The Best English-Language Fiction of the Twentieth Century
A Composite List and Ranking
by Brian Kunde
 
INTRODUCTION
SOURCE LISTS
COMPOSITE LIST
RANKING SYSTEM
COLUMN KEY
REVIEWS
LINKS

Alternative Rankings. B. List Equalizing.

As noted in the explanation of the ranking system, the method I adopted to re-rank the titles from the sources originally used a simple 150-point scale, which remained in place on this site for over six years. John Young then pointed out that rating 100-title lists on the same scale as a 150-title list disadvantaged the former, an observation that resulted in the discovery of other problems with the system. His favored solution was to drop the Library Journal list's last fifty titles and then re-rate the four lists on a 100-point schedule. I have adopted as the current main ranking system a variation of his proposal that does not require dropping titles. As it produces results similar but not identical to his, I also present the system he suggested here. An explanation of the alternative method follows:
  • First, the last fifty titles of the 150-title Library Journal list were dropped to make it equal in length (and hence more directly comparable) to the other three lists.
  • Second, the rankings in each source list were converted into points on a 100-point scale. A first-place rank was given 100 points a second place rank 99, and so on, down to 1 point for a 100th-place rank.
  • Third, the points for every work on each list were totalled to determine its cumulative popularity (or weight) in the sources.
  • Finally, the works were re-ranked according to total points received, those with the most ranking highest and those with the least ranking lowest. In cases where two or more works ended up with the same number of points, the works(s) appearing in the most sources are ranked first, with this caveat: in instances where one of a title's sources was the Library Journal list and the title in question was a dropped title, that title is ranked after other titles with an equivalent number of sources, but ahead of titles with one less source. Works that both share the same number of points and appear in the same number of sources are ranked alphabetically by author and title.

The main strength of this method is that it reduces or eliminates various ranking biases and anomalies characteristic of the original 150-point scale, resulting in a cleaner and more accurate representation of the collective opinion of the source lists. Its main defect is that in eliminating the last fifty titles of the Library Journal list it partially falsifies the comparison; titles among those last fifty that duplicate titles on the other lists are denied their due influence in the rankings, and unique titles among those last fifty are treated as if they were never listed at all.

I have fudged things a bit in this re-ranking by acknowledging the actual existence of those dropped final fifty Library Journal titles in three ways:

  • First, while eliminating them for scoring purposes, I have retained them for purposes of comparison. Dropped Library Journal rankings that didn't figure in the re-ranking are shown in red against the titles they apply to, and completely dropped titles (that is, those ranked only in the Library Journal list, and only among the final fifty) are also shown in red at the end of the current list, in their Library Journal order.
  • Second, the column representing the number of sources a title appears still counts the complete number of sources, even in instances where one of those sources was the dropped portion of the Library Journal list.
  • Third, an appearance in the dropped portion of the Library Journal list still counts as a tie-breaker, as detailed above.

The Composite List in the Alternative Ranking.

