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Ancient | Medieval & Renaissance | 18th & 19th century | 20th century | 21st century

Twenty-First Century Literature (2001 CE to present)
2001
Year of Wonders
Geraldine Brooks
Australia
novel
 
The Beauty of the Husband
Anne Carson
Canada
poetry collection
 
Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage
Alice Munro
Canada
story collection
including Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage; The Bear Came Over the Mountain; and others
 
The Half-Brother
Las Saabye Christenson
Denmark
novel
 
American Gods
Neil Gaiman
England
novel
 
The Other Boleyn Girl
Philippa Gregory
England
novel
 
Ian McEwan
England
novel
Critique   • Quotes   • Buy the book
 
Platform
Michel Houellbecq
France
novel
 
Austerlitz
W.G. Sebald
Germany
novel
 
Artemis Fowle
Eoin Coifer
Ireland
novel
 
I'm Not Scared
Niccolò Ammaniti
Ireland
novel
 
Soldiers of Salammis
Javier Cercas
Spain
novel
 
The Corrections
Jonathan Franzen
United States
novel
 
Topdog/Underdog
Suzan-Lori Parks
United States
play
 
Bel Canto
Ann Patchett
United States
novel
 
The Bonesetter's Daughtert
Amy Tan
United States
novel
2002
The Polished Hoe
Austin Clarke
Canada
novel
 
Life of Pi
Yann Martel
Canada
novel
 
Unless
Carol Shields
Canada
novel
 
City of the Beasts
Isabel Allende
Chile
novel
 
Coraline
Neil Gaiman
England
novella
 
Dart
Alice Oswald
England
poetry collection
 
The Story of Lucy Gault
Ireland
novel
 
The Bookseller of Kabul
Åsne Seierstad
Norway
novel
 
Snow
Orhan Pamuk
Turkey
novel
 
Stories of Your Life and Others
Ted Chiang
United States
story collection
 
Middlesex
Jeffrey Eugenides
United States
novel
 
Eragon
Christopher Paolini
United States
novel
 
The Lovely Bones
Alice Sebold
United States
novel
 
The Twentieth Wife
Indu Sundraresan
United States
novel
 
Fingersmith
Sarah Waters
Wales
novel
2003
The Great Fire
Shirley Hazzard
Australia
novel
 
Oryx and Crake
Margaret Atwood
Canada
novel
 
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Mark Haddon
England
novel
 
Reading Lolita in Tehran
Azar Nafisi
Iran
memoir
 
The Housekeeper and the Professor
Yoko Ogawa
Japan
novel
 
Elizabeth Costello
J.M. Coetzee
South Africa
novel
 
The Da Vinci Code
Dan Brown
United States
novel
 
Paladin of Souls
Lois McMaster Bujold
United States
novel
 
The Kite Runner
Khaled Hosseini
United States
novel
 
The Known World
Edward P. Jones
United States
novel
 
The Namesake
Jhumpa Lahiri
United States
novel
 
The Time Traveller's Wife
Audrey Niffenegger
United States
novel
 
Drinking Coffee Elsewhere
ZZ Packer
United States
story collection
 
Vernon God Little
DBC Pierre
United States
novel
2003–2004
The Baroque Cycle
Neal Stephenson
United States
novel series
three volumes including Quicksilver, The Confusion, The System of the World
2003–2013
Emperor
Conn Iggulden
England
novel series
2004
Fruit
Brian Francis
Canada
novel
 
Runaway
Alice Munro
Canada
story collection
 
A Complicated Kindness
Miriam Toews
Canada
novel
 
2666
Roberto Bolaño
Chile
novel
 
Wolf Totem
Jiang Rong
China
novel
 
The History Boys
Alan Bennett
England
play
 
Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell
Susanna Clarke
England
novel
 
Stuff Happens
David Hare
England
play
 
The Line of Beauty
Alan Hollinghurst
England
novel
 
Small Island
Andrea Levy
England
novel
 
Cloud Atlas
David Mitchell
England
novel
 
Suite Francaise
Irène Némirovsky
France
novel series
 
The Swarm
Frank Schätzing
Germany
novel
 
P.S. I Love You
Cecilia Ahearn
Ireland
novel
 
The Master
Colm Tóibín
Ireland
novel
 
New and Collected Poems
Czesław Miłosz
Poland
poetry collection
 
The Book about Blanche and Marie
Per Olov Enquist
Sweden
novel
 
Gilead
Marilynne Robinson
United States
novel
 
The Plot Against America
Philip Roth
United States
novel
 
The News From Paraguay
Lily Tuck
United States
novel
2005
March
Geraldine Brooks
Australia
novel
 
