The Modern Library Project

Before the turn of the 21st century, a list of books called the Modern Library Top 100 was published. Critic and scholars identified what they felt were the 100 most important English-language books of the 20th century. For years, I have been intending to tackle this list, and when I was younger I got about 25% of the way through.

However, I was less wise then, and more susceptible to the white patriarchial imposition of what makes a “classic.” I intend to read thee books once again, starting anew, but to view them through the lens of our 21st Century morality. How do these books engage with race, or gender? Do they hold up over time?

To do this, I plan to work through the list by tens, starting from #100 and moving down to #10, before restarting at #99, etc. When a book is part of a series, I will, to reasonable extent, read the series to frame its context. I’ll write a short report on each book, covering my thoughts within this critical lens. These reviews won’t be comprehenive, but I will try to capture the essential elements of the novels. I do not intend to cover every aspect of race, or gender, or immigration, or any other axis. My goal is to try to contextualize contemporary media of the 21st Century with its most familiar kin. Many of these novels are problematic. I’ll talk about that. And, while trying to avoid a bias towards discarding these modern classics out of a default cynicism, I’ll try to evaluate whether these stories do in fact withstand the test of time.

100-91

  1. The Magnificent Ambersons by Booth Tarkington

90-81

  1. Midnight’s Children by Salman Rushdie

80-71

  1. Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh

70-61

  1. The Alexandria Quartet by Lawrence Durrell

60-51

  1. The Moviegoer by Walker Percy

50-41

  1. Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller

40-31

  1. The Heart of the Matter by Graham Greene

30-21

  1. The Good Soldier by Ford Madox ford

20-11

  1. Native Son by Richard Wright

10-1

  1. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

Posted: 28.12.2018

Built: 19.03.2024

Updated: 13.10.2023

Hash: b8cf881

Words: 341

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes