My Top 10 Novels of the Past 25 Years

As we turn the page on the first quarter of the 21^st century, I feel compelled to compile a list of my favorite novels so far. (Yes, I know, purists will argue this century technically commenced on 1/1/2001, but c’mon, we all know when the 2000s really began!).

To be clear, this is not a “best of” list, since art is inherently subjective, and who am I to say what’s best? Rather, these are my favorites, culled from reading roughly 20-25 books a year. I tend to mostly read novels, by authors of different races, genders, and nationalities, as well as across several genres, especially speculative, literary, commercial, and science fiction, plus espionage stories. I rarely read sequels or series, because life is short and I’m a slow reader!

So, without further ado, here are my top 10 favorites of this century. I welcome your comments and suggestions, as I’m always on the hunt for the next great book. Happy reading & happy New Year!

• 10) Demon Copperhead – Barbara Kingsolver (2022)
• 9)   The Book Thief – Markus Zusak (2005)
• 8)   The Kite Runner – Khaled Hosseini (2003)
• 7)   A Little Life – Hanya Yanagihara (2015)
• 6)   Middlesex – Jeffrey Eugenides (2002)
• 5)   The Constant Gardner – John le Carré (2001)
• 4)   Station 11 – Emily St. John Mandel (2014)
• 3)   The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay – Michael Chabon (2000)
• 2)   Cloud Atlas – David Mitchell (2004)
• 1)   Never Let Me Go – Kazuo Ishiguro (2005)
• Honorable Mentions: Atonement, Ian McEwan (2002); The Road, Cormac McCarthy (2006); The Sympathizer, Viet Thanh Nguyen (2015); The Last Days of Night, Graham Moore (2016); Lincoln in the Bardo, George Saunders (2017)