Recs if you like The Sellout...

You loved Patrick Bateman. You wanted to be Jay Gatsby. You know all the rules about Fight Club. Well, do I have the list for you! Um, actually... is a list of books where the whole point went over people's heads. These novels handed readers a mirror and they wore it as a name badge instead. Always taking recommendations! (p.s. I am begging you to watch Um, Actually on Dropout TV... um, actually please watch anything/everything on Dropout TV)

Fiction has always been where truth hides. Across horror, thriller, literary fiction, fantasy & mystery every book on this list has something to say about power, who holds it, who destroys it, and how it reproduces itself.

In order from #1 (My Brilliant Friend) to 100 (Tree of Smoke)

Books for when you’re laughing at life while quietly freaking out about it. Stories full of absurdity, awkwardness, and existential dread, perfect for anyone who’s ever thought, “WTF is even happening?"

I know there are already several lists with a California theme, but I am hoping this acts as a syllabus of sorts for books that deal with the core myth, history, violence, dream, and contradiction of California. Suggestions are welcome!

This list is based on the book by Joan Anim-Addo, Deirdre Osborne, and Kadija Sesay (This is the Canon: Decolonize Your Bookshelves in 50 Books)

As the title suggests, the book aims to broaden readers’ horizons. The list contains works by non-white, mostly female authors.

"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)!

A list published in 2024 by the New York Times, as voted on by 503 novelists, poets, critics, and other book lovers—with a little help from the staff of The New York Times Book Review

according to the New York Times

These are mostly in order by year

The list of the 100 best books of the 21st century from the New York Times

Reddit's R/Truelit user voted best books of 2000-2026. They included a full series as one pick, like the Neopolitan novels. I only include the first to keep it at 100.

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."

books that explore psychology, desire and yearning. But the catch is that these books won't leave you feeling heavy or overloaded with scientific information or being overly philosophical. Fiction.

A goal to read the 100 books rated in the 21st century (so far) as published by the New York times in 2024, list in order from 100-1 but you can find the original list on the NYT website.