I will be living for this content all week! Not surprised at all to see Wild on the list. Who among us didn’t buy those cute boots and try to become a hiking girlie after reading it??
This is so fun. But Devil in the White City has been robbed. 91 is just rude!!! ;)
Personally I was a bit bored by Commonwealth; it took me the whole first half of the book to get into it. So many loved it -- solidly medium for me! Also I absolutely hated I'm Glad My Mom Died (it was so hard to read and so upsetting) but know I'm in the minority there.
Super intrigued to see how the rest of the list shakes out! So far I've read 12 from the list. Which is exciting as I've only read 17 total of NYT's list.
I think that was absolutely the point of I’m Glad My Mom Died. I could barely hold the book in my hands (wanted to throw it!) and felt icky the whole time reading it. It felt like a really important book tho. I’m impressed with her journey and her telling of the story!
100-81 fills my heart with joy. These are my kind of readers! Thank you so much for all the hard work on your end, Becca-- I second having to reread Commonwealth again, because I think it's a top 10 and I don't recall anything from that summary😂
There aren't that many books coming out this fall with the election, so I'm gearing up for a big backlist fall with a lot of books from this list that I missed and/or the ones that have been languishing in my pile for years and I haven't gotten around to.
I LOVE this. And feeling much more validated. I read a ton of the NYT but how many did I love? Not many. I have read all of these so far and they are actually books I would recommend. Which, to me, is critical "best of book of the 21st century" criteria!
I like this list already so much more than the NYT one! Read 10/20 and heard of all of them - and gleeful that one of my picks has already made an appearance (American Wife!) 🥰
American Wife and This Is How It Always Is are two of my favorite books I’ve ever read… and I’m so so glad to see them here because they didn’t make my “top” 10 submission. (If that makes sense?)
Seeing the results, I feel like I have 10 MORE books I want to add to my list of submissions that I totally forgot about. It's going to be a really fun week.
So good! Have read 8 and adding Devil in the White City to my to read 📚 now. The best thing around the reaction to this list is finding new (to me) books that have passionate followings 🥰
Ooh! Very fun list, and reaffirming that I have read at least half of them (which is not the feeling I get reading the NYT list). Can’t wait to see tomorrow’s.
I think the number I have read from this list already exceeds the number I have read from the full NYT list, and that just feels right for some reason. 😂
Loving this content. I came up with my submission just off the top of my head and feel like I maybe would have changed it had I remembered some of these gems. Cannot wait to see the rest of the list. These are my people!!
TFiOS voter here! 👋 thought I would chime in w my thought process since it just made the cut! I was certainly thinking of the cultural impact versus literary merit (which is not to say it’s not well written). “Best” is so subjective!
It felt like such a cultural moment at the time, and created such a boom in the YA market as a whole. Spawned a whole sub-genre of illness-focused YA media, and stands out as one of the only YA contemporaries with mass appeal like HP and THG.
I totally agree. I forgot how much of a *thing* this book was and loved getting a reminder via this list. I used to be such a big YA reader and not sure if I stopped because I got more firmly into my 30’s or trends changed that these books were less mainstream, but I loved these huge cultural book moments. I’m also even more fascinated how these happened pre TikTok and IG.
Nothing but respect for *MY* Best Books of the 21st Century list!!! 💕
I will be living for this content all week! Not surprised at all to see Wild on the list. Who among us didn’t buy those cute boots and try to become a hiking girlie after reading it??
I had forgotten about this book (too many books syndrome!) but when I saw it one this list, I was like "yes... this is right."
This list is going to fill my TBR pile way more than the NYT list!
This is so fun. But Devil in the White City has been robbed. 91 is just rude!!! ;)
Personally I was a bit bored by Commonwealth; it took me the whole first half of the book to get into it. So many loved it -- solidly medium for me! Also I absolutely hated I'm Glad My Mom Died (it was so hard to read and so upsetting) but know I'm in the minority there.
Super intrigued to see how the rest of the list shakes out! So far I've read 12 from the list. Which is exciting as I've only read 17 total of NYT's list.
LOL I had a feeling you'd say this about Devil in the White City! And love that you're keeping stats!
I think that was absolutely the point of I’m Glad My Mom Died. I could barely hold the book in my hands (wanted to throw it!) and felt icky the whole time reading it. It felt like a really important book tho. I’m impressed with her journey and her telling of the story!
oh, totally -- that doesn't mean I have to like it!
100-81 fills my heart with joy. These are my kind of readers! Thank you so much for all the hard work on your end, Becca-- I second having to reread Commonwealth again, because I think it's a top 10 and I don't recall anything from that summary😂
There aren't that many books coming out this fall with the election, so I'm gearing up for a big backlist fall with a lot of books from this list that I missed and/or the ones that have been languishing in my pile for years and I haven't gotten around to.
“Backlist fall” is such a great idea!
Same! I already see a "you have too many holds" message from Libby in my near future. Thanks again! I'm so excited to see tomorrows!
I’m with you on Commonwealth, read it, liked it, do not recognize it from this summary.
“say nothing” (and really all of his books) is excellent and definitely worth reading.
💯
I LOVE this. And feeling much more validated. I read a ton of the NYT but how many did I love? Not many. I have read all of these so far and they are actually books I would recommend. Which, to me, is critical "best of book of the 21st century" criteria!
ALL OF THESE? Wow! I'm very impressed and also gratified to hear they feel more recommendable.
I like this list already so much more than the NYT one! Read 10/20 and heard of all of them - and gleeful that one of my picks has already made an appearance (American Wife!) 🥰
American Wife and This Is How It Always Is are two of my favorite books I’ve ever read… and I’m so so glad to see them here because they didn’t make my “top” 10 submission. (If that makes sense?)
Seeing the results, I feel like I have 10 MORE books I want to add to my list of submissions that I totally forgot about. It's going to be a really fun week.
💯— I also COMPLETELY forgot about my John Green era so thank you to the 26 people who voted him in.
So good! Have read 8 and adding Devil in the White City to my to read 📚 now. The best thing around the reaction to this list is finding new (to me) books that have passionate followings 🥰
Same, I am adding so many to my TBR. Having the collective voice instead of just one person endorse makes me much more intrigued.
I have read 8 of these! Thank you for the work, Becca. Becoming a paid subscriber today after having put it off for too long!
Ooh! Very fun list, and reaffirming that I have read at least half of them (which is not the feeling I get reading the NYT list). Can’t wait to see tomorrow’s.
I felt the same. I'd either read them or was intrigued by them. This is already feeling more representative of my tastes and experiences as a reader.
I think the number I have read from this list already exceeds the number I have read from the full NYT list, and that just feels right for some reason. 😂
Honestly proud of that stat for our list
Loving this content. I came up with my submission just off the top of my head and feel like I maybe would have changed it had I remembered some of these gems. Cannot wait to see the rest of the list. These are my people!!
TFiOS voter here! 👋 thought I would chime in w my thought process since it just made the cut! I was certainly thinking of the cultural impact versus literary merit (which is not to say it’s not well written). “Best” is so subjective!
It felt like such a cultural moment at the time, and created such a boom in the YA market as a whole. Spawned a whole sub-genre of illness-focused YA media, and stands out as one of the only YA contemporaries with mass appeal like HP and THG.
I totally agree. I forgot how much of a *thing* this book was and loved getting a reminder via this list. I used to be such a big YA reader and not sure if I stopped because I got more firmly into my 30’s or trends changed that these books were less mainstream, but I loved these huge cultural book moments. I’m also even more fascinated how these happened pre TikTok and IG.
Giving the people what they want! Thank you for taking on this exciting project, Becca.