K LM R App. Points Rank Author Title Date
K-003 L-013 M-002 R-001 4 385 001 Fitzgerald, F. Scott Great Gatsby, The 1925
K-006 L-007 M-013 R-009 4 369 002 Orwell, George Nineteen Eighty Four 1949
K-005 L-010 M-007 R-015 4 367 003 Heller, Joseph Catch-22 1961
K-004 L-020 M-010 R-003 4 367 004 Steinbeck, John Grapes of Wrath, The 1939
K-031 L-017 M-004 R-011 4 341 005 Nabokov, Vladimir Lolita 1955
K-018 L-044 M-001 R-006 4 335 006 Joyce, James Ulysses 1922
K-013 L-008 M-031 R-017 4 335 007 Orwell, George Animal Farm 1945
K-012 L-009 M-041 R-008 4 334 008 Golding, William Lord of the Flies 1954
K-002 L-002 M-064 R-002 4 334 009 Salinger, J. D. Catcher in the Rye, The 1951
K-020 L-014 M-018 R-029 4 323 010 Vonnegut, Kurt, Jr. Slaughterhouse Five 1969
K-024 L-041 M-005 R-016 4 318 011 Huxley, Aldous Brave New World 1932
K-016 L-028 M-019 R-024 4 317 012 Ellison, Ralph Invisible Man 1952
K-030 L-047 M-006 R-010 4 311 013 Faulkner, William Sound and the Fury, The 1929
K-001 L-001 R-004 3 297 014 Lee, Harper To Kill a Mockingbird 1960
K-041 L-053 M-003 R-014 4 293 015 Joyce, James Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, A 1916
K-008 L-006 R-005 3 284 016 Walker, Alice Color Purple, The 1982
K-009 L-005 R-007 3 282 017 Morrison, Toni Beloved 1987
K-019 L-045 M-045 R-018 4 277 018 Hemingway, Ernest Sun Also Rises, The 1926
K-056 L-031 M-020 R-027 4 270 019 Wright, Richard Native Son 1940
K-007 L-004 R-026 3 266 020 Mitchell, Margaret Gone With the Wind 1936
K-023 L-039 M-055 R-031 4 256 021 Kerouac, Jack On the Road 1957
K-039 L-060 M-015 R-034 4 256 022 Woolf, Virginia To the Lighthouse 1927
K-010 L-003 R-040 3 250 023 Tolkien, J. R. R. Lord of the Rings 1956
K-032 L-012 R-013 3 246 024 White, E. B. Charlotte's Web 1952
K-035 L-037 M-058 R-042 4 232 025 Wharton, Edith Age of Innocence, The 1920
K-057 L-033 M-074 R-020 4 220 026 Hemingway, Ernest Farewell to Arms, A 1929
K-034 L-025 R-051 3 193 027 Cather, Willa My Antonia 1918
K-011 L-078 R-023 3 191 028 Hurston, Zora Neale Their Eyes Were Watching God 1937
K-055 L-026 R-032 3 190 029 Hemingway, Ernest Old Man and the Sea, The 1952
K-028 L-019 R-071 3 185 030 Du Maurier, Daphne Rebecca 1938
K-049 L-058 M-065 R-049 4 183 031 Burgess, Anthony Clockwork Orange, A 1962
K-042 L-067 M-088 R-033 4 174 032 London, Jack Call of the Wild, The 1903
K-021 L-011 2 170 033 Buck, Pearl S. Good Earth, The 1931
K-038 L-061 R-037 3 167 034 Irving, John World According to Garp, The 1978
K-025 L-056 R-060 3 162 035 Wharton, Edith Ethan Frome 1911
K-022 L-022 2 158 036 Tolkien, J. R. R. Hobbit, The 1937
K-095 L-023 R-028 3 157 037 Kesey, Ken One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest 1962
K-027 L-018 2 157 038 Bradbury, Ray Fahrenheit 451 1952
K-017 L-036 2 149 039 Atwood, Margaret Handmaid's Tale, The 1986
M-035 R-019 2 148 040 Faulkner, William As I Lay Dying 1930
K-014 L-040 2 148 041 Heinlein, Robert A. Stranger in a Strange Land 1961
K-066 M-028 R-062 3 147 042 Fitzgerald, F. Scott Tender is the Night 1934
L-034 R-022 2 146 043 Milne, A. A. Winnie the Pooh 1926
L-075 M-025 R-059 3 144 044 Forster, E. M. Passage to India, A 1924
K-046 L-109 R-012 3 144 045 Steinbeck, John Of Mice and Men 1937
L-094 M-036 R-038 3 135 046 Warren, Robert Penn All the King's Men 1946
K-084 M-038 R-052 3 129 047 Forster, E. M. Howard's End 1910
M-009 R-064 2 129 048 Lawrence, D. H. Sons and Lovers 1913
