Yeah, some of those books look like ones I might have read in school, if I'd taken more literature classes instead of writing workshops. Or if I wasn't more interested in reading other sci/fi fantasy books at the time. I have at least heard of most of them, but several of them I have heard . . . less then complimentary things about. Or they're written by someone whose politics/personality have just ruined their books for me (Orson Scott Card, I'm looking at you) or were recommended by someone whose taste I find questionable (sorry Brave New World, nothing personal, but he put you in the same breath as Atlas Shrugged, and I HATE that book.)
Which I suppose illustrates the point -- these lists are so subject to the tastes/experiences of the voters (or really, not so much the voters as the ones who submit the works to be voted on) And really, when you have 50,000 people submitting their favorite books, objectivity sort of goes out the window. It makes me want to write up my own list -- it would be more of a favorites list than a 'best of' list, since I know very well that some of my favorites are not, objectively, "great" books. And a very high percentage of the books I love are parts of series, so I'd have to be consistent with that.
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Which I suppose illustrates the point -- these lists are so subject to the tastes/experiences of the voters (or really, not so much the voters as the ones who submit the works to be voted on) And really, when you have 50,000 people submitting their favorite books, objectivity sort of goes out the window.
It makes me want to write up my own list -- it would be more of a favorites list than a 'best of' list, since I know very well that some of my favorites are not, objectively, "great" books. And a very high percentage of the books I love are parts of series, so I'd have to be consistent with that.