Think about the last time you read a good book. How did it leave its mark on you?
The books that meet a moment can be impactful for many reasons — they can move you emotionally, they can teach you something new, and they can make you laugh or swoon.
This month, The New York Times released their list of the best books of the 21st century so far.We break down the list and talk about some of your favorites.
1A has spoken to 12 of the authors whose work appears on the NYT list. Click to hear those conversations:
- Jesmyn Ward
- Zadie Smith
- Kiese Laymon
- N.K. Jemisin
- Marlon James
- Ta-Nehisi Coates
- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
- Richard Powers
- Patrick Radden Keefe
- Min Jinn Lee
- Colson Whitehead
- Emily St. John Mandel
And the 1A crew put together a short list of some of our picks for best books of the 21st century so far. Here are just a few:
- “Demon Copperhead” by Barbara Kingsolver
- “The Idiot” by Elif Batuman
- “The Office of Historical Corrections” by Danielle Evans
- “Her Body and Other Parties” by Carmen Maria Machado
- “The Goldfinch” by Donna Tartt
- “You Dreamed of Empires” by Alvaro Enrigue
- “Underground Railroad” by Colson Whitehead
- “A Girl in A Band” by Kim Gordon
- “Don’t Tell Anybody The Secrets I Told You” by Lucinda Williams.
- “Circe” by Madeline Miller
- “Olga Dies Dreaming” by Xochitl Gonzalez
- “The Fifth Season” by N.K. Jemisin
- “The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle” by Haruki Murakami
- “A Little Life” by Hanya Yanagihara
- “Severance” by Ling Ma
- “The Overstory” by Richard Powers
- “Braiding Sweetgrass” by Robin Wall Kimmerer
- “Choke” by Chuck Palahniuk
- “She Said” by Megan Twohey and Jodi Kantor
- “Detransition, Baby” by Torrey Peters
- “Conversations with Friends” by Sally Rooney
- “Aid State” by Jake Johnston
- “Things Your Mother Never Told You” by Kim Gaines Eckert
- “The Lager Queen of Minnesota” by J. Ryan Stradal
- “The Lincoln Highway” by Amor Towles
- “The Unwinding” by George Packer
- “Slade House” by David Mitchell
- “Piranesi” by Susanna Clarke
- “Legendborn” by Tracy Deonn
- “House of Leaves” by Mark Z. Danielewski
- “Love Stories” by Trent Dalton
- “The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins
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