M-039 R-036 2 127 049 Baldwin, James Go Tell It on the Mountain 1953
L-027 R-048 2 127 050 Lawrence, D. H. Lady Chatterley's Lover 1928
L-050 R-025 2 127 051 Morrison, Toni Song of Solomon 1977
K-061 L-124 M-079 R-039 4 124 052 Forster, E. M. Room With a View, A 1908
L-092 M-067 R-021 3 123 053 Conrad, Joseph Heart of Darkness 1902
K-097 L-070 M-014 3 122 054 Graves, Robert I, Claudius 1934
L-035 R-045 2 122 055 Sinclair, Upton Jungle, The 1906
K-060 L-021 2 121 056 Smith, Betty Tree Grows in Brooklyn, A 1947
L-030 M-096 R-057 3 120 057 Styron, William Sophie's Choice 1979
L-059 M-024 2 119 058 Anderson, Sherwood Winesburg, Ohio 1919
K-082 L-065 R-043 3 113 059 Rand, Ayn Fountainhead, The 1943
M-026 R-069 2 107 060 James, Henry Wings of the Dove, The 1902
K-068 R-030 2 104 061 Hemingway, Ernest For Whom the Bell Tolls 1940
L-024 M-076 2 102 062 Spark, Muriel Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, The 1962
M-016 R-088 2 098 063 Dreiser, Theodore American Tragedy, An 1925
L-077 M-030 2 095 064 Ford, Ford Madox Good Soldier, The 1915
L-062 R-047 2 093 065 Baum, L. Frank Wonderful Wizard of Oz, The 1900
L-131 M-011 2 090 066 Lowry, Malcolm Under the Volcano 1947
M-012 1 089 067 Butler, Samuel Way of All Flesh, The 1903
K-065 L-051 2 086 068 Tan, Amy Joy Luck Club, The 1989
K-015 1 086 069 Toole, John K. Confederacy of Dunces, A 1980
L-016 1 085 070 McMurtry, Larry Lonesome Dove 1986
L-095 M-049 R-075 3 084 071 Lawrence, D. H. Women in Love 1920
L-142 M-017 2 084 072 McCullers, Carson Heart Is a Lonely Hunter, The 1940
L-086 M-033 2 083 073 Dreiser, Theodore Sister Carrie 1900
L-097 M-023 2 082 074 Dos Passos, John U.S.A. (trilogy) 1930/37
M-077 R-044 2 081 075 Joyce, James Finnegans Wake 1939
M-054 R-068 2 080 076 Faulkner, William Light in August 1932
M-021 1 080 077 Bellow, Saul Henderson the Rain King 1959
M-022 1 079 078 O'Hara, John Appointment at Samarra 1934
L-042 M-082 2 078 079 Stegner, Wallace Angle of Repose 1971
K-092 L-038 R-097 3 076 080 Updike, John Rabbit, Run 1960
K-053 L-127 M-094 R-081 4 075 081 Rhys, Jean Wide Sargasso Sea 1966
K-058 M-069 2 075 082 Wharton, Edith House of Mirth, The 1905
L-107 M-027 2 074 083 James, Henry Ambassadors, The 1903
L-054 R-076 2 072 084 Wolfe, Thomas Look Homeward, Angel 1929
L-150 M-029 2 072 085 Farrell, James T. Studs Lonigan: A Trilogy 1932/35
K-029 L-103 2 072 086 Lessing, Doris Golden Notebook. The 1962
L-029 1 072 087 Uris, Leon Exodus 1957
L-110 M-051 R-080 3 071 088 Mailer, Norman Naked and the Dead, The 1948
K-040 R-092 2 070 089 Rand, Ayn Atlas Shrugged 1957
L-080 M-052 2 070 090 Roth, Philip Portnoy's Complaint 1969
L-071 M-062 2 069 091 Jones, James From Here to Eternity 1951
L-102 M-032 2 069 092 James, Henry Golden Bowl, The 1904
L-032 1 069 093 Wilder, Laura Ingalls Little House on the Prairie 1935
L-132 M-050 R-084 3 068 094 Miller, Henry Tropic of Cancer 1934
K-033 1 068 095 Allison, Dorothy Bastard Out of Carolina 1992
L-101 M-056 R-079 3 067 096 Hammett, Dashiell Maltese Falcon, The 1930
M-034 1 067 097 Waugh, Evelyn Handful of Dust, A 1934
K-052 L-084 2 066 098 Kingsolver, Barbara Bean Trees, The 1988
K-036 1 065 099 Shaara, Michael Killer Angels, The 1974
K-062 L-076 2 064 100 Clarke, Arthur C. 2001: A Space Odyssey 1968
L-148 M-037 2 064 101 Wilder, Thornton Bridge of San Luis Rey, The 1927
K-037 1 064 102 Proulx, E. Annie Shipping News, The 1993
M-040 1 061 103 Greene, Graham Heart of the Matter, The 1948
