The 10 Best Books Through Time

Recently the New York Times published their top 10 books of 2020 and also listed their best books since 2004. I look through the list to see what's stood the test of time. Click ‘Show More’ for info & links.
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The New York Times best book lists 2004-2020: www.nytimes.com/article/top-b...
Their Best Fiction of 2020 & purchase links:
A Children's Bible by Lydia Millet
tidd.ly/2J19nAc
Deacon King Kong by James McBride
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Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell
tidd.ly/33tktoy
Homeland Elegies by Ayad Akhtar
tidd.ly/37pOlV3
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
tidd.ly/3ljfOvv
Authors Pick the Best Books of 2020:
• Authors Pick The Best ...
The Best Books of 2020 (according to the Guardian):
• The Best Books of 2020...
The 100 Must-Read Books of 2020 (according to Time Magazine):
• The 100 Must-Read Book...
The Best 10 Books of 2020 (according to Publisher's Weekly):
• The Best 10 Books of 2...
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[@BookwormAdventureGirl]

Great video. So many good reminders of books I still haven't gotten to plus several that I loved.

[@44Victoria4]

I love this video format! So interesting to go back in time and re-visit or discover some of these books! I only recently got into watching/following booktube and book-blogging so I haven't heard of some of these books!

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Thanks! 📚

[@cherylynlarking191]

a good recap of past selected novels and it was good to see some I have not read yet. Among my favourites were The light we cannot see and The Underground Railway both which have stuck with me for years..

[@smw7791]

I saw War & Turpentine pop up and was looking forward to hearing you say something about it and had to laugh when your face went quizzical 😅 -- Hertmans is Flemish, and I've been learning Dutch this past year and just read his latest novel, published this year, The Ascent, or the Rise, or the Entrance (I'm not sure how I would translate it, haven't gotten those skills yet). I haven't read War & Turpentine but i think it's a similar book, definitely reads more as non-fiction. A lot of memory work. A bit Sebaldian maybe? I haven't read Sebald in a while though. Honestly I'm not sure if it's your cup of tea, but I enjoyed seeing a Flemish author briefly in the spotlight of your vlog !

[@Ruth_vak]

What a great idea to go through the lists of past winners to reflect. I am fascinated. I also own some of the older books and this video is perfect to revisit them. I also wanted to ask how do you hear about all the literary events that you are mentioning? I am living in London too and would love to explore more events like these (online but even better offline if Corona permits). Thank you 😊

[@jessicalowe4845]

New subscriber and currently watching all your other videos. Going back to NYT's top 10 books was such an interesting concept for a video...thank you for sharing!

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Thanks! 📚

[@dr.laurafreshman3498]

2020 -Hands down...Hamnet....and had to then watch every filmed version of Hamlet to round out its magnificent impact. This year is entitled to a Hamnet, its reveries on grief unbidden apt an homage to 2020. Love your channel!

[@maureencalder9911]

Great summary video, definitely up to your usual high standard. Wishing you a very happy 'silly season' - happy reading.

[@EricKarlAnderson]

😊📚

[@hwelf11]

I read "War and Turpentine" by Stefan Hertmans ( 2016) and greatly enjoyed it. Hertmans is a Belgian writer and historian; this book is based on the diaries of his grandfather, a veteran of WWI. It's a war memoir, a love story, a cultural meditation on art, and more. I would also enthusiastically recommend Hertman's The Convert (2020), one of the finest historical novels I've read in recent years. It's an imaginative reconstruction of the quest of a courageous young 11th century Catholic woman who has been estranged from her noble family after marrying a poor young Jewish scholar. It depicts her quest to to find her children, abducted by mercenaries on their way to join the First Crusade, after murdering her husband.

[@readysetpooja7376]

This reminded me of all the books I've been meaning to get around to, just like you! Great video as always :)

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Thanks! 📚

[@anaisabelnietosaez3662]

A very good job, congratulations!!!

