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4.35 avg rating — 869,333 ratings
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23

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4.21 avg rating — 2,115,923 ratings
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24

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4.32 avg rating — 1,274,755 ratings
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25

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4.11 avg rating — 243,471 ratings
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26

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3.72 avg rating — 196,401 ratings
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27

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really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 1,099,688 ratings
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28

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3.93 avg rating — 207,765 ratings
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29

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really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 50,044 ratings
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30

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4.12 avg rating — 817,859 ratings
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31

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3.61 avg rating — 462,624 ratings
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32

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4.06 avg rating — 163,734 ratings
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33

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3.82 avg rating — 369,855 ratings
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34

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3.88 avg rating — 156,083 ratings
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35

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4.01 avg rating — 266,689 ratings
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36

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3.98 avg rating — 205,990 ratings
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37

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3.97 avg rating — 39,644 ratings
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38

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3.78 avg rating — 514,772 ratings
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39

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3.99 avg rating — 329,568 ratings
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40

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4.06 avg rating — 287,548 ratings
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41

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4.61 avg rating — 298,330 ratings
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42

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3.99 avg rating — 125,364 ratings
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43

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3.89 avg rating — 110,664 ratings
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44

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4.34 avg rating — 94,895 ratings
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45

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3.75 avg rating — 23,474 ratings
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46

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3.95 avg rating — 247,586 ratings
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47

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3.98 avg rating — 46,110 ratings
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48

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4.15 avg rating — 358,247 ratings
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49

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3.47 avg rating — 142,988 ratings
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50

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3.86 avg rating — 119,978 ratings
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51

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4.27 avg rating — 966,748 ratings
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52

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4.16 avg rating — 112,867 ratings
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53

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4.14 avg rating — 251,054 ratings
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54

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3.76 avg rating — 154,984 ratings
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55

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3.59 avg rating — 65,086 ratings
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56

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4.05 avg rating — 108,273 ratings
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57

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4.15 avg rating — 1,704,793 ratings
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58

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4.06 avg rating — 89,107 ratings
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59

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3.79 avg rating — 40,103 ratings
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60

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4.31 avg rating — 299,416 ratings
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61

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3.91 avg rating — 61,246 ratings
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62

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4.17 avg rating — 200,887 ratings
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63

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4.28 avg rating — 1,786,900 ratings
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64

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3.78 avg rating — 27,328 ratings
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65

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4.14 avg rating — 1,148,454 ratings
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66

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4.02 avg rating — 50,671 ratings
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67

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3.83 avg rating — 67,587 ratings
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68

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3.63 avg rating — 13,237 ratings
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69

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4.09 avg rating — 240,954 ratings
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70

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3.73 avg rating — 67,708 ratings
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71

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4.25 avg rating — 106,834 ratings
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72

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4.01 avg rating — 29,346 ratings
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72

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3.91 avg rating — 16,172 ratings
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74

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4.04 avg rating — 90,707 ratings
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75

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4.09 avg rating — 68,141 ratings
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76

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4.24 avg rating — 63,563 ratings
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77

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3.78 avg rating — 17,808 ratings
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78

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4.01 avg rating — 16,770 ratings
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79

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3.70 avg rating — 76,237 ratings
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79

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3.99 avg rating — 124,913 ratings
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81

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4.04 avg rating — 24,487 ratings
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82

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3.83 avg rating — 74,346 ratings
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83

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3.63 avg rating — 82,415 ratings
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84

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3.99 avg rating — 902,762 ratings
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85

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3.83 avg rating — 19,230 ratings
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86

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4.16 avg rating — 54,428 ratings
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87

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3.46 avg rating — 101,279 ratings
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88

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3.75 avg rating — 51,440 ratings
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89

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3.59 avg rating — 295,902 ratings
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90

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3.81 avg rating — 61,052 ratings
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91

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3.81 avg rating — 40,550 ratings
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92

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4.10 avg rating — 694,311 ratings
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93

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4.03 avg rating — 7,014 ratings
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94

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3.96 avg rating — 152,444 ratings
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95

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3.81 avg rating — 16,936 ratings
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96

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4.01 avg rating — 6,595 ratings
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97

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3.79 avg rating — 158,811 ratings
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98

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3.91 avg rating — 87,710 ratings
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99

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4.18 avg rating — 303,631 ratings
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100

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4.17 avg rating — 136,821 ratings
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328 books · 233 voters · list created March 7th, 2010 by Susanna - Censored by GoodReads (votes) .
Tags: 1900s, american, best
72 likes · 
Lists are re-scored approximately every 5 minutes.