K-094 L-048 2 060 104 Byatt, A. S. Possession 1990
R-041 1 060 105 Keneally, Thomas Schindler's List 1982
M-042 1 059 106 Dickey, James Deliverance 1970
K-043 1 058 107 Guterson, David Snow Falling on Cedars 1994
M-043 1 058 108 Powell, Anthony Dance to the Music of Time, A (series) 1951/75
K-063 L-128 R-082 3 057 109 DeLillo, Don White Noise 1985
K-044 1 057 110 Adams, Richard Watership Down 1972
M-044 1 057 111 Huxley, Aldous Point Counter Point 1928
M-046 1 055 112 Conrad, Joseph Secret Agent, The 1907
R-046 1 055 113 Woolf, Virginia Mrs. Dalloway 1925
L-087 R-061 2 054 114 O'Connor, Flannery Good Man is Hard to Find, A 1955
M-047 1 054 115 Conrad, Joseph Nostromo 1904
K-048 L-115 2 053 116 Herbert, Frank Dune 1965
M-048 1 053 117 Lawrence, D. H. Rainbow, The 1915
L-117 M-061 R-089 3 052 118 Cather, Willa Death Comes for the Archbishop 1927
L-049 1 052 119 Shields, Carol Stone Diaries 1994
K-050 1 051 120 Irving, John Prayer for Owen Meany, A 1989
L-052 1 049 121 Haley, Alex Roots 1976
L-119 M-080 R-074 3 048 122 Waugh, Evelyn Brideshead Revisited 1945
M-053 1 048 123 Nabokov, Vladimir Pale Fire 1962
R-054 1 047 124 Salinger, J. D. Franny and Zooey 1961
L-055 1 046 125 Porter, Katherine Anne Pale Horse, Pale Rider 1939
R-055 1 046 126 Rushdie, Salman Satanic Verses, The 1988
L-091 M-066 2 045 127 Maugham, W. Somerset Of Human Bondage 1915
R-056 1 045 128 Morrison, Toni Jazz 1992
K-085 R-073 2 044 129 Burroughs, William S. Naked Lunch 1959
M-057 1 044 130 Ford, Ford Madox Parade's End 1924/28
R-058 1 043 131 Faulkner, William Absalom, Absalom! 1936
K-059 1 042 132 Archer, Jeffrey Kane and Abel 1980
M-059 1 042 133 Beerbohm, Max Zuleika Dobson 1911
L-136 M-060 2 041 134 Percy, Walker Moviegoer, The 1961
K-096 M-068 R-099 3 040 135 Lewis, Sinclair Main Street 1920
L-130 M-063 2 038 136 Cheever, John Wapshot Chronicle, The 1957
L-063 1 038 137 Lewis, C. S. Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, The 1950
R-063 1 038 138 Woolf, Virginia Orlando 1928
K-064 L-123 2 037 139 Smiley, Jane Thousand Acres, A 1991
L-064 1 037 140 Doyle, Arthur Conan Hound of the Baskervilles, The 1902
R-065 1 036 141 Wolfe, Tom Bonfire of the Vanities 1987
L-118 R-066 2 035 142 Vonnegut, Kurt, Jr. Cat's Cradle 1963
L-066 1 035 143 Gordimer, Nadine Burger's Daughter, The 1979
R-067 1 034 144 Knowles, John Separate Peace, A 1959
L-079 R-090 2 033 145 Graham, Kenneth Wind in the Willows, The 1908
L-069 1 032 146 Bradley, Marion Zimmer Mists of Avalon, The 1983
K-069 1 032 147 Gibbons, Kaye Ellen Foster 1987
M-085 R-086 2 031 148 Conrad, Joseph Lord Jim 1900
L-133 R-070 2 031 149 Achebe, Chinua Things Fall Apart 1959
K-070 1 031 150 Burns, Olive-Ann Cold Sassy Tree 1984
M-070 1 031 151 Durrell, Lawrence Alexandria Quartet, The 1957/60
M-071 1 030 152 Hughes, Richard High Wind in Jamaica, A 1929
K-071 1 030 153 Ishiguro, Kazuo Remains of the Day, The 1989
M-078 R-095 2 029 154 Kipling, Rudyard Kim 1901
R-072 1 029 155 Adams, Douglas Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, The 1979
M-072 1 029 156 Naipaul, V. S. House for Mr. Biswas, A 1961
L-072 1 029 157 Steinbeck, John East of Eden 1952
K-072 1 029 158 Wouk, Herman War and Remembrance 1978
K-073 L-129 2 028 159 Sendak, Maurice Where the Wild Things Are 1963
L-073 1 028 160 Paton, Alan Cry, the Beloved Country 1948
M-073 1 028 161 West, Nathanael Day of the Locust, The 1939
L-089 M-086 2 027 162 Doctorow, E. L. Ragtime 1975
