The Greatest Female Authors

The Greatest Female Authors

Women make up almost 20% (59) of the authors on my updated Greatest Books list. To be honest, I’m impressed that the number is that high given the historical, financial, familial, and cultural obstacles that women face. Still, 20% pales in comparison to the fact that women constitute half of the population, both domestically and globally.

So I wanted to spend some time with the female segment of the Greatest Books list and see what I could discern.

First, here’s the complete list, sorted alphabetically by author last name:

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Was 1934 the greatest year for literature?

Was 1934 the greatest year for literature?

I’ve been working on a “greatest books” list for several years now. I recently reorganized my list and double checked my sources. My version of a “greatest” list comes from Pulitzer and National Book Award winners, Modern Library’s 100 Greatest Novels, and a list of lists from GreatestBooks.org.

Download the Greatest Books list here.

As I added more details, I started to wonder if there were trends in these data points.

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A new Greatest Books list

A new Greatest Books list

More than 6 years ago, I started reading fiction quite earnestly. Specifically, I pulled together several “greatest books” lists and began working my way through them.

However, I kept track of this effort on paper and didn’t collate my lists too well. I’ve resolved the issue, though, and am happy to start working with a refreshed “greatest book” list of my own.

Download the Greatest Books list here.

I pulled together four distinct lists of books to make this happen, including:

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