Wherein We Elect Our Favourite Novels of 1988

Foucault's Pendulum is Eco's best, I've read at least three times (all in my younger days) but it's also responsible for Dan Brown so maybe that's a point against it. I only read Wittgenstein's Mistress once but it's near the top of my ever-increasing list of books to re-read, I thought it was outstanding. At the time I don't think I'd read anything quite like it. The Mezzanine is the only other I've read and is an amusing diversion.

is mezzanine the footnotes one?

Yes

breaking and entering

i may have a “vote for joy williams whenever you see her” reflex but that book is so good

I think this is the most I've had so far:

The Mezzanine by Nicholson Baker
The Silence Of The Lambs by Thomas Harris
Oscar And Lucinda by Peter Carey
The Fifth Child by Doris Lessing
Matilda by Roald Dahl
The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie
The Shadow Lines by Amitav Ghosh
Nervous Conditions by Tsitsi Dangarembga

Also think I've read Libra and the Murakami but can't remember either at all.

I was obsessed with The Shadow Lines in college so that, though the Carey is really sweet iirc

Kicking myself for not having read Breaking and Entering yet. Will have to go with Libra, the most satisfying DeLillo IMO.

Difficult for me to evaluate how much of my Matilda love is for the book and how much for the film.

The Fifth Child

may finally break my streak of voting for whichever murakami is on the list by opting for kitchen

this is the atwood i shall vote for

I've only read two: Wittgenstein's Mistress and Foucault's Pendulum. I don't remember much about the Eco so this would be Wittgenstein's Mistress for me.

this is the atwood i shall vote for

― mookieproof, Tuesday, July 27, 2021 11:05 AM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink

Same. It’s her best, I think.

My urge to read Foucault's Pendulum again (again) has increased considerably thanks to this poll. It probably introduced me to more conspiracy theories, and healthy scepticism - or downright derision - of such theories than I might have otherwise found in a decade of reading.

I was a little obsessed with The Mezzanine as a teen, but I think Foucault's Pendulum is probably the better book. I might just have to vote with the footnotes, though.

Read a few more, of which I'll single out Kitchen for an extra nod (I know there's at least one ilxor who doesn't like Yoshimoto but I will rep for this one as great).

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

Forgot to vote, I might have pushed FP into the top spot.

I forgot too. Might have given The Garlic Ballads a vote.

I forgot too. Would have been Libra, I think.

Wherein We Elect Our Favourite Novels of 1989