L-074 1 027 163 Drury, Allen Advise and Consent 1959
K-074 1 027 164 Michener, James A. Centennial 1974
K-075 L-141 2 026 165 Roth, Henry Call It Sleep 1934
M-075 1 026 166 Waugh, Evelyn Scoop 1938
K-078 1 023 167 Morrison, Toni Sula 1973
K-079 1 022 168 King, Stephen Stand, The 1978
K-080 1 021 169 Finney, Jack Time and Again 1970
K-081 L-106 2 020 170 Plath, Sylvia Bell Jar, The 1963
M-081 1 020 171 Bellow, Saul Adventures of Augie March, The 1953
K-083 L-143 2 018 172 Puzo, Mario Godfather, The 1969
R-083 1 018 173 Cather, Willa O Pioneers! 1913
L-083 1 018 174 Morrison, Toni Bluest Eye, The 1969
M-083 1 018 175 Naipaul, V. S. Bend in the River, A 1979
M-084 1 017 176 Bowen, Elizabeth Death of the Heart, The 1938
L-085 1 016 177 Burroughs, Edgar Rice Tarzan of the Apes 1914
L-093 R-094 2 015 178 Lewis, Sinclair Babbit 1922
K-086 1 015 179 McCullough, Colleen Thorn Birds, The 1977
M-087 1 014 180 Bennett, Arnold Old Wives' Tale, The 1908
K-088 1 013 181 Carr, Caleb Alienist, The 1994
M-090 R-100 2 012 182 Rushdie, Salman Midnight's Children 1981
K-089 1 012 183 Berg, Elizabeth Talk Before Sleep 1994
M-089 1 012 184 Green, Henry Loving 1945
L-090 1 011 185 Guest, Judith Ordinary People 1976
K-090 1 011 186 Pilcher, Rosamunde Shell Seekers, The 1987
K-091 1 010 187 Brown, Rita Mae Rubyfruit Jungle 1973
M-091 1 010 188 Caldwell, Erskine Tobacco Road 1932
R-091 1 010 189 Fitzgerald, F. Scott This Side of Paradise 1920
L-113 M-092 2 009 190 Kennedy, William Ironweed 1983
K-093 1 008 191 Conroy, Pat Prince of Tides, The 1986
R-093 1 008 192 Fowles, John French Lieutenant's Woman, The 1969
M-093 1 008 193 Fowles, John Magus, The 1966
M-095 1 006 194 Murdoch, Iris Under the Net 1954
R-096 1 005 195 Fitzgerald, F. Scott Beautiful and Damned, The 1922
L-096 1 005 196 Price, Reynolds Kate Vaiden 1986
M-097 1 004 197 Bowles, Paul Sheltering Sky, The 1949
M-098 1 003 198 Cain, James M. Postman Always Rings Twice, The 1934
K-098 1 003 199 de Bernieres, Louis Corelli's Mandolin 1994
R-098 1 003 200 Forster, E. M. Where Angels Fear to Tread 1905
L-099 1 002 201 Agee, James Death in the Family, A 1957
M-099 1 002 202 Donleavy, J. P. Ginger Man, The 1955
K-099 1 002 203 Michener, James A. Hawaii 1959
M-100 1 001 204 Tarkington, Booth Magnificent Ambersons, The 1918
L-100 1 001 205 White, T. H. Once and Future King, The 1953
L-104 1 206 Galsworthy, John Forsyte Saga, The 1922
L-105 1 207 Chandler, Raymond Big Sleep, The 1939
L-112 1 208 Trumbo, Dalton Johnny Got His Gun 1939
L-114 1 209 Oates, Joyce Carol Them 1969
L-120 1 210 Tyler, Anne Breathing Lessons 1988
L-121 1 211 Blume, Judy Are You There God, It's Me Margaret 1970
L-122 1 212 Tyler, Anne Accidental Tourist, The 1985
L-125 1 213 O'Connor, Flannery Wise Blood 1952
L-134 1 214 Rawlings, Marjorie Kinnan Yearling, The 1938
L-135 1 215 Wouk, Herman Winds of War, The 1971
L-137 1 216 Maugham, W. Somerset Razor's Edge, The 1944
L-139 1 217 Steinbeck, John Pearl, The 1947
L-144 1 218 Welty, Eudora Curtain of Green, A 1941
L-145 1 219 Greene, Graham End of the Affair, The 1951
L-147 1 220 Wouk, Herman Caine Mutiny, The 1951
L-149 1 221 Stone, Irving Agony and the Ecstasy, The 1961

1st web edition posted 2/26/99 (last updated 5/25/04).
2nd web edition posted 6/24/05 (last updated 12/4/13).
Please report any errors to the compiler.
Published by Fleabonnet Press.
The source list data is public domain.
Additional material © 1999-2013 by Brian Kunde.