If You Think You are Well Read, Think Again

William Grimes of the New York Times recently reviewed 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die. He says that there are two factors making it compelling: guilt and time. Peter Boxall, professor of English at University of Sussex, plays on the readers' sense of inadequacy. The 1,001 list is quirky because not only does it have an English language bias, but it also favors post World War II titles. Because the novels are from the latter half of 20th Century and 21st Century the list is definitely skewed. Boxall muses about why Don DeLillo is noteworthy for seven novels and Thackery gets only one--Vanity Fair.