The top 20 novels of the millennium (so far): Critics vs. Hoi Polloi

October 12, 3:45 AMBook ExaminerMichelle Kerns

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The venerable book blog, The Millions, conducted an interesting little survey last month. They asked their regular contributors and a flock of nifty writers, editors, and critics (55 in all) to answer this question: "What are the best books of fiction of the millennium, so far?"

They conducted the same poll on their Facebook page, this time asking the question of their humble readers.

The resulting top 20 lists from both Chosen Ones and Hoi Polloi are worth a gander.

The Top 20 Novels of the Millennium (so far) according to the Critics:

1. The Corrections - Jonathan Franzen

2. The Known World - Edward P. Jones

3. Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell

4. 2666 - Robert Bolano

5. Pastoralia - George Saunders

6. The Road - Cormac McCarthy

7. Austerlitz - W.G. Sebald

8. Out Stealing Horses - Per Petterson

9. Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage - Alice Munro

10. Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Ishiguro

11. The Brief, Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao - Junot Diaz

12. Twilight of the Superheroes - Deborah Eisenberg

13. Mortals - Norman Rush

14. Atonement - Ian McEwan

15. Varieties of Disturbance - Lydia Davis

16. Middlesex - Jeffrey Eugenides

17. The Fortress of Solitude - Jonathon Lethem

18. Stranger Things Happen - Kelly Link

19. American Genius, A Comedy - Lynne Tillman

20. Gilead - Marilynne Robinson

The Top 20 Novels of the Millennium (so far) according to Hoi Polloi:

1. The Brief, Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao - Junot Diaz

2. 2666 - Roberto Bolano

3. Middlesex - Jeffrey Eugenides

4. Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell

5. The Road - Cormac McCarthy

6. Atonement - Ian McEwan

7. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay - Michael Chabon

8. The Corrections - Jonathan Franzen

9. Gilead - Marilynne Robinson

10. White Teeth - Zadie Smith

11. Kafka on the Shore - Haruki Murakami

12. The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini

13. Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Ishiguro

14. Austerlitz - W.G. Sebald

15. Empire Falls - Richard Russo

16. Runaway - Alice Munro

17. The Master - Colm Toibin

18. Half of a Yellow Sun - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

19. Unaccustomed Earth - Jhumpa Lahiri

20. Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell - Susanna Clarke

Frankly, I was astounded to see so many similarities between the two lists. Usually, when a site conducts any sort of "Best books of whatever" survey, the differences between the lists of the Chosen Ones and the Proletariat differ to the point that you wonder whether everyone was answering the same question. (Like these 100 best fiction and nonfiction books of all time lists).

I was also pleasantly surprised to see Never Let Me Go, The Road, and Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell (Huzzah! The audiobook of this is outstanding. More on that later this week) making appearances. Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell only made it onto the Hoi Polloi list, but still, that's not too shabby for a Dickens-like fantasy novel featuring freaky men with thistle-down hair.

Every time I see a bookish survey of this sort, the science nerd part of me instantly rears its head and starts firing off questions: How many people participated in the Hoi Polloi part of the survey? Could either Critics or Hoi Polloi see what everyone else was voting for? Were appropriate tomes suggested or was the field left entirely open? How long was the survey up on Facebook? One week? One month?

And, of course, it's important to remember that The Millions isn't the sort of bookish site that someone who passionately adores Twilight is likely to frequent. These are people -- both the writers and the readers -- who take literature very, very seriously. Not that they don't enjoy a bit of Twilight. They'd just only admit such a thing behind closed doors with the blinds drawn and the phone unplugged and after the administration of a large medicinal dose of adult beverage. I'm just saying.

Incidentally, I am currently reading Jonathan Franzen's The Corrections for the first time. Yes, I can hear you lit hoities screaming at me from here: "You mean you've NEVER read The Corrections before?!?!" There are reasons why I've deliberately stalled over this book. And they're probably much the same -- in spirit, anyway -- as the reasons why YOU drag your feet and whine about reading certain books. So get the log out of your eye before you come poking at my lumberyard. Then take a glance at Book avoidance: Overcoming the fear and loathing of a book you don't want to read buy know you should.