10 Greatest Books of the Last 100 Years

The last 100 years have been a wild ride for literature. From the lead-up to World War II and the rise of counterculture to modernization and globalization, the idea of what makes a great book has grown far beyond the borders of any one country. Every culture has its own stories to tell, and some of the most unforgettable ones come from places readers may never have expected.

Even though these books come from different countries and time periods, the emotions and ideas behind them are surprisingly universal. Whether they’re about war, family, identity, or love, they continue to resonate with readers decades later. With that in mind, here are the 10 greatest books of the last 100 years.

1

‘One Hundred Years of Solitude’ (1967)

Image via  Harper Perennial Modern Classics

Now a celebrated Netflix adaptation, One Hundred Years of Solitude is the magical realist masterpiece of Latin American literary icon Gabriel García Márquez. Set in the mythical town of Macondo, the novel follows seven generations of the Buendía family, beginning with founders José Arcadio Buendía and Úrsula Iguarán. Trapped in a cycle of obsession and tragedy, history continuously repeats itself among the Buendías.

As its title suggests, One Hundred Years of Solitude is a story about the cycle of loneliness, with each generation of the Buendía family experiencing it differently as they’re swept up in everything from civil wars to the Banana Massacre. As for the magic itself — inspired by local myths and folklore — the supernatural acts as an external manifestation of their inner turmoil.

2

‘Babel, or the Necessity of Violence’ (2022)

Image via Harper Voyager

Like currency, words hold power. Set in an alternate 1830s Britain, Babel by R.F. Kuang follows Robin Swift, a Canton-born orphan adopted by Oxford professor Richard Lovell and trained as a translator. At Oxford’s Royal Institute of Translation, magical silver bars fuel the British Empire through language. As Robin digs deeper into Babel’s role in colonial oppression, he and his friends are forced to choose sides.

Babel reinforces the idea that language is never neutral. The more languages a nation knows, the more powerful it becomes. The British Empire extracts value from other cultures’ languages the same way it extracts natural resources. With academia complicit in these exchanges, readers are left to reconsider whether these educational institutions are truly progressive or provocative.

3

‘On the Road’ (1957)

Image via Viking Press

A product of the hazy Beat Generation, On the Road by Jack Kerouac portrays another side of postwar America — one that’s outside the idealized white-picket-fence mold. Aspiring writer Sal Paradise’s life changes when he meets the reckless Dean Moriarty. Together, they crisscross the United States and Mexico in search of freedom, jazz, love, and meaning, with no one to tame them.

On the Road is the antithesis to the American Dream. While many revel in the victory of winning the war, the reality is that others are caught up in a sense of uncertainty. On the Road thus becomes an adventure not of looking for answers or self-discovery, but of simply living in the present. However, if not careful, there may be consequences.

4

‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ (1960)

Image via J. B. Lippincott & Co.

One of the most timeless books in American literature, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee transports readers to 1930s Alabama, where racism bleeds through the very soil. Six-year-old Scout Finch and her brother, Jem, are raised by their principled father, Atticus Finch. When Atticus defends Tom Robinson, a Black man falsely accused of rape, Scout witnesses firsthand the prejudice in the place she calls home.

To Kill a Mockingbird brilliantly portrays racism through the perspective of a child. No child is born hateful; their beliefs are shaped by the world around them. As curiosity gives way to understanding, the children realize how unfair society can be. Yet, despite its bleakness, the novel reminds readers that meaningful change begins with the simplest thing: empathy.

5

‘And Tango Makes Three’ (2005)

Image via Image via Simon Schuster Books for Young Readers

Based on a true story, And Tango Makes Three follows Roy and Silo, two male chinstrap penguins at New York City’s Central Park Zoo who form a lifelong bond. When zookeeper Mr. Gramsay gives them an abandoned egg to raise, it hatches into a chick named Tango. Together, the three become a loving family, showing that families can take many different forms.

It’s a simple children’s picture book, yet it became the most frequently challenged book from 2006 to 2010 because of its depiction of same-sex marriage through animals. Its message is equally simple: while not everyone is in a same-sex relationship, some people and families are, and they deserve the same respect and empathy as anyone else.

6

‘The Sympathizer’ (2015)

Image via Grove Press

Set during and after the fall of Saigon in 1975, The Sympathizer follows an unnamed half-Vietnamese, half-French communist spy planted within the South Vietnamese army. After fleeing to Los Angeles with fellow refugees, he secretly reports on exiled military leaders while struggling with divided loyalties. His mission eventually leads him back to Vietnam, where he risks imprisonment and brutal re-education.

Historically, the Vietnam War has typically been viewed through an American lens. The Sympathizer subverts that perspective by showing how complicated the conflict was on a personal level. With the narrator’s many dual identities — whether of race, loyalty, or country — he’s constantly pulled in different directions, making him a shapeshifting chameleon who’s as dangerous to others as he is conflicted within himself.

7

‘Lord of the Flies’ (1954)

Image via Faber and Faber Limited

Lord of the Flies follows a group of British schoolboys stranded on a deserted island after a wartime plane crash. As the elected leader, Ralph struggles to maintain order, while Jack forms a rival tribe obsessed with hunting the imagined “beast.” Fear and savagery consume the boys, leading to shocking deaths on the shore.

Lord of the Flies gets provocative by using children, rather than adults, as the embodiment of savagery. Young boys are arguably more dangerous because, apart from being hormonal, they’re highly impressionable. Their sense of right and wrong often depends on whether they want to be liked or feared by their peers. It sounds immature, but they’re really just mirroring the adult world.

8

‘The Color Purple’ (1982)

Image via Penguin Books

Set in early 1900s rural Georgia, The Color Purple follows Celie, a young Black woman who endures years of abuse at the hands of her stepfather and abusive husband, Mister. Through her bond with blues singer Shug Avery and the long-lost letters from her sister Nettie, Celie uncovers her family’s hidden past and gradually finds her voice.

For all of The Color Purple‘s graphic depictions of violence, its true power lies in Celie’s journey from a silenced girl to a confident woman. With the support of Shug, Nettie, and Sofia, she learns to reclaim her life. Through their stories, Alice Walker confronts racism, sexism, and trauma while showing that healing can be found even in the darkest moments.

9

‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ (1986)

Image via Anchor Books

The Handmaid’s Tale is set during the dictatorship of Gilead, where a religious regime takes over the United States. Because widespread infertility has made fertile women scarce, women like Offred are forced to become Handmaids. With her personal agency stripped away, her only role is to bear children for the country’s ruling elite.

While Margaret Atwood‘s novel is fiction, it’s hard to ignore the parallels between The Handmaid’s Tale and real life. Women are still shamed and scrutinized for exercising their reproductive freedom and bodily autonomy. While the U.S. isn’t a nationwide dictatorship, several states still enforce total abortion bans, showing how governments can intrude on some of women’s most private decisions.

10

‘Pachinko’ (2017)

Image via Grand Central Publishing

Min Jin Lee‘s Pachinko is a multigenerational epic following three generations of a Korean family living under Japanese annexation. Beginning in the early 1900s, Kim Sunja’s life changes when she becomes pregnant with a wealthy married man who refuses to wed her. To escape shame, she accepts a marriage proposal from the kind but frail pastor Isak and begins a new life in Japan.

Pachinko shows that there’s no right or wrong way to survive. For Sunja, a Korean woman living in Japan during World War II who is pushed to the bottom of society, there are choices she’s forced to make that eventually impact her future generations. Whatever the outcomes, the only goal is to keep living, no matter the cost.