The Novel 100: A Ranking of the Greatest Novels of All Time

Burt, Daniel S.

ISBN 10: 0816078599 / ISBN 13: 9780816078592

Published by Facts on File, 2010

May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less. Seller Inventory # G0816078599I4N00

Synopsis:

Praise for the previous edition:
"...provides interesting introductions to these great works..."—American Reference Books Annual 

"Fiction lovers...will be delighted...provoke[s] debate over literary values and encourage[s] deep reading of literature...Highly recommended..."—Library Journal

Which novels are truly great, and why? The Novel 100, Revised Edition is a unique reference that profiles great novels drawn from all cultures and periods of literature. Each entry provides a plot summary and assessment of a particular novel, with an emphasis on facts about the novel's creation, critical reception, and contribution to literary history.

For this revised edition, Daniel S. Burt has reevaluated the original list and added entries on 25 additional novels, including Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, Jane Austen's Persuasion, Charles Dickens's David Copperfield, Philip Roth's American Pastoral, and Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children. Featuring an index and a helpful bibliography, The Novel 100, Revised Edition is sure to engage readers in a spirited discussion of literary values.

Among the works selected are:

• Don Quixote (Miguel de Cervantes)
• The Dream of the Red Chamber (Cao Xuequin)
• The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald)
• In Search of Lost Time (Marcel Proust)
• Invisible Man (Ralph Ellison)
• One Hundred Years of Solitude (Gabriel García Márquez)
• Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)
• The Scarlet Letter (Nathaniel Hawthorne)
• The Stranger (Albert Camus)
• Their Eyes Were Watching God (Zora Neale Hurston)
• Things Fall Apart (Chinua Achebe)
• Ulysses (James Joyce)
• War and Peace (Leo Tolstoy)
• Wuthering Heights (Emily Brontë).

Reviews: Burt’s revised edition adds 25 books to his ranking of the greatest novels (making it in reality The Novel 125) while reevaluating those from his original (2004) work. Among the additions are Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, Jane Austen’s Persuasion, Charles Dickens’ David Copperfield, and Philip Roth’s American Pastoral. The selections are arranged in order of a subjective ranking, with Don Quixote being number one. Each entry begins with a quote about the novel by another figure in the literary world, followed by roughly four to six pages of analysis of the work’s content, creation, reception, and importance. Burt also includes a list of the novels by year of publication and an alphabetical list by author of “A Second Hundred (Honorable Mentions).” This reference is a unique approach to the study of the novel and a worthwhile supplementary resource for high-school, public, and undergraduate libraries. Also available as an e-book. --Carol Sue Harless

Bibliographic Details

Title: The Novel 100: A Ranking of the Greatest ...
Publisher: Facts on File
Publication Date: 2010
Binding: Hardcover
Condition: Very Good
Dust Jacket Condition: No Jacket