[@andrewrussell2845]

Can I just say, I've found your videos an absolute saviour in these challenging times. On the downside, I'm currently reading Ducks Newburyport and I'm finding it all a bit unengaging (although external factors may also be playing their part)

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Thank you! And I'm sorry you've not been able to get into Ducks but I totally understand how it might not work for you or it just might not be the right time to read it.

[@arwamais]

Wow, that was a ride through time! Thank you for such a comprehensive review! I am also more familiar with the titles in the last few years since I started paying attention to literary fiction only recently! I find in literary fiction most of the books that sticks with me!

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Yes, I also finds it had a longer impact than a lot of genre fiction.

[@SM-vr8dz]

Oooh! North Water sounds great. I’m always looking for stories set on ships. I just find the claustrophobic intensity of a ship so compelling.

[@EricKarlAnderson]

I was completely gripped by it. But, be warned, it is VERY violent.

[@judybrown1624]

Disappearing Earth-I really liked it. Think "Reservoir 13" with closure.

[@Kat-iv1pv]

hot take: so far, i've preferred reading books published in the 2010's than the 2000's. i know, i know: why the arbituary periodisation but the last decade had more zing and oomph in its novels, idk, maybe that random personal notion will change in the future as i keep on reading and my tastes evolve but in the end, does it really matter? as long as that book keeps you reading and engaged, that's something. ANYWAY i'm rambling and going on a tangent. thanks for the video, eric!

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Yeah, it's interesting how we can see a period of writing as being more effective or not once time goes on. 📚

[@justinreader2804]

I just finished A Children's Bible and I loved it, can't wait to hear your thoughts. It's mix of dread and allegory with the child narrator is, I thought at least, perfection.

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Sounds great!

[@leeannaspellman504]

I LOVED The Great Believers. I read it because someone compared it to A Little Life, which was all I needed to hear. Hope you get around to it soon! 😜

[@EricKarlAnderson]

👍📚

[@Emmareads15]

I read The Great Believers this year. One of my favourites of the year, a book and it's characters which has stayed with me, I fell in love with Yale.

[@EricKarlAnderson]

👍

[@jacquelinemcmenamin8204]

Disappearing Earth has been on my kindle TBR for over a year. You didn’t miss much not reading The Topeka School. It went over my head and left me feeling nothing. Get backlist TBR books on audio to get them read. The Door , I read via audio last year. An unforgettable story. Snow by Orhan Pamuk is sitting unread on my shelf for years. 🦋📚🤩🎄👋☘️☕️😷📖

[@EricKarlAnderson]

👍📚

[@LouiseReader]

A Visit from the Goon Squad was amazing. Interesting structure particularly.

[@EricKarlAnderson]

👍

[@josmith5992]

I’d read more of these than I thought but none from the last few years. The Master would be my favorite of the lot and I’m planning on rereading it this year alongside some more of James’ s novels. I think that refrain “I’ve been meaning to read this” is a pretty universal one where a lot of these lists are concerned Eric 😉

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Oh that's a great plan for rereading The Master! 📚

[@lulu93228]

Loved Pachinko … Highly recommend you bump up your TBR 😊. Also Kate Atkinson hasn’t let me down yet 👍🏻. One of my favourite authors

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Thanks! 📚

[@judybrown1624]

I dnf'd Hologram for the King. Didn't love The Circle. His best was his first. A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius.

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Yes, I'd always meant to read that.

[@knitty781]

Deacon King Kong is an AMAZING book. Not at all what I expected.

[@judybrown1624]

If you loved A God in Ruins, you'll really love Life After Life.

[@EricKarlAnderson]

I'm sure I will!

[@justjuanreader]

Swamplandia is truly unique!!! A novel that still haunts me.

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Ah good! It certainly sounds really compelling.

[@clarissas5651]

I love the NYT book review but I’m noticing that their yearly best books lists tend to be quite safe. I guess they want to choose books that have wide appeal. Some of their choices are great but others are disappointing 🤷‍♀️

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Yeah, I'd like to see more variety or books that haven't been talked about as much but that's why I look forward to everyone's personal lists on booktube as well.