The Book Thief
Markus Zusak
Australia
novel
 
The Time in Between
David Bergen
Canada
novel
 
Three Day Road
Joseph Boyden
Canada
novel
 
Still Life
Louise Penny
Canada
novel
 
Spin
Robert Charles Wilson
Canada
novel
 
Rapture
Carol Ann Duffy
England
poetry collection
 
Never Let Me Go
Kazuo Ishiguro
England
novel
 
On Beauty
Zadie Smith
England
novel
 
Measuring the World
Daniel Kehlmann
Germany
novel
 
The Sea
John Banville
Ireland
novel
 
A Long Long Way
Sebastian Barry
Ireland
novel
 
The Year of Magical Thinking
Joan Didion
United States
memoir
 
The Historian
Elizabeth Kostova
United States
novel
 
The History of Love
Nicole Krauss
United States
novel
 
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan
Lisa See
United States
novel
2005–2007
Stieg Larsson
Sweden
novel series
including The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest
Critique   • Quotes   • Buy the book
2005–2008
The Twilight Saga
Stephenie Mayer
United States
novel series
including Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, Breaking Dawn
2006
Lullabies for Little Criminals
Heather O'Neill
Canada
novel
 
Inés of My Soul
Isabel Allende
Chile
novel
 
Mother's Milk
Edward St. Aubyn
England
novel
 
The Elegance of the Hedgehog
Muriel Barbery
France
novel
 
The Inheritance of Loss
Kiran Desai
India
novel
 
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas
John Boyne
Ireland
novel
 
Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman
Haruki Murakami
Japan
story collection
 
Half of a Yellow Sun
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Nigeria
novel
 
What Is the What
Dave Eggers
United States
memoir
 
The Road
Cormac McCarthy
United States
novel
 
The Night Watch
Sarah Waters
Wales
novel
2006—2008
Mistborn: Era One
Branden Sanderson
United States
novel series
2007
Late Nights on Air
Elizabeth Hay
Canada
novel
 
The Book of Negroes
Lawrence Hill
Canada
novel
 
The Birth House
Ami McKay
Canada
novel
 
The Shack
William P. Young
Canada
novel
 
The Uncommon Reader
Alan Bennett
England
novella
 
The Tales of Beedle the Bard
J.K. Rowling
England
story collection
 
The Blind Side of the Heart
Julia Franck
Germany
novel
 
Dara Shikoh
Danish Iqbal
India
play
 
The Gathering
Anne Enright
Ireland
novel
 
In the Woods
Tana French
Ireland
novel
 
The Vegetarian
Han Kang
Korea
novel
 
Flights
Olga Tokarczuk
Poland
novel
 
Long Way Gone
Ishmael Beah
Sierra Leone
Memoor
 
The Yiddish Policeman's Union
Michael Chabon
United States
novel
 
The Great Man
Kate Christenson
United States
novel
 
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
Junot Díaz
United States
novel
 
A Thousand Splendid Suns
Khaled Hosseini
United States
novel
 
Last Night at the Lobster
Stewart O'Nan
United States
novella
 
The Name of the Wind
Patrick Rothfuss
United States
novel
2007–2011
Conqueror
Conn Iggulden
England
novel series
2007–2017
The Adventures of Hector Lynch
Tim Severin
England
novel series
2008
The Graveyard Book
Neil Gaiman
England
novel
 
The Suspicions of Mr Whicher
Kate Summerscale
England
nonfiction novel
 
The White Tiger
Aravind Adiga
India
novel
 
The Secret Scripture
Sebastian Barry
Irelanbd
novel
 
The Hunger Games
Suzanne Collins
United States
novel
 
Unaccustomed Earth
Jhumpa Lahiri
United States
story collection
2008–2010
Rembrance of Earth's Past
Liu Cixin
China
novel series
including The Three-Body Problem, The Dark Forest, Death's End
2009
Come Thou Tortoise
Jessica Grant
Canada
novel
 
The Bishop's Man
Linden MacIntyre
Canada
novel
 
February
Lisa Moore
Canada
novel
 
Ru
Kim Thúy
Canada
novel
 
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon
Grace Lin
China
novel
 
Jerusalem
Jez Butterworth
England
play
 
Wolf Hall
Hilary Mantel
England
novel
 
The City & The City
China Miéville
England
novel
 
Brooklyn
Colm Tóibín
Ireland
novel
 
Signs Preceding the End of the World
Yuri Herrera
Mexico
novel
 
The Thing Around Your Neck
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Nigeria
story collection
 
A Death in the Family
Karl Ove Knausgaard
Norway
novel
 
Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead
Olga Tokarczuk
Poland
novel
 
Cain
José Saramago
Portugal
novel
 
The Windup Girl
Paolo Bacigalupi
United States
novel
 
The Magicians
Lev Grossman
United States
novel
 
Let the Great World Spin
Colum McCann
United States
novel
 
Shanghai Girls
Lisa See
United States
novel
2009–2010
IQ84
Haruki Murakami
England
novel
2010
Room
Emma Donoghue
Canada
novel
 
Annabel
Kathleen Winter
Canada
novel
 
Faithful Place
Tana French
Ireland
novel
 
Voroshylovhrad
Serhiy Zhadan
Ukraine
novel
 
A Visit From the Goon Squad
Jennifer Egan
United States
novel
 
Freedom
Jonathan Franzen
United States
novel
2010–present
The Stormlight Archive
Brandon Sanderson
United States
novel series
including The Way of Kings, Words of Radiance, Oathbringer, Rhythm of War
2011
The Antagonist
Lynn Coady
Canada
novel
 
