Why We Want Readers to Choose the Best Book of the Past 125 Years

 

Sarah Bahr, "Why We Want Readers to Choose the Best Book of the Past 125 Years", New York Times, December 5, 2021. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/05/insider/why-we-want-readers-to-choose-the-best-book-of-the-past-125-years.html

This isn’t the first time the Book Review has anointed a favorite title. In 1996, staff members asked critics and scholars to pick the best novel of the past 25 years. (The winner, Toni Morrison’s “Beloved,” is also a finalist this year.) 

But there was little transparency about the panel’s selection process, Ms. Jordan said, and she was left wondering what other books were in the mix.

So she decided the time had come to ask again — only this time, readers would nominate the books.To reach as many readers as possible, the Book Review enlisted the help of public libraries across the country. Rebecca Halleck, an editor for digital storytelling and training at The Times, and Urvashi Uberoy, a Times software engineer, helped compile a list of email addresses for nearly 5,000 libraries, hoping they would spread word of their contest to their members.The team sent each library a flyer, designed by Deanna Donegan, an art director for The Times, and Joumana Khatib, an editor on the Books desk, that included a QR code created by the Interactive News Technology desk. When scanned, it would take people to the nomination site.

COMMENT

     The New York Times newspaper took advantage of the geographic distribution of public libraries to gather a list of best novels from the past 125 years to celebrate 125 years of the NYT Book Review.  The responses were winnowed into a list of 25, which includes "Beloved" by Toni Morrison, named Best Novel of the past 25 years by the NYTBR in 1996, and currently a target of right-wing censorship.