[@sampower1735]

Would add the overstory

[@EricKarlAnderson]

👍

[@wallingfordlibrary7280]

This is such a great retrospective! In hindsight, some of the years' selections stood the test of time much more than others, at least in my very subjective opinion.

[@nicholasleonard9770]

You should read my gothic romance novel '40,000 Words'. It follows Adelaide Parabellum as the arrival of poems from beyond the grave causes her to recollect how she had met a stranger at a pond eight years prior. '40,000 Words' can be found by searching '40,000 Words Nicholas Leonard' on Amazon

[@jorgem71962]

I DNF "A Children's Bible" could not get into it. I found it slow and boring. "The Vanishing Half" is an amazing novel. I loved it. It was interesting to read shortly after, I read Nella Larson's "Passing." "The Great Believers" is amazing. Rebecca Makkai spoke at my local library it was wonderful. Read "Pachinko" great family saga, one of the best that I have read. 2666 is an exercise in endurance, but so worth it.

[@user-lt3ru8ob8y]

interesting that the cover of Denis's tree of smoke looks much the same as Akhtar's homeland elegies

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Yes, that is funny!

[@joniheisenberg6691]

I thought “The Vanishing Half “ was TERRIBLE. I found the writing very amateurish. I kept imagining how this could have been a great novel if it had been in the hands of a much more skilled author. I found myself thinking how Toni Morrison would have taken the topic and woven the relationships of the main characters. Very surprised you loved it. I think the concept of the novel was strong but the writing was embarrassingly poor. So many cliches.

[@Emmareads15]

Have you read Passing by Nela Larsen? I've read that and loved it, and many say it's a poor man's Passing, so I think I'll skip A Vanishing Half.

[@joniheisenberg6691]

@@Emmareads15 No I have not. Thank you for the recommendation I will check it out !

[@judybrown1624]

A Manual for Cleaning Women- stories very similar. I wish I'd spread it out over a longer time. I also didn't care for Outline.

[@farhampton36]

asymmetry is incredible, i think you would really like it

[@Sherlika_Gregori]

I could not read this one. I found hard to read.

[@EricKarlAnderson]

It definitely sounds like a "me" book! 📚

[@judybrown1624]

I loved A Visit from the Goon Squad. Much different and better than Manhattan Beach.

[@sachinpathare1396]

Hi Eric..just read THE OFFING...n no words to describe the experience...don’t know that it was your recommendation for sure...but check it out please..beautiful book

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Oh great! Yes, I loved that novel and wrote about it on my blog here: lonesomereader.com/blog/2019/10/10/the-offing-by-benjamin-myers

[@sachinpathare1396]

@@EricKarlAnderson indeed....thank you

[@sandra7319.]

I thought this was Your ten best books ever...title confusing?

[@judybrown1624]

I don't remember feeling Yellow Birds was pretentious, but was 3* and don't remember anything about it.

[@hohoho4571]

You should make your own list for a video :)

[@EricKarlAnderson]

It's coming! 😄📚

[@jobuckley2999]

Ted Chiang has some very interesting almost technical short stories but they never have gripping or interesting characters. Rather emotionless. I think it is because he has a technical background.

[@judybrown1624]

NW is my favorite Zadie Smith. 11/23/63 is so-so, but I'm not a fan. I loved The Art of Fielding.

[@doc837]

Snow is one of my very favorite novels. You should read it.

[@beccascraps8141]

i like the UK covers better too!!!!

[@EricKarlAnderson]

👍📚

[@josephinewinter]

outline was brilliantly written and bits, swept into a heap of mess

[@judybrown1624]

War And Turpentine-I dnf'd pretty quickly. Reads more like nonfiction. Did not grab me.

[@judybrown1624]

I dnf'd The Flamethrowers AND The Mars Room! I made it further in the latter.

[@Sherlika_Gregori]

I dnf’d Asymmetry. Perhaps the female character in the first part annoyed me as having low self-esteem. It was painful to read.

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Ah interesting! I wonder if I'll have the same reaction.