The Sisters Brothers
Patrick DeWitt
Canada
novel
 
Half-Blood Blues
Esi Edugyan
Canada
novel
 
The Cat's Table
Michael Ondaatje
Canada
novel
 
Among Others
Jo Walton
Canada
novel
 
The Sense of an Ending
Julian Barnes
England
novella
 
Family Values
Wendy Cope
England
story collection
 
City of Bohane
Kevin Barry
Ireland
novel
 
My Brilliant Friend
Elena Farrante
Italy
novel
 
Infatuations
Javier Marías
Spain
novel
 
The Marriage Plot
Jeffrey Eugenides
United States
novel
 
Wateer by the Spoonful
Quiara Alegría Hudes
United States
play
 
The Sojourn
Andrew Kfrivak
United States
novella
 
The Buddha in the Attic
Julie Otsuka
United States
novel
 
The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making
Catherynne M. Valente
United States
novel
 
Salvage the Bones
Jesmyn Ward
United States
novel
2012
419
Will Ferguson
Canada
novel
 
Indian Horse
Richard Wagamese
Canada
novel
 
Arthur & George
Julian Barnes
England
novel
 
Bring Up the Bodies
Hilary Mantel
England
novel
 
Gone Girl
Gillian Flynn
United States
novel
 
Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk
Ben Fountain
United States
novel
 
The Fault in Our Stars
John Green
United States
novel
 
The Twelve Rooms of the Nile
Enid Shomer
United States
novel
2013
The Narrow Road to the North
Ric hard Flanagann
Australia
novel
 
The Orendah
Joseph Boyden
Canada
novel
 
Bone and Bread
Saleema Nawaz
Canada
novel
 
The Story of a New Name
Elena Farrante
Italy
novel
 
The Luminaries
Eleanor Catton
New Zealand
novel
 
Americanah
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Nigeria
novel
 
Crazy Rich Asians
Kevin Kwan
United States
novel
 
Ancillary Justice
Ann Leckie
United States
novel
 
Tenth of December
George Saunders
United States
story collection
2014
Outline
Rachel Cusk
England
novel
 
Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay
Elena Farrante
Italy
novel
 
A Brief History of Seven Killings
Marlon James
Jamaica
novel
 
The Books of Jacob
Olga Tokarczuk
Poland
novel
 
All the Light We Cannot See
Anthony Doerr
United States
novel
 
Mr. Mercedes
Stephen King
United States
novel
 
Family Life
Akhil Sharma
United States
novel
2015
The Girl on the Train
Paula Hawkins
England
novel
 
Ghachar Ghochar
Vivek Shanbhag
India
novella
 
Zuleikha Opens Her Eyes
Guzel Yakhina
Russia
novel
 
John
Annie Baker
United States
play
 
The Sellout
Paul Beatty
United States
novel
 
The Humans
Stephen Karam
United States
play
 
The Sympathizer
Viet Thanh Nguyen
United States
play
 
A Little Life
Hanya Yanagihara
United States
novel
2015–2016
Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation
Mo Xiang Tong Xiu
China
novel
2015–2017
Broken Earth Trilogy
N.K. Jemisin
United States
novel series
including The Fifth Season, The Obelisk Gate, The Stone Sky
2015–2018
Sands of the Emperor
Mia Couto
Mozambique
novel series
including Woman of the Ashes, The Sword and the Spear, The Drinker of Horizons
 
Binti trilogy
Nnedi Okorafor
United States
novel series
including Binti; Binti: Home; Binti: The Night Masquerade
2016
Days Without End
Sebastian Barry
Ireland
novel
 
Homegoing
Yaa Gyasi
United States
novel
 
The Underground Railroad
Colson Whitehead
United States
novel
2017
Bellevue Square
Michael Redhill
Canada
novel
 
The Heart's Invisible Furies
John Boyne
Ireland
novel
 
Conversations With Friends
Sally Rooney
Ireland
novel
 
The Changeling
Victor LaValle
United States
novel
 
Pachinko
Min Jin Lee
United States
novel
 
Her Body and Other Parties
Carmen Maria Machado
United States
story collection
 
Lincoln in the Bardo
George Saunders
United States
novel
 
Sing, Unburied, Sing
Jesmyn Ward
United States
novel
 
All Systems Red
Martha Wells
United States
novella
2018
Too Much Lip
Melissa Lucashenko
Australia
novel
 
Normal People
Sally Rooney
Ireland
novel
 
Milkman
Anna Burns
Northern Ireland
novel
 
Children of Blood and Bone
Tomi Adeyemi
United States
novel
 
The Calculating Stars
Mary Robinette Kowal
United States
novel
 
Circe
Madeline Miller
United States
novel
2019
This Is How You Lose the Time War
Amal El-Mohtar, Max Gladstone
Canada, United States
novella
 
Girl, Woman, Other
Bernardine Evarista
England
novel

 

Ancient | Medieval & Renaissance | 18th & 19th century | 20th century | 21st century