From Antigua to Anniversaries (of Notable Novels)

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A street in Antigua, Guatemala, that has nothing to do with the topic of this literature post. šŸ™‚ (Photo by me on January 8.)

Glad to be back! I missed writing a post last week because of a trip I took with my wife Laurel and younger daughter Maria to Guatemala, where Maria was born. A memorable visit that included stops in Guatemala City, Tikal, Antigua, Panajachel, and Guatemala City again.

Today, as I do every January, I’m going to mention well-known novels — many of which I’ve read, some of which I haven’t — reaching major round-number anniversaries. So, in 2026, novels published in 2001 are turning 25, 1976-released books are turning 50, 1926 novels are turning 100, etc.

The first 2001 novel that came to mind was Richard Russo’s riveting Pulitzer Prize winner Empire Falls, set in a Maine blue-collar town.

Released that year, too, was Jonathan Franzen’s The Corrections, about a couple and their three adult children. I liked it better than the author’s much-touted Freedom, though that 2010 novel was pretty good as well.

Also, Yann Martell’s Life of Pi, which features a boy stranded on a boat with a tiger after a shipwreck; Sue Monk Kidd’s The Secret Life of Bees, which has a lot to say about female relationships as well as racism; Ann Patchett’s Bel Canto, a riveting look at a mass-hostage situation; Amy Tan’s The Bonesetter’s Daughter, about a Chinese-American woman and her immigrant mother; Ian McEwan’s Atonement, which I found both compelling and annoying; John Grisham’s semi-autobiographical A Painted House; Neil Gaiman’s fantasy tour de force American Gods; and Jasper Fforde’s clever The Eyre Affair.

Kristin Hannah’s peak as an author was yet to arrive, but her somewhat-early-in-career 2001 novel Summer Island was quite absorbing as it focused on a fraught mother-daughter relationship and rapprochement.

In the series realm, Diana Gabaldon’s fifth Outlander novel (The Fiery Cross) and Lee Child’s fifth Jack Reacher novel (Echo Burning) came out 25 years ago.

The year 2001 also saw the publication of Carlos Ruiz Zafon’s The Shadow of the Wind and Dennis Lehane’s Mystic River, neither of which I’ve read.

In 1976, the most famous release was Alex Haley’s Roots, which was of course the multi-generational American slavery saga about Kunta Kinte and his descendants.

There was also Margaret Atwood’s third novel Lady Oracle, about a woman with multiple identities; and Marge Piercy’s Woman on the Edge of Time, a sci-fi-ish work whose lower-income protagonist is unjustly committed to a psychiatric institution.

Notable 1976 books I haven’t read include Anne Rice’s debut novel Interview with the Vampire and Judith Guest’s made-into-a-memorable-movie Ordinary People.

Exactly a century ago — 1926 — saw the appearance of Ernest Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises, which I thought was good not great.

An underrated classic that year was L.M. Montgomery’s The Blue Castle, about a young woman who gets very bad news that turns out to be very good news.

There was also Colette’s The Last of Cheri, the sequel to the 1920 Cheri novel about the relationship between a younger man and older woman; and My Mortal Enemy, one of Willa Cather’s lesser works.

Well-known 1926 novels I haven’t read include Agatha Christie’s The Murder of Roger Ackroyd and Upton Sinclair’s Oil!

Published 150 years ago, in 1876: Mark Twain’s iconic The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, about a rascally boy and his friend Huckleberry Finn.

That year also saw the release of Daniel Deronda, George Eliot’s final novel and one of her best. Its title character, who discovers he’s Jewish, interacts with some very memorable people.

In addition, there was Thomas Hardy’s not-famous-but-interesting The Hand of Ethelberta.

Two 1826 highlights were Mary Shelley’s apocalyptic, late-21st-century-set The Last Man and James Fenimore Cooper’s The Last of the Mohicans that unfolds in 1757 during the French and Indian War. Two novels with “Last” in the title that lasted.

And in 1726, 300 years ago, Jonathan Swift’s iconic Gulliver’s Travels was published!

Any thoughts on the novels I discussed? Any other titles you’d like to mention from those anniversary years? (I’m sure I missed some.)

Misty the cat says: “Tofu falling from the sky was not on my 2026 bingo card.”

