Modern Library 100 Best Novels


Modern Library's 100 Best Novels is a 1998 list of the best English-language novels published in the 20th century, as selected by Modern Library from among 400 novels published by Random House, which owns Modern Library. The purpose of the list was to "bring the Modern Library to public attention" and stimulate sales of its books. A separate Modern Library 100 Best Nonfiction list of the 100 best non-fiction books of the 20th century was created the same year.

Editors' list

In early 1998, the Modern Library polled its editorial board to find the best 100 novels. The board consisted of Daniel J. Boorstin, A. S. Byatt, Christopher Cerf, Shelby Foote, Vartan Gregorian, Edmund Morris, John Richardson, Arthur Schlesinger Jr., William Styron and Gore Vidal. All but Gregorian were published by Random House or an affiliate.
Ulysses by James Joyce topped the list, followed by F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby and Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. The most recent novel in the list is William Kennedy's Ironweed, published in 1983; the oldest is The Way of All Flesh by Samuel Butler, which was written between 1873 and 1884, but not published until 1902. Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, serialized in 1899, is the only novel published in the 19th century; it was later republished in book form during 1902. Conrad has four novels on the list, the most of any author. William Faulkner, E. M. Forster, Henry James, James Joyce, D. H. Lawrence, and Evelyn Waugh each have three novels. There are ten other authors with two novels.
Some criticize its focus on North America and Europe. In addition, some contend it was a "sales gimmick", since the titles in the list were sold by Modern Library. Others note that both Modern Library and Random House USA, the parent company, are US companies. Critics have argued that this is responsible for a very American view of the greatest novels. British, Canadian and Australian academics, and even Random House UK, have differing lists of "greatest novels". The list has also been criticized for its emphasis of early 20th century works – 69 of the books were first published before 1951.
The following table shows the top ten novels from the editors' list:
#YearTitleAuthor
11922Ulysses
21925The Great Gatsby
31916A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
41955Lolita
51932Brave New World
61929The Sound and the Fury
71961Catch-22
81940Darkness at Noon
91913Sons and Lovers
101939The Grapes of Wrath