Best Books of the 21st Century #40 – 21
Almost there! 20 more books in our crowdsourced list.
Hi there,
No long *thing* from me today. I’ve been sending way more frequently than usual, and I’m guessing we’re both a little sick of hearing me talk.
“Just give us the list!”
“Yes, chefs.”
In case you need a refresher, here are the past installments: (100 – 81) | (80 – 61) | (60 – 41)
Without further ado, books #40 – 21:
40. Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson (2022) – 61 votes
A riveting dual-timeline novel about siblings who inherit two things from their recently deceased mother: a traditional Caribbean black cake and a voice recording about her secret past.
39. The Women by Kristin Hannah (2024) – 62 votes
The NEWEST book to make it on any of the three lists (ours, NYT main, NYT crowdsourced). This historical fiction novel about nurses during the Vietnam War only came out in January and is already a best book of the 21st century!
38. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling (2007) – 64 votes
Harry Potter book 3 of 3 on this list. This one also appeared on the crowdsourced NYT list at 73.
37. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab (2020) – 68 votes
An 18th century woman makes a bargain to live forever, but will be forgotten by everyone she meets within a day… until 300 years later she meets a man in a bookstore who remembers her name.
36. Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (2013) – 68 votes
Three-fer alert! This novel follows a young couple departing Nigeria for the west—one to America; the other, barred entry post-9/11, delves into an undocumented life in London.
35. Book Lovers by Emily Henry (2022) – 69 votes
An ode to romance tropes! An uptight New Yorker follows her free-spirited younger sister on a summer trip to the town where her favorite novel is set, only to come face-to-face with her big city nemesis and find out there’s more to him than it seems.
34. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig (2020) – 70 votes
A woman attempts to end her life and ends up in a library filled with books containing the infinite possibilities of what her life might have been.
33. The Idea of You by Robinne Lee (2017) – 71 votes
Thrilled for us (the Moonheads). A chic 40-something mother has what is supposed to be a fling with a member of her daughter’s favorite boy band.
32. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern (2011) – 72 votes
I was delighted to learn that both Elin Hilderbrand and Jenna Bush Hager included this gorgeous fantasy novel on their ballots for the main NYT list. The story of a magical circus and star-crossed lovers is one of my go-to recommendations.
31. Beartown by Fredrik Backman (2016) – 73 votes
Our third Backman entry! This one, which follows a small-town hockey team, is the only one I haven’t read, but based on the enthusiasm here, I gather I need to!
30. Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros (2023) – 74 votes
This feels right! Our most recent bookish phenom. A fragile girl enters an elite cadre of dragon-riders at a war college.
29. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (2003) – 75 votes
A friendship between a wealthy boy and a servant in Afghanistan. A betrayal that pulls them apart and echoes through their adulthoods.
28. The House in the Cerulean Sea by Tj Klune (2020) – 75 votes
What a tender heartwarm of a book. A caseworker at the Department of Magical Youth is assigned to visit an island orphanage that’s home to six dangerous children, including the Antichrist himself.
27. The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah (2017) – 75 votes
Two Kristin Hannah’s in one day (also not our last). A novel about a desperate family that moves to the Alaskan wilderness.
26. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (2005) – 77 votes
Another YA book! Set in WWII Germany, a girl steals books to share with her neighbors and the Jewish man hidden in her basement. A true ode to the power of books.
25. Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid (2019) – 77 votes
There was zero TJR on either NYT list, but we’ve got this fictional oral history of a 70’s rock and roll band in the top quartile!
24. The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne (2017) – 79 votes
Set in Ireland from the 40’s to today, this book follows an outcasted man grappling with his nationality, class, and sexuality.
23. Beach Read by Emily Henry (2020) – 80 votes
Do we finally have an answer to “the best” EmHen? This one about a romance novelist who moves to her dead father’s secret love shack (under duress, obv) only to discover her neighbor is her college crush turned literary rival gets the top slot on our list, but this WaPo article posits Happy Place—which didn’t even make our list—is the top EmHen. Sadly for me, they list my favorite (PWMOV) as dead last.
22. Circe by Madeline Miller (2018) – 87 votes
A fantastical imagined history of Circe, the temptress of The Odyssey.
21. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt (2013) – 88 votes
Our second three-fer today. This one came in at #4 on the crowdsourced NYT list. A young boy steals a painting in the museum bombing that kills his mother. That single action reverberates through his adult life.
Tomorrow’s the big day…the top 20! Any predictions?
Becca
PS: Woohoo! The final installment of the list is live. See the top 20 here.
This list is the validation I needed after feeling like an uncultured swine for having read approximately 5 of the books on the NYT list
The Idea of You at 33 is a BOP victory.