A Century of Excellent Books

Die Lesende – Lovis Corinth I am nothing if not suggestible. Earlier this week Simon shared his Century of Brilliant Books in which he recommends a book for every year of the 20th Century. Having done a Century of Books alongside Simon before (twice! in 2012 and 2024) I already had form for making excessively long lists at his prompting. And lists are so fun! I’m not the only one who thinks so: Gareth has also created his own list. I selected the books (and plays) I would most strongly recommend for each year. Sometimes that means they are my absolute favourite for the year but other times, for a bit of variety (and so I don’t duplicate favourite authors endlessly), they are books that left a strong impression on me and which deserve to be read more widely. Voila! 1900 – Claudine at School by Colette 1901 – The Benefactress by Elizabeth von Arnim 1902 – Glengarry School Days by Ralph Connor 1903 – Brewster’s Millions by George Barr McCutcheon 1904 – The Canon in Residence by Victor L.…