My comedic 2024 book — the part-factual/part-fictional/not-a-children’s-work Misty the Cat…Unleashed — is described and can be purchased on Amazon in paperback or on Kindle. It’s feline-narrated! (And Amazon reviews are welcome. šŸ™‚ )

This 90-second promo video for the book features a talking cat: šŸ™‚

I’m also the author of a 2017 literary-trivia book…

…and a 2012 memoir that focuses on cartooning and more, including many encounters with celebrities.

In addition to this weekly blog, I write the 2003-started/award-winning “Montclairvoyant” topical-humor column every Thursday for Montclair Local. The latest piece — about two meetings, a local anti-ICE protest, and more — is here.

25 thoughts on “From Antigua to Anniversaries (of Notable Novels)”

  1. Thank you so much for this sweeping post of literature, Dave. Reading through it reminded me that January 1, 2026 is Public Domain Day, that quiet moment each year when stories are returned to all of us. This year, works published in 1929 enter the public domain, and itā€™s a powerful group. Virginia Woolfā€™s A Room of Oneā€™s Own now belongs fully to readers everywhere, as do Ernest Hemingwayā€™s A Farewell to Arms, William Faulknerā€™s The Sound and the Fury, and Dashiell Hammettā€™s The Maltese Falcon.

    What strikes me, reading your list alongside this, is how clearly it shows that books endure because stories endure. They carry our humanity forward. Our questions, our longings, our attempts to make sense of the world. Books, stories, poetry keep speaking across generations and centuries. That, to me, is the quiet miracle behind every anniversary.
    As Virginia Woolf one wrote: ā€œLock up your libraries if you like; but there is no gate, no lock, no bolt that you can set upon the freedom of my mind.ā€

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  2. A Painted House is a masterpiece that made me feel right back in elementary school back in Russia. we only lived there for three years at the house of my stepfather’s parents. it was a very memorable period in time, it was over in 1993 when we moved back to Ukraine leaving my stepfather behind. this novel by John Grisham captures my feelings from those years perfectly fine.

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  3. 1726, Gulliver, of course… and as a surgeon, Lemuel can write with authority about safeguarding & financial/legal abuse of seniors. Just make it impossible. No chance of involving the Struldbrugs in new wills, because of their age, nothing would be valid. Laputa ? Who would empty the bins ?

    1926, great year for crime classics, including the murder of Roger Ackroyd and Clouds of Witness. Arguably would be very difficult to film the first Sayers/Wimsey book, Whose Body. (1923) Radio best for such a horrific crime.

    Centenary, and I realise this is possibly a thought crime, but I always detested Pooh , much preferred William books. .

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    • Thank you, Esther! Winnie the Pooh was too cutesy in its way, but I guess I could see the appeal — especially to kids. I definitely want to read “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd,” but it’s always checked out of my local library. Perhaps I should do the sensible thing and reserve it, but when a novel I’m looking for isn’t there, I just move on to the next one on my too-long list. šŸ™‚

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    • Thank you, Robbie! Those are two Stephen King works I haven’t read, either. I did read and love King’s 2002-published novel “From a Buick 8,” so I suppose I could mention that next year. šŸ™‚

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    • Thank you, Robbie! I hear you about reading older lit; that was also my focus when I was younger. Lately, I’ve been mostly reading more-recent fiction (21st century and latter 20th century) for whatever reason, but things might change back again at some point. šŸ™‚

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  7. For 1976, I’ll go with Kiss of the Spider Woman, a River Runs through It, and Gnomes. (My dad loved Gnomes, which he received for Christmas.) Winnie the Pooh came out in 1926! Just out of curiosity, why did you find Atonement both compelling and annoying. I’ve read it, but I don’t recall being annoyed by it.

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    • Thank you, Liz! Four great anniversary mentions — two of which I’ve read (“A River Runs Through It” and “Winnie the Pooh” and one of which I’ve seen the movie version (“Kiss of the Spider Woman”).

      Re “Atonement,” I know it’s really well written, but the havoc-wreaking teen character Briony really irked me — as did the ending that kind of turned the whole mess she made of things into a novel of hers. (I think that was the ending; I haven’t read the book in about 20 years. šŸ™‚ )

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  8. 2001 was an outstanding year for books that stood the test of time. I read many of the ones on your list, but the best was The Shadow of the Wind. It is on my top 20 books of all time list. I own Empire Falls but haven’t read it. I must change that.

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    • Thank you, Marie! I totally hear you — hard to believe some of those novels were published 25 or 50 years ago. I also felt a bit old crazily traveling to several places and staying in multiple hotels in just one week. šŸ™‚

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