Recs if you like Portnoy’s Complaint...

Based on the list/book published in 2006, general editor Peter Boxall.

Books with a distinct literary DNA that reflects the chaotic, revolutionary era they were born into and often show a systemic distrust of authority. Whether the enemy is the military (Catch-22), psychiatric institutions (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest), or government surveillance (Vineland)

"Turn me over, I'm done on this side!" —St. Lawrence, whilst roasting on a spit

Gallows humor, black comedy, l'humour noir — whatever you call it, this is the place for it. This list includes André Breton's seminal anthology of dark humor, a number of the works excerpted in this anthology, and beyond. You can find a link to the complete contents of Breton's anthology in the comments.

Want more weird humor? Check out my list Nitpicky Neuroticism (Comedy Edition)!

Time Magazine’s All-Time Best 100 English Language Novels from 1923 to 2005 as published in 2005.

Time Magazine’s compilation of the 100 best novels published since 1923.

(101 because “The Berlin Stories” is an omnibus of “Mr Norris Changes Trains” and “Goodbye To Berlin.”)

Reading list

This is the list from The Atlantic. "In 1868, a little-known writer by the name of John William DeForest proposed a new type of literature, a collective artistic project for a nation just emerging from an existential conflict: a work of fiction that accomplished “the task of painting the American soul.” It would be called the Great American Novel, and no one had written it yet, DeForest admitted. Maybe soon."

Below are the #1 bestselling fictional novels in the United States for each year from 1900 to 1999, based on annual sales data (traditionally compiled by The Bookman and later Publishers Weekly).