The 10 Most Disputed Picks in the NYT Top 100 Books List

In late 2023, The New York Times published its long-awaited list of the Top 100 Books of the 21st Century. It was the result of months of voting by 503 critics, novelists, journalists, translators, and industry professionals — all asked to name the best English-language books since the year 2000.

The list covers:

• Contemporary fiction
• Nonfiction and memoirs
• Translations published in English
• A few multi-volume works grouped as single entries (like My Brilliant Friend)

While many hailed the list as thoughtful and wide-ranging, the reaction online — especially on Reddit — was far less unified. Some readers found the selections predictable. Others questioned the criteria. And some Reddit users openly hated certain picks.

This article focuses on those reactions. Rather than rehashing the entire NYT Top 100 Books list, we’ll explore the 10 titles that triggered the most disagreement, based on detailed Reddit threads, upvoted comments, and recurring critiques.

• Table Of Contents
• 1.How the NYT Top 100 Books List Was Created
• 2.10 Most Controversial Picks in the NYT Top 100 Books List
• Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow (#76)
• The Corrections (#5)
• The Underground Railroad (#7)
• Pachinko (#15)
• Station Eleven (#93)
• 3.The Missing Half of Literature in NYT’s 100-Book List

Part 1. How the NYT Top 100 Books List Was Created — and Why It Sparked Pushback

If you haven’t seen the full list yet, you can check it out here:

👉 The New York Times 100 Best Books of the 21st Century

The process was designed to reduce bias: participants submitted three titles each, which were then pitted against one another in randomized pairings — essentially, a massive "head-to-head" popularity contest.

But that method introduced its own issues:

• Voters only chose three books, leading to high fragmentation
• There was no weighting for author prestige or cultural impact
• Translations were included based on English release dates, not original publication
• Series were inconsistently grouped — sometimes merged, sometimes omitted

This led many readers to wonder:

• Why were so many iconic names missing?
• Why did genre fiction (sci-fi, fantasy, thrillers) barely make the cut?
• How did certain divisive titles rank so high?

Part 2. The 10 Most Controversial Picks in the NYT Top 100 Books List (According to Reddit)

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow (#76)

This novel was a critical darling and a bestseller — but many Reddit users think it's far too recent, far too sentimental, and simply doesn't belong on a list like this. It showed up in multiple threads as the most puzzling inclusion.

Main complaints:

• "Barely two years old" — too early to judge its lasting value
• Overly sentimental and emotionally manipulative
• Writing described as "mediocre" or "TikTok-core"
• "Not bad, just... extremely mid"

Reddit verdict: Many readers found it pleasant but forgettable — a book whose presence on the NYT Top 100 list feels more like recency bias than literary greatness.

The Corrections (#5)

Widely praised as a modern literary achievement, but Reddit's enthusiasm doesn't match its ranking. Many users called it bloated, smug, and emotionally flat.

Main complaints:

• Slow and self-indulgent prose
• Overhyped due to Franzen's media presence
• Unrelatable characters, especially for younger readers

Reddit verdict: A book that represents a certain kind of prestige fiction — which, to many, feels more exhausting than enlightening.

The Underground Railroad (#7)

Important and ambitious — but Reddit readers often found it emotionally cold and structurally flawed. Despite the weight of the subject, many said it left them unmoved.

Main complaints:

• "Tells instead of shows" — distant and didactic
• Flat characters with little depth
• Concept stronger than execution

Reddit verdict: Powerful in premise, but not in delivery — many readers expected to be gutted and weren't.

Pachinko (#15)

A popular multigenerational novel that many Redditors enjoyed — but some questioned its literary weight. Its inclusion wasn't hated, just seen as slightly overpraised.

Main complaints:

• Plot-driven, but not particularly innovative
• Dialogue and characters felt simplistic
• "A good story," but maybe not "best of the century"

Reddit verdict: Generally well-liked — just not seen as all-time great literature.

Station Eleven (#93)

A post-apocalyptic novel loved by many — but Reddit users found the writing uneven and the themes heavy-handed. Its inclusion raised eyebrows, especially among sci-fi fans.

Main complaints:

• "MFA-core" writing — polished but emotionally thin
• Unrealistic pandemic worldbuilding
• Overly sentimental

Reddit verdict: Seen as a literary crowd-pleaser that doesn't hold up under scrutiny.

Other Reddit-Disputed Titles in the NYT Top 100 Books

Beyond the headline picks, Reddit users repeatedly questioned a handful of other titles that, while critically acclaimed, didn't resonate with many readers on a personal or literary level.

Reddit consensus: These books were not universally disliked — many had strong defenders — but their presence on a "century's best" list felt more reflective of prestige, prize wins, or cultural trends than enduring literary impact.

Part 3. The Missing Half of Literature in NYT's 100-Book List

The NYT Top 100 Books list didn't just spark debate over what was included — just as many readers were frustrated by what was left out. On Reddit, entire threads were devoted to "snubs," and a clearer pattern emerged: the list heavily favored English-language, realism-focused, prize-winning literary fiction. That editorial slant shaped what didn't make the cut — and revealed some deeper fault lines.

Reader-Favorite Authors Nowhere to Be Found

Across multiple Reddit threads, certain names kept popping up — not because they made the list, but because their absence felt shocking:

• Haruki Murakami — “How does Kafka on the Shore not make it?”
• Olga Tokarczuk— “A Nobel Prize winner and none of her work is on here?”
• Margaret Atwood — “Even The Handmaid’s Tale didn’t show up? Wild.”
• David Mitchell, Toni Cade Bambara, Annie Dillard, and Joan Didion were also frequently mentioned as inexplicably missing.

What's notable is that many of these authors weren't just "great writers" — they helped shape literary taste and global conversations. Their exclusion raised questions about the list's geographic and stylistic bias.

Genre Fiction: Still Fighting for Legitimacy?

Another recurring critique: genre fiction — especially sci-fi, fantasy, horror, and poetry — got sidelined. Reddit readers pointed out the near-total absence of:

• Modern fantasy (no Le Guin, no Sanderson, no N.K. Jemisin)
• Contemporary science fiction (no Ted Chiang, no Adrian Tchaikovsky)
• Speculative YA or crossover titles
• Poetry (except maybe Citizen by Claudia Rankine, though even that was debated)

This wasn't just genre fans being defensive — the concern was that aesthetic variety and emotional range were sacrificed in favor of critical consensus and institutional prestige.

One Last Thought

Reading through the NYT Top 100 — and the heated Reddit debates that followed — you realize just how personal reading really is. What moves one person might bore another. What feels "important" to some might feel hollow to others. And that's fine. Lists like these don't settle anything — they just start conversations.

And sometimes, what's not on the list says as much as what is.

If nothing else, the Reddit threads reminded us of something simple: attention matters — whether it's to a novel, a quiet signal from someone we love, or what our kids are really experiencing online.

That's also the idea behind VigilKids — a gentle, thoughtful tool that helps parents stay tuned in without tuning everything out. Because not everything important shows up in a ranking. But it still deserves to be seen.