Only 3 Canadian novels named in list of top books of the century
Looking for a good read? Luckily for us, a panel of renowned novelists hand-picked the best novels of the century, but for those who love Canadiana, you will be left disappointed.
The Times asked 16 critics and novelists to vote on the top 50 novels written in English in the last 100 years.
Undoubtedly, F Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby bagged the first spot in the UK publication’s rankings.
Overall, the UK and the US finished with the highest number of novels in the list, with 19 and 18 respectively. The list includes writers from other countries like Nigeria, India, and South Africa.
However, very few Canadian writers made the list.
Canadian novelists include: Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale (1985), Saul Bellow’s The Adventures of Augie March (1953), and Rohinton Mistry’s A Fine Balance (1995). The books grabbed the 12th, 44th, and 45th spots, respectively.
The Times said 1985 was the “hottest” year for literature as it added three books on the list, including Atwood’s. The other two are Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian, and Don DeLillo’s White Noise.
The oldest of the masterpieces is EM Forster’s A Passage to India, published back in 1924, and the newest is Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall, published in 2009.
What do you think about The Times’ list? Let us know in the comments below.
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