Susanna - Censored by GoodReads 3388 books
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Argus 254 books
2 friends
Thom 6022 books
293 friends
Sebastian 796 books
36 friends
Emma 593 books
1560 friends
Mike (the Paladin) 4304 books
1626 friends
Mohammed 2086 books
280 friends
Irrelephant 2423 books
68 friends

More voters…


Comments Showing 1-21 of 21 (21 new)

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message 1: by Lobstergirl (new)

Lobstergirl I feel like Philip Roth should be on here, but not sure what book. Also Cormac McCarthy. Are we calling Nabokov American? And I love Charlotte's Web, but I don't think it can properly be called a novel.

Other ideas: DeLillo, Toni Morrison, Helprin, Norman Mailer.


Susanna - Censored by GoodReads I would take Nabokov as an American novelist, as he became a citizen in 1945.

I just vote for the novels I really like.


message 3: by Lobstergirl (new)

Lobstergirl I had to remove "The Little Friend" as it was published in 2002.


message 4: by Lobstergirl (new)

Lobstergirl Only the fact that it's a children's or YA book, and I take the term "novel" to be something different, aimed at an older audience. If we were taking a college course on "the novel," a YA book wouldn't be on the curriculum. I'm not saying CW isn't a lovely, near-perfect book.


Susanna - Censored by GoodReads Removed for not being published in the 20th century:

Empire Falls, by Richard Russo (2001)


message 6: by Bakagh (new)

Bakagh I will finish most of them.


Susanna - Censored by GoodReads Removed, for not being first published in the 20th century:

Isn't It Pretty To Think So? (2012)


message 8: by Dennis (new)

Dennis I'm surprised that "And Ladies of the Club" isn't here.


Susanna - Censored by GoodReads You could add it.


message 10: by PatrickT (new)

PatrickT The Rhum Diary is pretty good, nearly as good as The Sun Also Rises and The Moveable Feast. I would have Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas too, though I can understand if there's reluctance. Ask the Dust, up there too. Basketball Diaries. Off the top of my head. Anything Mark Twain might have written between 1900 and 1910?


message 11: by Eva (new)

Eva Schiess The Goldfinch- Donna Tartt
Flight Behavior- Barbara Kingsolver
Should be in top 20.


message 12: by Emma (new)

Emma Susanna - Censored by GoodReads wrote: "I would take Nabokov as an American novelist, as he became a citizen in 1945.

I just vote for the novels I really like."


Makes sense. Also, Lolita was included in a course I took on the American novel at Yale, so I'd say there's a scholarly consensus that his works are American.


message 13: by Emma (new)

Emma Lobstergirl wrote: "Only the fact that it's a children's or YA book, and I take the term "novel" to be something different, aimed at an older audience. If we were taking a college course on "the novel," a YA book woul..."

I don't think intended audience has any bearing on whether or not something is a novel. Just my two cents :)


message 14: by Emma (new)

Emma Death in the Afternoon by Hemingway is nonfiction, and therefore not a novel. It should be removed.


Susanna - Censored by GoodReads Do you remember where on the list you saw it? (Makes it a lot easier to remove.)


message 16: by Emma (new)

Emma Susanna - Censored by GoodReads wrote: "Do you remember where on the list you saw it? (Makes it a lot easier to remove.)"

#91


Susanna - Censored by GoodReads Removed, as is The Woman Warrior (also non-fiction).


message 18: by Kinga (new)

Kinga Please remove How to Buy, Sell and Make a Fortune on eBay - Make Money Online From Home on eBay.
This user keeps spamming lists with his crappy book


BookLovingLady (deceased Jan. 25, 2023...) Kinga wrote: "Please remove How to Buy, Sell and Make a Fortune on eBay - Make Money Online From Home on eBay.
This user keeps spamming lists with his crappy book"


Done. (Next time, do mention the number you noticed a book on)


Susanna - Censored by GoodReads Yep, it's very handy; makes things a lot easier for the librarian removing the book.


message 21: by Steve (last edited Oct 02, 2024 09:39AM) (new)

Steve Shelby #263. Watership Down is British, not American.
#30. The Road is 2006, not 20th century.


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